Reopening uncertain: Entire kitchen crew quits – top restaurant closes immediately

The Sonne restaurant must close immediately. The top restaurant can no longer find staff and the previous crew has quit.

The Sonne restaurant in Seuzach ZH, which Armin Waldvogel took over in June 2023, achieved 15 “Gault Millau” points within a few months and was considered an up-and-coming top restaurant.

But behind the scenes the problems came to a head: a lack of staff and the dismissal of the entire kitchen crew forced Waldvogel to temporarily stop operations at the end of October, as the “Landbote” reports. “We are suffering from a severe shortage of skilled workers,” he explained.

Waldvogel rejects allegations of overburdening employees. “I have always made sure that this does not happen,” he emphasized. Nevertheless, former employees criticized the lack of appreciation and high demands, which led to high fluctuation, particularly in service.

Owners do not comment

Chef Timur Asadullaev told the “Landbote” that things were “no longer harmonious” and that he wanted to concentrate on his career in Zurich.

The restaurant has been closed since mid-November because it was not possible to find new staff. “It was all extremely expensive,” says Waldvogel, who says he got into a financial hole because of the crisis. He is now looking for a new tenant for the restaurant while continuing to operate the hotel. He doesn’t see a silver lining on the horizon “at the moment.”

The owners of the Sonne, Monika and Stephan Jäger, did not want to comment on the situation because they were “neither operationally nor strategically involved in the business”. Whether and when the sun can open again remains uncertain.