Discovering Zürich West (one designer shop at a time)

This past weekend, we finally decided to leave the familiar parts of Zürich (yes, that's you, Old Town, and Bahnhofstrasse) and instead set foot in Zürich West. As it turns out, this previously industrial part of the city has been completely transformed with new building projects, cultural spaces, and trendy shops.

Needless to say, we loved it!

First Stop: Freitag Store

Going with the theme, the makers of the iconic Freitag messenger bags have cleverly upgraded a compound of used shipping containers as their flagship store:

On the inside, we were surprised to find hundreds of neatly labeled drawers containing all colors, shapes, and sizes of bags. The Freitag brothers' genius idea to re-use old truck tarps even got their original bag a spot in the MoMA, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City!

After climbing several fleets of stairs from container to container, we finally approached the "Observation Deck"! How cool is that?

We love a good view any day of the week, so we would go as far as adding the Freitag Store Observation Deck as #5 in our list of 4 Best Views From The Roofs of Zürich!

The Freitag Shop is located at Geroldstrasse 17 in Zürich.

Next Stop: Im Viaduct

Located just a short walk down the street is the latest of Zürich's shopping districts, called Im Viaduct. You really cannot miss it if you just look for a series of arches with the occasional S-Bahn train passing overhead!

This 500 m/5.5 football fields long arcade features the finest in designer clothing and furniture, as well as high-end electronics and funky accessories. There is something for everyone, especially if you are into gifts and knick-knacks which can otherwise only be found in London, New York, or Tokyo!

As for us, the restaurant inside the permanent indoor market stole the show, though. The market features some 50 stalls run by local farmers, and the restaurant uses ingredients exclusively from these merchants!

By the way: We had the olive spread with freshly baked bread, as well as the walnut gorgonzola fusilli pasta. It was so tasty, it will be tough to go for any other dish the next time we return to the Markthalle im Viaduct!

What's your favorite spot in Zürich West? This is your time to shine by sharing your ultimate shop, hairdresser, art gallery, or restaurant with our readers...