Step Inside This Swiss Chocolate Hotel By Studio MHNA

Chocolate. An unusual and fascinating theme that Studio MHNA has agreed to reinterpret for the Swiss Chocolate Hotel by Fassbind. Marc Hertrich and Nicolas Adnet have taken up the challenge of designing the hotel’s interior as a tribute to this Swiss speciality.

This is not the first collaboration between Fassbind and the designer duo, who has already designed the Swiss Wine and Swiss Night projects.

And this time around, Studio MHNA is deploying all its stylistic uniqueness and strength throughout the hotel’s 56 rooms and common areas, and infuse them with the characteristics of chocolate. The hotel, located in the heart of Zurich, offers a gourmet interlude in a setting altogether soft, calm, and voluptuous…

From the moment you step through the door, the omnipresence of chocolate is palpable. In the entirely renovated 36 m2 breakfast area, the guests are plunged into its universe. Behind the impressive reception desk of veined white marble, the floral wallpaper echoes the exotic origins of the cocoa bean.

At breakfast, the counter-cum-buffet holds a chocolate-rich menu with an adjacent chocolate fountain that will satisfy the most demanding customers. The ceiling is decorated with cocoa leaves carved out of wood that create a dialogue with the brown clay tiled floor.

The same sweet delicacy has also inspired the walls, whose wooden panels represent giant chocolate bars partially wrapped in tin foil. Made of stained wood and covered in silver leaf, the highly pertinent blend of textures creates a playful and original atmosphere. The seating, from the red and yellow armchairs to the hazelnut-coloured benches, brings contrast to the room. In the reception area’s window display, a selection of original and traditional chocolates can be admired or bought as souvenirs, an invitation to prolong this culinary experience.

Up on the first floor, the corridors take you on a journey through cocoa history with portraits of some of the great chocolatiers families of Switzerland, such as Cailler, Sprüngli, or Lindt.

In the rooms, the nods to the popular confectionery are numerous, starting with the room numbers written on bars of chocolate. Ranging from 12 to 34 m2, the overall theme is showcased by modern pieces of furniture such as the bedside tables designed like stacks of chocolate squares.

The wallpaper, designed by Studio MHNA, is adorned with cocoa fruits that bring a touch of warmth, as do the heads of the beds made of light wood or brown padding, the two-toned curtains, and the chairs sporting a cocoa bean print. The choices of ochre-yellow and cerulean-blue are an expression of Marc Hertrich and Nicolas Adnet’s appreciation of colour. And even on the bathroom walls, the tiles are reminiscent of chocolate bars with their graphical game of black and white and minimalist aesthetic.

For the adventurous gourmets and travellers, Studio MHNA will soon be bringing this attractive concept to other hotels around Switzerland.