If you have any business with the ETH (Switzerland's MIT) or The university hospital, there is no better location. I have stayed here for many years and it is a real unfussed home from home. The staff are wonderfully friendly and cannot do enough for you. Claudio the chef makes sure that you eat what you want, menu or not.
It is a small boutique like hotel with very originally decorated rooms. The nearby tram station takes you everywehre in no time. My last visit was last Tuesday 25.10.2011, the more often you go the better it gets. The simplicity without fuss is what I appreciate.

We recently spent 4 nights at this hotel and the experience was good. The hotel was just as we expected from the reviews on here. Clean and functional. Location was excellent, just a quick walk away from 2 tram stops and a jump and a skip from the old town. Staff was helpful. I would like to take this opportunity to extend a special acknowledgement to Julia who went out of her way to give us tips about Zurich and the surrounding areas. We had no plans to go to Lucerne but based on her recommendation we took a ride out there and it turned out to be the highlight of the whole trip. We enjoyed our stay in Zurich and Plattenhof was a good choice.

Being at a meeting at the University, I appreciated the convenience of 1-2 block walks, the rates were considerably higher than the meeting had published, but I had I believe an upgraded room. The decor is decent and almost sophisticated, the staff at the front despite other comments were very helpful. The prices though are for Americans just out of sight, ridiculous, in part because of dollar exchanges. The breakfast is better again than most comments, certainly ample.

Hotel is in a great location in quiet street within walking distance of Zurich art museum and old city. In the two years since my last visit the hotel has really suffering from wear and tear and is need of a general sprucing up. Had a slightly unloved feel about it. With swiss franc so strong rates are on a par with five star hotels elsewhere for what is at maximum a three star venue.