Archive for the ‘Food’ Category

OTA-Berlin Constituency RESTAURANT Review – Kuchi Restaurant Berlin Mitte – A Review of a Berlin Sushi Haven

Thursday, September 2nd, 2010

 

Berlin

Kuchi Restaurant Berlin Mitte – A Review of a Berlin Sushi Haven

 Cocolo Ramenbar

Berlin is indisputably awash in Asian restaurants, but many of them are simply fast food venues skilled in frying anything imaginable at high temperatures.

Kuchi is different – Kuchi is an established eatery that lands on ‘Top Ten Restaurants in Berlin’ lists. Of course, hype is hype, and food is substance. Here is what happened when Kuchi Mitte was put to the test.

Appearance first. Tastefully and loungefully decorated, Kuchi is aesthetically pleasant if you prefer slightly posher locations.

There are myriad tables but somehow never enough room for all the gourmands attempting to get their fix. Make a reservation or be prepared to wait at peak hours. In any case, you might have to share your table.

Service second. Likely due to the overload of guests, service is friendly but quite slow. Food and drinks might meet with some delay on their way to you. In other words; don’t expect a quick meal at Kuchi.

Delectables third. The menu is extensive. The miso soup is smooth and, well, miso soup, so you can’t go wrong with that as a starter. The King Thai Salad is large and standard, but nothing terrific. Better stick to what Kuchi does best – sushi.

The Crunchy Tuna rolls are popular and don’t disappoint. The sake from the nigiri sushi portion of the menu leaves something to be desired but the california-maki is delicious.

Conclusion: Kuchi serves quality food at decent prices. Does it live up to the hype? Not quite, but it does come, nonetheless recommended.

Gipsstrasse 3
10119 Berlin
Tel.: 030 2838 6622
www.kuchi.de

LINKS

http://www.kuchi.de/index.php?r=mitte

http://www.kuchi.de/kant/speisenkarte6_kant_web.pdf

OTA-Berlin Constituency Blog– Favourite Restaurants in Berlin [Part 5] ‘Babel’ Lebanese restaurant in Berlin Mitte/Prenzlauer Berg

Monday, May 3rd, 2010

 Berlin  04-05-2010

‘Babel’ on Kastanienallee 33 - www.ota-berlin.de

Opened in 1999, ‘Babel’, in the new cultural centre of Berlin – Mitte/Prenzlauer Berg – has become popular by doing what it does best – serving its legendary savoury bites to Berliners and tourists at affordable prices – and has been voted one of local Berlin best places to eat.

Lebanese food has never really made its mark on western culture – outside of France – as it should have done, and it is a shame because it is world class, and yes even including its red wines!

Lebanese winemakers have always favored French grapes and Rhone varietals such as Cinsaut, Carignan and Grenache along with Cabernet Sauvignon & Merlot do well in the hot and dry Lebanese climate. Of the Lebanese red wines ask for ‘Kefraya’ [not always available unfortunately] or just take a local German beer which also accompanies any ‘fast-food’ well.

Schwarma and Falafel are big on the menu – sorry no ‘Doner’ here which is Turkish- and the portions are generous and the service is outstanding and fast. Please read our review about Doners at:http://www.ota-berlin.de/blog/category/berlin/food/

While there are many excellent  places like this in Berlin, some are better than others and stand out and this happens to be just one of them – it remains typical fast-food Schwarma/Falafel fare, but very well priced, presented and  very friendly staff.
‘Babel’ on Kastanienallee 33 , 10435 Berlin – within walking distance from both the main OTA-Berlin Serviced Apartment building at Schoenhauser Allee 5, and the new OTA-Berlin Spanish-Composers building at Metzer Strasse 8.

It is in fact kitty-corner, or right across the street from the LICHTBLIK KINO – which you can read about below at another OTA-Berlin Constituency Blog article at: http://www.ota-berlin.de/blog/berlin/2010/05/03/lichtblick-kino%e2%80%99-berlin-mitteprenzlauer-could-well-be-the-smallest-movie-theatres-in-the-world-2/

The Doner is snack number one in Berlin – down with the Curry-wurst – Long live the Doner!

Monday, April 12th, 2010

 

Berlin   13-04-2010

The Doner is snack number one in Berlin – down with the Curry-wurst – Long live the Doner!

 

Appetizing picture of Doner Kebab from; Wikipedia - Authour de :Benutzer:Wollschaf

According to the German version of Men’s Health the Doner Kebab has beat out currywurst, bratwurst, pizza and hamburgers to become the number one fast food for Germany in a 2008 poll. 

This comes as no surprise to those of us living in Berlin.  On almost every corner the savory enticing oder of roasting meat wafting on the breeze has caused more than one mouth to water. Some of us have even been so lucky to witness the up to 80 kilo thick slab of meat on a stick being delivered in the wee small hours of the morning, wrapped in plastic and carried on the shoulder of a burley delivery man.

As legend has it the Doner Kebab was invented here in Berlin in 1971 by a Turkish immigrant named Mahmut Aygun, yet another reason to appreciate social diversity and to thank our immigrant friends (of which I am one) for enriching our worlds by bringing their cultures into our lives. 

It was of course originally a Turkish concept of seasoned meat roasting on a spit and served on a plate but the twist of turning it into fast food by slapping it onto some bread with salad and a dollop of yogurt sauce made it into the snack we all know and love today. In Germany there are over 15,000 Doner restaurants (or Imbiss as its known in German).

 With the price at an astonishing 2.50 its still the staple of many a student diet. One of my favorites in Berlin is the Rosenthaler Grill at Rosenthaler Platz on the U7 but the finding of the best Doner Kebab is Berlin is a contentious argument which we will not get into here. 

Instead I will simply tip my hat and say bravo to the Doner Kebab!

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All of these are near to one of the four OTA-Berlin Serviced Apartment buildings in Mitte/Prenzlauer Berg.

‘Due Forni’ Italian Restaurant in Berlin Prenzlauer Berg- close to OTA-Berlin Apartments –

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

 

Berlin  02-04-2010

 

With its prominent position at the top of a hill on the corner of  Saarbrucker and Schonhauser Allee Due Forni is a restaurant that is  hard to miss.  Its name translates as “Two Ovens”  and they need them  both to keep churning out their succulent pizzas which are in demand  in more than just the area around Senefelder Platz.

The owners are  Italian and they like to keep things real.  The seating is mainly picnic style benches and tables with quaint red checked table cloths  which adds to the homey feeling.

The decor on the yellow walls are handwritten scrawls of satisfied guests and bands from the world over.

 Outside there is a playground since the restaurant is often frequented by young families.  After all who loves pizza more than kids?

The wait staff as well as the kitchen staff are almost all left  leaning, tattooed and pierced and resemble anarchists and punks more  than the traditional servers one would expect in a restaurant with such great food.

It can be a bit shocking at first but after a few  visits the Stockholm syndrome sets in and you look forward to be  served food from a scruffy 20 something with a nose ring.

The pizza menu has classics like the Quattro Stagnione, Quattro  formaggio, Prosciutto y funghi, but they also serve specialities like  the Campanola (salsiccia, goronzola and Spinach) and even a few with dried horse meat. 

Aside from pizza there is also a daily menu with semi traditional Italian pasta dishes and the dessert menu also varies  between standards like panna cotta and mousse au chocolat.

The prices are moderate, and no credit cards are accepted.

During important soccer games you can sort of watch along with the employees TV near the huge ovens in the kitchen.

Even though the staff are mostly Italian, there are certainly no Berlusconi’s fans nor Inter or AC Milan fans, so this makes it an even more amenable place to dine!

OTA-Berlin, with 3 of its main buildings in the vicinity have known ‘Duo Forni’ well over the last 8 years and we recommend it highly to all of our apartment guests. It is so close to our German Composer Apartments on Schoenhauser Allee 5 and our Spanish Composer Apartments on Metzer Strasse 7, that the pizza’s will still be hot after your one block trip back ‘home’ to your OTA-Berlin apartment.

All in all  this is a good restaurant, a place with consistently great food in a  relaxed atmosphere, a place to bring the whole gang and let the good  times roll!

Address: 

Schönhauser Allee 12 

 -10119 Berlin, Germany


Telephone – 030 4401-7333

‘New Orleans Haus’ – official opening party – Kreuzberg Berlin

Sunday, March 21st, 2010

 

New Orleans Haus will be open on Friday, March 19 for another beta/test night. Saturday, March 20 will be our official opening party! Hope to see y’all there!

We’ve hung pictures on the walls, put hot sauce on the tables, started the beer taps flowing, and begun boiling live crawfish! I’d say it’s time we opened up… presented by Bacardi, Southern Comfort, Pilsner Urquell, Schneider Weisse, Spreequell, and Bauer Fruit Juice.

On Saturday, March 20 we’re having a big party, and all are welcome to come and try our red beans and rice, our crawfish ettouffee, our shirmp creole, our jambalaya, or our gumbo. We’re charging a flat price of 5 euro per main dish which will include some French bread with whipped garlic butter, and a taste of desert. Food will be served until at least 11pm or later if we still have it! (We’re making a lot of food, but not all menu items may be available late in the evening). Come early (we open at 6pm) if you like peace and quiet while you dine, or come later if you want to bet on a chicken drop (I’m still looking for a live chicken if anyone has any ideas of where to get one).

Until 10pm, we’ll have special drink prices–call it a happy hour if you want. Not sure what those will be until I find out how much we’ll get from our partners, but expect around 1,50 for a beer and 3 euro for a cocktail (with alcohol). After 10, our normal beer price is still less than 3 euro, and cocktails between 4 and 6 euro.

Hope to see y’all there! We will have some door prizes!

To get from the  OTA-Berlin Apartment at Rosa Luxemborg Platz to Kreuzberg best to take the U2 to Alexanderplatz – change to the S-bahn direction Warschauer Strasse and then change to the U1 getting off at Schlieslische Tor.

New Orleans Haus
Goerlitzer Str. 42
Schlesisches Tor U1
www.neworleanshaus.de

tel -030/89 65 54 85

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‘OTA-Berlin Constituency Blog’ is part of OTA-Berlin – the economical and thrifty ‘Apartment-Alternative to Hotels’ in Berlin.

The Blog provides OTA-Berlin guests  a quick overview of the cultural, sports, social and other related activities taking place in Berlin during their stay.

With daily commentary entries, descriptions of events, and other material such as photographs or video, the blog has become popular amongst a growing number of OTA-Berlin guests - a way of keeping in touch with the city until their next visit.

‘OTA-Berlin Constituency Blog’ has existed since May 2008 and its entries are displayed in reverse-chronological order.

The blog also feeds short overviews of relevant news about financial, political, and social Germany as this relates to Berlin – and it provides commentary on this news to enlighten and generate further interest in them.

Lemke Brewery – A wonderfull beer from Berlin Mitte – worth a visit!

Friday, March 12th, 2010
  Berlin  11-03-2010

As a small, niche brewery we take particular pride in maintaining the quality and freshness of our beers. Since the company’s foundation we have brewed over 40 different beers for the delectation of our guests. These include seasonal specialities such as Maibock, Stout, a range of Ales, our very popular Eisbock and our Lemke Original and Lemke Pilsner. We are also happy to reveal a few of our brewing secrets in the tours we offer to small groups.

 
Our restaurant’s brewing equipment was designed and manufactured by us in 1998. We went on to found Lemke-Brew-Systems GmbH & Co KG and have since planned, manufactured and installed a number of other breweries in far-flung countries of the world.For more information on our brewing technology please contact Mr. Lemke.Lemke Brew Systems GmbH & Co. KG
Dircksenstr. 40, 10178 Berlin-Mittephone                                +49 (30) 308 78 96     www.lemke-brew-systems.com 
info@lemke-brew-systems.com
 

OTA-Berlin – Favourite Restaurants in Berlin [Part 3] Restaurant ‘Alpenstueck‘ – Berlin Mitte

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

 Berlin   09-03-2010

Alpenstueck – das Restaurant mit

süddeutscher Heimatküche

Heimatküche – das bedeutet für uns tägliche ehrliche Handarbeit von A wie Apfelstrudel bis Z wie Zwiebel- kuchen, mit süddeutsch-österreichischer Ausrichtung und ausnahmslos frischen, natürlichen Zutaten.

Öffnungszeiten im Restaurant: Täglich von 18-1 Uhr 

Tisch-Reservierungen bitte unter:

              030 217 516 46         030 217 516 46 oder

Alpenstueck
Restaurant mit süddeutschen Spezialitäten

Gartenstrasse 9
10115 Berlin-Mitte
 Terrasse im Sommer

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Kochkurse im Alpenstueck

Spass am Zubereiten & Freude am Genießen

Tipps und Tricks in der Alpenstueck-Küche: Schauen Sie Küchenchef Christian Rex und seinem Team in die Töpfe! Verfeinern Sie Ihre Kochkünste und holen Sie sich Tipps direkt von den Profis.

Kreieren Sie unter Anleitung ein 4-Gang-Menü mit anschließendem Dinner, zu dem Sie auch gerne Ihren Partner mit einem Gutschein einladen können.

Zum Nachkochen erhalten Sie von uns eine Mappe mit allen Rezepten. Termine für Kochkurse entnehmen Sie bitte der Seite “News”. Anmeldung & Geschenkgutscheine bitte unter:

Kochkurse können gerne auch zu anderen Terminen 
bei einer Mindest-Teilnehmerzahl von 8 Personen vereinbart werden.

Kochkurse
 
Termine im Frühjahr


Sonntag, den 07. März 2010 von 11-14 Uhr,
Preis: 89 euro, inklusive Champagner-Aperitif,
4-Gang-Menü und Getränken

Gebackene Spanferkelbäckchen mit Perlgraupensalat
Kopfsalatsuppe mit karamellisiertem Schinken
Rücken vom Neuzeller Käuterschwein mit Zwiebelmarmelade und jungem Spinat
Topfenpalatschinken mit karamellisiertem Apfel

 

 

OTA-Berlin – Favourite Restaurants in Berlin [Part 2]Restaurant ‘Das Pfeffer’ – Berlin Mitte

Monday, March 8th, 2010

 

 

Berlin      08-03-2010

 

Restaurant ‘Das Pfeffer’ – Berlin Mitte

Schönhauser Allee 176
10119 Berlin

Zugang auch von der Christinenstraße 18/19

Öffnungszeiten
Sonntag-Freitag tgl. ab 11:30 Uhr
Samstag ab 17:30 Uhr

 

Tel:               030 - 44 38 34 04         030 - 44 38 34 04
restaurant@pfefferberg.de

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‘PFEFFERBERG’   Uber    ‘PFEFFERBERG’

 

Im Sinne des Nutzungskonzepts des PFEFFERBERGs sollen Gastronomie, Kunst, Kultur und Architektur miteinander verbunden werden. Dabei wird Wert gelegt auf ein vielseitiges internationales Angebot. Ein an den Veranstaltungsbereich angelagerter Gastronomiebereich und der denkmalgeschützte Biergarten als städtischer Park hoch über der Schönhauser Allee bleiben weiterhin Treffpunkt auch ausserhalb von Veranstaltungen.

 

Der PFEFFERBERG ist aufgrund seiner attraktiven Kulturveranstaltungen weit über die Grenzen Berlins hinaus bekannt. Die “Pfefferbank” und der “Subground” waren und werden in Zukunft wieder ein beliebter Szenetreff. Ebenso die verschiedenen “Festivals”, die den PFEFFERBERG so populär machen. Kultur bleibt ein tragender Bestandteil des neuen Konzepts. Konzerte und Tanzreihen sollen mit alten und neuen Betreibern kontinuierlich weiterentwickelt werden. Das Kulturangebot bleibt offen für die Entwicklung kultureller und künstlerischer Profile. Neben der Fortführung etablierter Veranstaltungsreihen sind neuartige Veranstaltungsformen vorgesehen:

  • Konzerte (internationale, populäre, elektronische Musik, Jazz etc.);
  • Clubs verschiedenster Szenen;
  • Festivals (z.B. Musik, Tanz etc.).

In 2001 wurde mit den Entkernungsmaßnahmen der 21 Gebäude als Vorbereitung für die vollständige Sanierung des PFEFFERBERGs begonnen und zwischenzeitlich abgeschlossen.
Im nächsten Schritt wurden die Erdgeschosse der Häuser 7 und 9 saniert und für die Akira Ikeda Gallery (Japan) umgebaut. Die Akira Ikeda Gallery eröffnete auf dem PFEFFERBERG ihre neue Vertretung in Berlin mit einer Ausstellung des amerikanischen Künstlers Frank Stella.
Weitere Flächen werden Schritt für Schritt instandgesetzt und bezugsfertig hergestellt, so daß die Entwicklung des PFEFFERBERGs zu einem Zentrum für Kunst, Kultur und Dienstleistung bis 2005 abgeschlossen sein wird.

Der PFEFFERBERG liegt im Herzen Berlins, im süd-westlichen Teil des Stadtbezirks Prenzlauer Berg. 1841 lag das Grundstück noch ausserhalb der Stadt. Heute befindet sich dieser Ort an der Bezirksgrenze zu Berlin-Mitte, zehn Minuten Fussweg vom Alexanderplatz und 15 Minuten von den Hackeschen Höfen entfernt. Achthundert Meter weiter in Richtung Norden liegen der Kollwitzplatz, die Kulturbrauerei und der Prater.

Verkehrsanbindung
Unter der Schönhauser Allee verläuft die U-Bahn-Linie 2. Die Station “Senefelder Platz” liegt direkt gegenüber dem Haupteingang zum PFEFFERBERG. Diese Linie wird ab dem Sommer 2003 im 24-h-Takt fahren. Ein Nachbus hält direkt vor dem Grundstück. Weitere Bus- und Strassenbahnlinien befinden sich im Umkreis von 500 m. 

OTA-Berlin – Favourite Restaurants in Berlin [Part 1] ‘CHEZ MAURICE’ Berlin Prenslauer Berg

Monday, March 1st, 2010

 

Berlin   01-03-2010

Die Gerichte der Klassikerkarte entstammen der traditionellen französischen Küche.
Auf der wechselnden Abendkarte sind hochwertige saisonale Produkte modern verarbeitet.
Sie können sich Ihr Menue aus beiden Karten zusammen stellen.
Für den besonderen Anlass gibt es ein 10-Gang Amuse-bouche Menü für 75,- Euro,
als Variation aus allen Gerichten der wechselnden Abendkarte.
Mittags bekommen Sie von 12:00 bis 16:00 (Di.-Sa.) ein Plat du Jour, Vorspeise oder Dessert und ein Hauptgericht für 10,-€.
Oder Sie können auch von der Klassikerkarte wählen.

 

Chez Maurice GmbH
Christof Krapf
Bötzowstr. 39, 10407 Berlin
Tel: 030. 4 25 05 06

The Berlin Weinerei is not a Schweinerei!

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

[In German a big gyp, or a fraud type scandal is called a <<Schweinerei>>.]

In Berlin a system of you <<pay what you think this is worth>> system has been in operation for over a decade at the Berlin Weinerei.

It may sound like a completely backward way of running a business, but in fact you go and eat, [and drink after 2000hrs!] and then you pay what you think it was all worth. They do emphasize that you should be respectful with your payment, which means you should average at least 2 Euros a glass but for the quality of the wine this is often a great deal One cannot argue with success however because the Weinerei has been around over 10 years and is doing fine thank you very much.

The history of the pricing-option came about by the owners trying to bring out the sommalier in us all. They started with a wine shop on Veeteranen Str and as their customer base grew they decided to turn the often all too elite world of wine on its head by offering everyone the chance to sample and experience different wines for cost. So in keeping with their small-business mentality and basic trust in their customers left the pricing as an option at the end of the meal – <<please leave your money in the box at the front door>>.

People in the neighborhood loved the place and it has become so successful that there are now 3 separate Weinerei all in the area of Zionskirchplatz in Berlin Mitte.

After one of your meals you may want to visit the nearby Zionskirch [Zions church] which has recently been the focus of a renovation campaign on on the outside, but is still completely barren inside.

This is where the German Luthern theologian and heroic resistor to the Third Reich, Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor.This great and heroic figure stands out in recent German history as a moral giant – especially when compared to his opponents, the moral pygmies, the rat-like nazis.