a food club for esthetes - Madklubben Vesterbro, Copenhagen

Madklubben Vesterbro is an affordable restaurant among a series of innovative eateries in Kopenhagen (Madklubben means "eating club"). It is one of those flawless eateries where you feel that the people running the business as well as the serving staff love what they do.

Seasonal menus (including Danish dark bread to die for) is served in a cool Skandivanian interior, warm lights and with on gorgeous table setting. Every detail is so pretty that you can hardly take your eyes off. 

Madklubben Vesterbro, Vesterbrogade 62, Copenhagen.

Opens every day 5:30 pm - 0:00 am.

Price for a 3 courses vegetarian menu: 150 DKK.

Make a reservation in order to sit at the table. No reservation needed to be served at the bar.

If you have Danish speaking company, let him / her translate the restaurants manifest. Just for fun ;)

Pret à Diner Berlin and Food Hype in the City

Finally not only watching cooking shows on television but also cooking in real life seems to have become a national sport. Across city and country borders as well, but especially within these Prussian city borders. When five years ago the question was who at all was serious with cooking or talked about food, the question today is who doesn't do so because everybody does.

Presuming that any food that is made by oneself is better than what is offered by the food industry, I welcome this trend of getting more engaged with food, with ingredients' quality and origins, consumption ethics and so on.

What I dislike about the wave is that some people (and i don't mean those who have to do it for a living because it is their profession) start to make a hype of the fact that they too, deal with food. After all and to some extent, shouldn't that be a natural thing? Has the hype gone so far that these days you write diplomas on supper clubs or on foodblogs? And that some people write full-time about eateries and their cooked meals but without any journalistic approach? I slightly feel that we are overestimating the food-dealing-matter and of course, I am not innocent in this regard but fully part of the stream :)

Together with the trend came up some alternative dining and food experiences: restaurants in clubs (dining clubs?), dinner en blanc, bread exchange, pop-up restaurants, supper clubs, recipes based grocery shops and running dinners.
For sure I forgot some and there must be a lot more that I haven't heard of yet. A cooking tandem? A foodbloggers' fleamarket? A neighbors' cooking competition? Who knows.

(Whereas the traditional, politically influenced Volxküche has nothing to do with the trend because the trend primarily seeks being in vogue. Another alternative institution from the time before the wave is the pay-what-you-want-bar but I am not sure if it is still running.)

I did not seek many food events but can tell about three of the more or less positive experiences that I made.

Auf Haxe - as far as I understood this running dinner started with a facebook group. On an evening you cook together with the partner of your choice one course for two unknown couples. Then you will be invited for two other courses by other couples.
Now that the event has gained some reputation and enough participants, you will be linked with people that live in your neighborhood. At the end of the evening there is a party for all participants and whoever else wants to join. It was a funny experience (see me flipping tarte tatin), not competitive at all and a chance to meet literally all kinds of folks.

You want to join this event in your city but there is no such thing yet? Lucky you, you can be the one to initiate it :) Someone always has to make the start and in these times of online networking it should be easier than ever.

Pret a diner - the vastly expanded pop-up restaurant and dining club chose "in the mix" as subtitle for their last Berlin event and mixed were my feelings about it, too.

Built up on a unique location (an old coin mint in Mitte) together with a temporary gallery (circle what?? the works were more eye-catching than interesting) in the entry, it offered Michelin chefs' cuisine, sumptious decoration, a band that performed two songs but billed without leaving you a choice and an amateur, thus totally overstrained service crew. The problem of the concept is that it is indecisive about whether it wants to celebrate extravagance or down-to-earth-ness.
I guess, it is worth visiting if one is keen on a special setting rather than on the food. We took the vegetarian menu by Stephan Hentschel of Cookies Cream which I found not surprising but promising enough that I would like to visit the chef at normal business. The bar next room and the cocktails list were beautiful.

Will update with better pics if I get hands on them and write about a supper club in the next post!

See a little introduction into past and present underground restaurants here.

salad for a deli owner

do you own a deli? are you uninspired about what to offer the crowd for lunch? do you offer the same dreary whishy-washy sandwiches or greasy pasta gratins every day?
here is a hint: a lentil (but cooked until soft, not al dente!) salad with beetroots, radicchio, any other fresh and colorful thing that you have, coriander and a fine dressing.
veeeeery cheap ingredients. nooooo cooking involved. and the crowd will thaaaank you because they feel good after lunch. and they will come back. so offer some sort of this soon, be happy with the reactions and don't hesitate to consult me for further ideas.

crisp lunch @ kopps, mitte

i visited a brand new restaurant in linienstr and my dear friend selin was willing to accompany me and sit as a model :). thank you!

it is owned by björn moschinski, the former chef of la mano verde, the so far only gourmet vegan restaurant in berlin.

ideally located at koppenplatz with full view of the streets and the fancy mitte folks, the launch seems to be promising.

not that this area lacks good eateries: actually the galleries' district between torstr and auguststr as of 2011 is the food mile of the city - there are plenty of either upscale or cozy addresses with all kind of cuisines and nowhere it's easier to get quality snacks in stylish ambiance.

to start with what i disliked at kopps - the waiter was way too stiff and hectic. but maybe i was to blame, too. as i had never been to a vegan institution before, i had the preconception that those people would be per se casual, wearing dreadlocks and eco-clothes. so i addressed the waiter with "du..." / "ihr..." and he certainly was not amused and said "sie!..." well i see, it is rather a chic place.

anyway as to the food... it was superb! we ordered a beetroot ravioli with sprout salad and fig confit. it came together with solid ciabatta, dark bread and a bread spread that reminded a little of an egg salad. everything was crisp, artistically arranged, not really filling (the serving was tiny) but with a maximum in taste and refined flavors.

and the coffee was the best i had in a long long long while. (being not a fan of these overrated coffee shops...)

don't miss this lighthearted documentary that features björn among other personalities and get inspired in terms of sustainable indulgences.

kopps bar & restaurant,
linienstr. 94, mitte.
opens every day from 8:30 am.

Schlesisch Blau, Kreuzberg

I finally made it to Schlesisch Blau.

With a slightly special concept and located at the vibrant night-life-traffic area at Schlesisches Tor this hobby restaurant has gained stable popularity since its opening. It is one of those odd places that I think can only exist in Berlin. When dining outside you sit directly at a bus station. When elsewhere such places would be avoided with contempt here nobody, whether the traffic nor the diner cares.

For a four course dinner you pay only 17 euros. This is possible because three (a soup, a lettuce salad and a dessert) out of four courses are prepared in advance and for the main dish you can chose only between two non-vegetarian and one vegetarian dish. I had the vegetarian Maultaschen with glazed onions and carrots. Except for the Swabian raviolis which weren't distinct in taste, I enjoyed all the food.

A friendly and amusing place to visit once and bring out-of-town-visitors with you but not so impressive as to come back in the near future ;)

Schlesisch Blau, Köpenicker Str. 1a. Everyday from 8 p.m. Closed on Sundays.

Jajangmyeon @ Juki, Prenzlauer Berg

There is a new Korean BBQ bar in Lychener Straße where I tried Jajangmyeon. Jajangmyeon is what Koreans refer to as Chinese cuisine but it isn't. Let's say it's a Chinese Korean dish with a fast-food-image. Kids and adults alike love these sticky wheat noodles with salty black bean sauce but are not allowed to eat them as often as they would like to (I don't know exactly why).

The banchans were so so but the noodles were good. Like the other Korean restaurants that opened in Prenzlauer Berg during the past years I think Juki lacks a concept of interior design.

Not that this is what really counts but I prefer the authentic no-design-at-all Korean restaurant (there are plenty of this type in Frankfurt am Main btw) to an half-hearted attempt.

Juki BBQ and Soju Bar
Lychener Str. 13.
Open from 4 pm.
Closed on Mondays.

K-Town Manhattan

Among all the Korean enclaves around the world K-Town in Manhattan must be the tiniest. It is basically one block of the West 32th street (signposted as the Korea Way), a stone's throw away from the Empire State Building and thus, not residential :)

If you are really interested into authentic food or in meeting locals it is recommended to go to Flushing, Queens where owing to a vast Korean American community traditional gastronomy is said to be cheaper and better. But if you are lazy and lacking time the Manhattan site is the most convenient and dense conglomeration of inexpensive service facilities: an abundant grocery store (a bit chaotic appearance but they sell fresh banchan and kimchi to take), cosmetic stores, "fancy stores" (if you are not Korean, you won't need these :), book stores, beauty salons, bakeries, a mandoo bar, karaoke bars, restaurants... all open until late.

This is my list of tried and approved eateries:

1. Third Floor Cafe: A tasty Kimchi Boggeum Bab (stir fried rice) and a Watermelon Martini for 12 $ during Happy Hour. The best ambience.

2. Shilla: Mul Naeng Myun (cold noodles) and vegetable dumplings (don't forget to order the steamed version, not the fried one as I did!).

3. Kunjip: Galbi Gui (marinated beef short rips bbq), Hae Mul Pa Jun (Seafood pancake), Soon Doo Boo Chigae (silken tofu stew) and Bibimbap.
Inexpensive, tasty and everything comes with a lot of banchans.

Cannot recommend Dduk Boki there though (sauce is not well balanced).

4. Koryodang: If you have never had Korean pastries, you should. Consistency of the dough is much lighter and just really different. Here I was introduced to Chabssal Donut which turned out to be a curse (way too addictive). Or go to the rival.

Cannot recommend the Patbingsu (shaved ice) because of too little azuki bean sauce.

5. Last but not least Mé Bar. This is a tiny hidden roof top bar and the most relaxed of this sort. Can recommend the Pomegranate Martini.

Nobu Tribeca

As I am still new in town my culinary tours limit to the familiar spots that locals would yawn at when reading about it. Too much has been written and told about all of them before.

I hope you still don't mind if I tell you about the best food I had here so far and at the same time one of the best in my life ;)

Earlier this month I went to Nobu in Tribeca which is the original restaurant of what is now a chain empire spread out over 13 countries. On their website they claim to be "the world's most recognized Japanese restaurant" which cannot be true, i) when they mean all the 30 chain restaurants on different continents and ii) when they serve fusion food.

However, if you want to see a spot that is exactly as you expect a fancy New York restaurant should be - this is the place to go. It was crowded and loud like hell, rich and beautiful folks. And with the underlying excitement that you feel when there could be celebrities around - what you only feel when you are not from Manhattan.

As to the food - I didn't take pictures for the lighting was too scanty but I filmed a little so that you can get an idea of the atmosphere. There are tons of pictures of each dish on the www anyway. It wasn't intended but in the end I opted for the signature dishes.


i)"Tiradito Nobu Style": scallops slices marinated with lemon juice and with a hint of coriander and chili.

--> Simple and pure.


ii) "Sashimi Salad with Matsuhisa Dressing": bluefin tuna sashimi with a pepper crust and a salad of wild lettuce, daikon hair, endives, radish, cucumber juliennes and a soy-sauce-rice-vinegar-dressing.

--> From an ecologically sound point of view I wouldn't encourage anybody to eat tuna in the 21th century. But this dish was ingenious, so abundant of different subtle flavors, I guess it would allow to make an exception here and never eat tuna again? ;). It was mind-boggling.

iii) "Zen": green tea mousse, almond sponge, chocolate praline crunch, grean tea cremoso and adzuki bean.

--> One of the best desserts I have ever had and I am grateful for the inspiration. I love mascarpone (or similar substitutes) and adzuki beans (I love every sweetness that Koreans make out of them, especially Patbingsu) and by chance, a sister's friend in Japan procured my first matcha tea recently (isn't that great when siblings have nice friends btw?) but I would have never thought about combining these favorite ingredients.

This is fusion food at its best - leaving the taste of traditional ingredients unadulterated but lifting them to another level through intersection.