Berlin Michelin stars 2022: Bricole for the win

Restaurant Bricole. *Photo: Simone Artale*

It was easy to miss in the midst of, well, everything, but yesterday Michelin announced its 2022 honours for Germany. And while there weren’t any huge surprises, we were happy to hear that Bricole – the Franco-German hors d’oeuvre bar turned fine dining spot featured on the cover of Exberliner’s brand-new food guide – has been awarded its first star.

Here’s our entry for the restaurant, translated from Clemens Niedenthal’s original review:

“Chef de cuisine Steven Zeidler always has the culinary zeitgeist at his fingertips, but he never allows trends to compromise his restaurant’s Francophile Southern German DNA. When the second course, a congenial combination of potatoes and egg yolks served with lardo and veal sweetbreads, arrives on the table, it is clear that the restaurant spares no expense when it comes to the quality of its meals, all while maintaining exceptionally fair prices for its guests (five to six courses from €74). A can’t-miss recommendation for newcomers to the fine dining scene – and anyone who’s interested in enjoying an excellent meal.”

Restaurant Bricole. *Photo: Hiroshi Toyoda*

It’s not like the Michelin Guide is an accurate reflection of the Berlin dining zeitgeist (you’ll have to pick up our food guide for that!). The restaurants on the list below are overwhelmingly western European and run by white, male chefs, and many of them are places we locals avoid like the plague. If you had €185 to burn on a single dinner, would you really spend it at Hugos in the Hotel Intercontinental? That said, congrats to Zeidler and Bricole owner Fabian Fischer on the entry of their charming neighbourhood restaurant onto the global stage – and to Michelin inspectors for finally acknowledging the existence of Prenzlauer Berg.

In other Berlin Michelin news, the vegan, zero-waste Frea and northern German Cordo picked up Green Stars (a controversial distinction awarded to restaurants that combine “culinary excellence with outstanding eco-friendly commitments”, introduced last year), and the slick dim sum house Long March Canteen won its first Bib Gourmand (which, whaa?). Slightly further afield, two new stars – one red, one green – went to Alte Überfahrt on Insel Werder, cementing the tiny Havel island’s status as a serious foodie destination. The only restaurants that lost stars were Pauly Saal and Cinco in Das Stue, for the very good reason that both are now closed.