For a special occasion, I go pretty local, to a restaurant called Ezsra on Schönstedtstraße in Neukölln. They use really seasonal, local ingredients and the menu changes a little bit every day. They’re very sustainable; they use every part of everything. Last time I was there, they made a marzipan out of plum stones – super creative. They’re very much on track for a Michelin Green Star.
Also, there’s another similar place near- by, Tisk. They’ve got their own farms over in Brandenburg and they’ll do a chicken broiler for two people, which is quite nice for a little celebration with a bottle of wine.
For a cheap eat, I go to Öz Samsun, also in Neukölln. I like to get Pansensuppe, a tripe soup with a tray of chillies on the side. It’s €6 a bowl and you get two big pieces of bread, a load of chilies, a bit of rad- ish and a lot of herbs.
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For a cocktail, I’m really sticking local again: Velvet is great – it’s one of the best cocktail bars. They make their own vacuum distil- lates onsite from local seasonal ingredients, so you can get things like a shi- itake mushroom martini. They also make a chilli distillate and, because it’s vacuum distilled, the flavour of the habaneros comes through with the heat. It’s not a secret place, but it’s certainly worth the hype.
For a coffee, I go to our neighbours, Companion Coffee, though they actually specialise in tea. They go to places like Nepal for single-origin tea. They love it when you go in for tea. They really light up, talk through the whole tea experience and give you a second pour and all that stuff. Also, their oatmeal cookie is one of the best I’ve ever had.
I’ll go across town to get hot pot at ShooLoongKan in Charlottenburg. You can make your own hot sauce: they’ve got a buffet with all the different ingredients. I’d say go for some fresh ginger and cori- ander, a lot of fresh chilies, some oyster sauce, mix it all up. Stay away from the peanut sauce; peanuts aren’t a friend of chillies, since they cancel each other out. Then you just order whatever you like to cook yourself.
