On the spot!

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Merken

What do Lady Gaga, David Beckham and Lena Dunham have in common? All three of them really love going nowhere really fast. The fitness revolution indoor-cycling that started in the US has now come to Germany. And it’s about so much more than just cycling on the spot. The focus is not just on the sport, it’s on the common experience and the lifestyle. BECYCLE from Berlin turns the high-power cardio workout into an electrifying electro party in their first Studio in the Brunnenstraße. Beats by hip Berlin DJs are made to match the workout. Motivating instructors from LA, New York and London inspire to reach athletic peaks. And everybody goes: Yeah! So now you can even enjoy club feeling while being sporty and move your legs to the rhythm of the city. At BECYCLE, it’s almost like it takes over the pedals and fires us up with energy. Next to spinning, which forms the focus, you can also put your power into the newest trends in core training, barre training or yoga in its various forms. The courses are spread across the whole day and can be booked individually on the website. You don’t need a membership. The course fee includes rental of spinning shoes and also water, shampoo, towels and other goodies. And did we mention that the studio looks and feels incredibly good? Raw walls, wood, spa showers with Leogant-conditioned water and a modern sound system give it a design hotel flair. No question, that place is on a roll, er, spin.  And rightfully so.
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BECYCLE | Brunnenstr. 24, 10119 Berlin | becycle.de | Photo: Mike Fuchs

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 14. Juli 2016 | Tags: , , , , , |  Keine Kommentare

What a trip!

Panama lies in the Potsdamer Straße. In a back yard of a former brick factory building, to be precise. It’s lovely there. Bright and brilliant. Looks a little bit like a summer holiday. And it smells really good. So why seek far afield? Go there. To eat and drink. Because the Panama is the third gastronomical coup of the foodies from the Contemporary Food Lab. After the Katz Orange in Mitte and the Kreuzberg Deli Candy on Bone, the interdisciplinary visionaries have created a homage to the utopian story by the illustrator Janosch with this restaurant and bar. With “The Trip to Panama”, he invented a place that inspires wanderlust on the one hand and feels as cozy as home on the other hand. This dream-turned-reality in the middle of the highest concentration of galleries in Berlin doesn’t necessarily cook Panamanian cuisine, so you won’t find chicken-vegetable-stew or cooked manioc. But there are dishes that combine the well-known with the new and surprising. So you will be served brine shrimps or the famous and delicious Duroc pork. But they will come combined with blueberries, vanilla or rhubarb. You’ll find ingredients such as refining cinnamon blossoms, hues of curcuma, smoky notes of nuts, glowing beetroot – which coax totally new aromas from the familiar. Lettuce for dessert? You bet. With passion fruit, dark chocolate and coriander seeds. For 8 Euros. So we’re happy to quote the slogan of the small state of Panama: »Pro Mundi Beneficio«, »For the welfare of the world «. And to yours!
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Panama | Potsdamer Straße 91, 10785 Berlin |  Tue to Sat from 6 p.m. | +49 (0)30 983 208 435 or hello@oh-panama.com | oh-panama.com | Photo: Philipp Langenheim & Corina Schadendorf

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 29. Juni 2016 | Tags: , , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Jubilation!

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What a party that was two years ago, a real bash! We pitched our giant white Zendome right in the middle of the Torstraße in Berlin, built grandstands and seating from hand-painted palettes, hung metres and metres of hand-made flag-bunting, installed bar, foosball table and ping pong table, served changing street food or lovingly grilled Bratwurst or tofu sausages. The rest is history, Germany is World Cup Champion, the fourth star has been pinned to the lapel. There’s no doubt that our muxmäuschenwild World Cup STUDIO was and still is one of our all-time highlights. And presto, it’s now 2016 and the UEFA Euro has begun and we don’t have our own public viewing area this year. Unfortunately. Or fortunately? Because this way, we can enjoy the matches, cool beer in hand, at the nicest viewing places our friends have to offer. The ELF FREUNDE EM Quartier is a must and with the Astra, the Lido and the Binuu, it covers three strategically important positions in the central midfield. The leader of the pack, if you will. (Excuse us, have you seen the façade of the Lido?!) Regular spot, guaranteed because fabulous. Also great and just as experienced in tournaments: the DIM Arena in the Oranienstraße in Kreuzberg. The Imaginäre Manufaktur, known for design with social background in football-free times, has brought together a team of people with and without handicaps in the back yard of the former home for the blind. Accompanied by grilled goods and refreshing drinks, the large screen delivers the images for cheering and celebrating. Last but not least the newest member of the team: the construction site beer garden set up by our friends from BRLO, who will be opening their own BRLO BRWHOUSE right next to the Park at the Gleisdreieck soon. Craft beer straight from the tap and football? We have a match! Now it’s time to cross your fingers for Germany or Poland or whoever you’re rooting for. May the best team win and Thomas Müller shoot the winning goal at the end. Olé!
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ELF FREUNDE EM Quartier | Astra, Lido, Binuu | 11freunde.de | DIM Arena | Oranienstr. 26, 10999 Berlin | dim-arena.berlin | BRLO BRWHOUSE Biergarten Baustelle | Schöneberger Str. 16, 10963 Berlin | Facebook

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 16. Juni 2016 | Tags: , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Eating in the Future

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The Roy&Pris at the Weinbergspark in Berlin-Mitte opened about three years too early. We’ll tell you why later. First of all, we’ll quickly tell you that the new restaurant highlight by the gastronomy-greats Axel Burbacher-Burzin and Guanfeng ‚Afon‘ Guan is home to the probably best Dim Sum (loosely translated: small meals and snacks that touch the heart) this side of the Chinese wall. Octopus salad with rhubarb and radishes, for example, or the vegan lily salad. The latter is so fresh, crisp, delicious and seasoned with a citric note that, on your next birthday, you might be tempted to chomp into the fragrant bouquet. Also to be found on the menu: pork chops, lamb or duck, vegetarian dishes, salmon sashimi or the fantastic Man Tous, small yeast dough pockets that you can fill yourself – for example with ever so tender pork belly, pulled duck or aubergines. A fully grown city slicker can manage about 2 to 3 of these little delicacies priced at 7 to 12 Euro. Now let’s talk about ambience and the mix up with dates mentioned earlier. Roy & Pris are two main characters from Ridley Scott’s larger-than-life debut BLADE RUNNER from 1982. The film is set in future Los Angeles and paints a cheerless, neon-drenched picture. Humanity is on the verge of a gaping abyss, all animals are virtually extinct, it never stops raining and artificial creatures like Roy and Pris follow their assignment of developing new living environments, at least until they are hunted down by the Blade Runner aka Harrison Ford and are “sent into retirement”. Adverts and neon lights flickering everywhere. The set design and décor of the film are to this day unrivalled and genre-defining. Countless designers, graphic designers, fashion designers, photographers and the like got their bearings from this visionary look. The film has, in a way, ensured that part of its fictitious future becomes reality. As happened this year in January, when the Roy&Pris opened its doors. Together with the sublime design studio ett la benn and the artist Darius Ghanai, who was the responsible credit and corporate designer for cinema films such as Good Bye Lenin, Das Parfum or Don’t Come Knocking, the founders created a piece of Blade Runner reality. With a combination of twilight, darkness, huge star constellations and neon-glowing threads stretched across the room, an excitement is created that, at the same time, has a relaxing effect, even though it’s not what we’re used to. Not. From. This. World. Or, actually, not from this time. Because Blade Runner is set in 2019. And now we’ve come full circle. Enjoy eating and indulging in the now of the day after tomorrow.
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Roy&Pris Starkitchen | Weinbergsweg 8a, 10119 Berlin Mitte | open daily 12 am-12 pm | royandpris.com | Photo: Roy&Pris

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 09. Juni 2016 | Tags: , , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Dingdongdonut

If we generously overlook presidential candidates with blond second-hand hairdo’s and an intellect-allergy and a few other bits and bobs, we can all agree: many good things come from America. What Homer Simpson, Dexter Morgan and – according to the cliché – innumerable American police officers have known for a long time and are spreading into the world: One of the best exports from the states is the American punctured pastry, commonly known as the donut. Now Berlin just wouldn’t be Berlin if it didn’t offer a contemporary adaption of the sweet and glazed yeast dough pastry. Last weekend, the passionate bakers Bram and Jessica opened Europe’s first vegan Donut shop at the Maybachufer. What began as a small present for a birthday party has now become a business model for the two friends of the loop. After their creations gathered fans at various markets, they have now made their colourful dream come true with this small café. The long queue at the opening and the happy-yet-distressed post on facebook at 4 pm – „We are sold out of Donuts for now“ – go to show that there is a donut beyond all the grease! The 29 variations of Brammibal’s Donuts, from Speculatius to chocolate with pretzels, from matcha to blueberry-vanilla to vegan bacon with coconut, all do without animal content or additives but with plenty of great taste. Well howdy, that’s finger licking awesome or something along those lines!
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Brammibal’s Donuts | Maybachufer 8, 12047 Berlin | Tue – Fri 8 am to 6 pm, Sat & Sun 10 am to 8 pm |
brammibalsdonuts.com | Facebook

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 25. Mai 2016 | Tags: , , , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Chez Maurice

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We were having dinner at our favourite restaurant right around the corner in Bötzowstraße 39. A middle-aged lady in a colourful suit – also a regular guest, like us – was sitting at the table next to us with her companion. They were having an animated every day conversation while we were intensely studying the minimalistic menu of Chez Maurice. Minimalistic meaning that, besides appetizers such as tuna tartar in asparagus emulsion, onion soup au gratin or warm goat’s cheese, there are only 6 dishes you can order. There’s beef, fish, two creations from white meat and a vegetarian dish. As well as the all-time favourite black pudding with apple slices glazed in thyme caramel, onion jam and mashed potatoes. The lunch menu even includes an inexpensive two or three course meal with seasonal ingredients fresh from the market. There’s really no point in stressing yourself to order the right dish – they are all cooked to perfection, beautifully composed, gloriously simple and yet so refined.  Chez Maurice was originally a wine and delicatessen shop when it opened in 1997 to offer imported wines from small French vineyards at reasonable prices. In the meantime, the dining area has grown a bit, but the nostalgic décor is still covered in wine bottles – no trends, no chichi, but a whole lot of substance. The atmosphere reminds us more of a meal with friends in a not-so-hyped Parisian district than of visiting a restaurant in the traffic-calmed area of Prenzlauer Berg. This is how it’s done! In the end, the good food, phenomenal wines and the perfect evening have made us feel full and happy. The lady from the next table apparently feels the same. She takes her leave with an elated “bye-BYE!” directed at everyone in the room. After a few minutes, she comes rushing back in. She’s forgotten something. Some documents she had had locked away in the counter. It happens. She has a good laugh about her own forgetfulness and waves cheerfully, before she gets into the black Audi waiting in front of the door. No bodyguards, no hype, no stress – just “Maurice”, Angela Merkel and really good food. We’ll be back.
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Chez Maurice | Bötzowstraße 39, 10407 Berlin | open daily 6-11 pm, lunch special: Tue-Fri 12-3.30 pm, Sat 12-3 pm | chez-maurice.com

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 18. Mai 2016 | Tags: , , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Where the wild fellas guzzle

Natural wines can really be a point of controversy. Some say they taste of earth and smell like well-worn wool socks. Next! The others know that high-quality wine doesn’t need additives. That in the ever-growing family of natural wines there are plenty of palatable and classy wines that can certainly hold their own taste wise in comparison to top wines including additives. You just have to know your way around. And be up for treating your palate, your conscience and your head to something really good. Just like Ramses, Oscar und Tom – two Mexicans and one Norwegian, the unpretentious connoisseurs behind the new natural wine bar ‚Wild Things‘ on the corner of Weserstrasse and Elbestrasse in beautiful Neukölln. These are also the guys behind ‚Industry Standard‚, the restaurant with bar that is completely dedicated to really good and holistic cuisine, inspired by the Mediterranean. Now, they are continuing that concept: those who have filled their tummies with the delicious menus in the Standard can just lumber on a few metres and sit down for some indulgent wine drinking in the ramshackle bar that’s all about wines that have nothing to offer but great grapes. Luckily. It’s astonishing that many people care so much about origin, processing and organic production of their food – but wine? It has to taste good. Period. To be frank, we’ve tested it: it tastes good without sulphides. Without sugar. Without pesticides. Without fungicides. Without all the added bullshit. In the improvised charm of the bar with the popcorn machine you can now find that out yourself and let the international Wild Things team fuss over you. You should just drink. And not prattle on, the guys think. A wine should speak for itself. A very welcome side effect by the way: should your evening with the natural wines go on a little longer than you planned, you probably won’t be hanging quite so far over as you might have expected. Because normally, the hangover is caused by all the evil additives. And here, it’s just about one thing: good wine. Or, as co-owner Ramses says: ‚It’s just a bunch of pressed grapes, and that’s it‘.
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Wild Things Naturwein-Bar | Weserstraße 172, 12045 Berlin | daily 6 pm – 2 am | Facebook

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 11. Mai 2016 | Tags: , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Spring Greens

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Spring Greens

It was April 2013, so pretty exactly three years ago, when we first put foot on the lawn and later inside the ancient hallowed halls of the former crematory in Wedding. It only felt strange for a moment – before we went in, to be precise. Because this enchanting place, that seems to welcome each visitor with both its wings stretched out like open arms, radiates peace, serenity and vigour and is pretty unique in this loud, fast city. We arranged our third Golden Dinner there and in the four weeks of its existence, we became one with the rooms, floors, walls and the grand dome hall. Today, the silent green Kulturquartier is breathing life into the space. It wants to be understood as an open yet protected room for thinking, research and experimentation. A particular focus is set on multidisciplinarity, encounters and transformation. And what could be more suitable for interactive exchange than a comfortable and cordial restaurant. Exactly. The question is, of course, rhetorical and yet there is an answer: The Moos Restaurant in just that location is a culinary oasis of tranquillity. Street food pioneer and deli professional Charlie Huber runs the breezily designed restaurant (and its garden) with the unspoilt view into green nature and serves varying dishes, coffee and cakes. Vegetarian and vegan alternatives go without saying – delicious and fresh, of course.  The cuisine is in no way dogmatic, in fact it’s quite surprising – even for the chef, who often doesn’t decide what he’s cooking until he’s been to the market. Where moss is seeing to its important role as nutrient reservoir, this idyllic treasure is fulfilling its function as provider of nutrients in a creative way. Breakfast on weekends and holidays, for example, is presented so magnificently that the resident squirrels Erich and Egon can get quite tempted by the crunchy muesli. And starting in May, evenings can be spent sitting around the bonfire in the garden with a glass of wine and some small delicacies.
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Moos Restaurant in the silent green Kulturquartier | Gerichtstraße 35 in Berlin-Wedding |open Monday to Friday 12 to 6 p.m., Saturdays & Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. | moos-restaurant.de | facebook |

Photo: kathamau.com

 

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 21. April 2016 | Tags: , , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Dandylicious

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Dandylicious

What can happen when two eccentric-narcissistic and, in the best sense, perpetually pubescent fashion-bloggers and fashion week veterans, extremely successful in zeitgeist, porn, pop and freak show so far, now tackle the subject of food? That’s right: a style-forming, rosy Culinarium following a fast-food model that brings multicultural vegan speedy cuisine in cardboard boxes from the heart of Neukölln to people not only hungry for actual food but also for the potentiality of the future. On April 16th, the most well-known male fashion bloggers of Germany and authors of Dandy Diary, David and Jakob, will be opening their Dandy Diner at Karl-Marx-Straße. The first branch of their self-declared takeaway empire was designed in the style of 1980s fast food chains by Studio Karhard. The studio that also created and implemented the toilets in the club Berghain. And just like there, anything is possible in the Dandy Diner – except for animal products. The culinary repertoire that features dishes from burgers to salads, sandwiches to desserts and pastries is purely vegan aka kosher aka halal. Besides very good coffee, beer and wine, long drinks are also on offer – a definite advantage over all the imperialistic competitors. And because the dandies just can’t do without fashion, the staff-outfits have been meticulously designed as well. Aprons and hats with the little piggy-logo are also for sale for non-employees at the Voo Store. Items available free of charge are first impressions, burgers, drinks and loud music at the opening party on the Danish queen’s birthday, April 16th.
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Dandy Diner | Karl-Marx-Straße 9, 12043 Berlin |  Opening hours: daily from 12 pm to 12 am | dandydiner.de | Facebook | Opening: 16. April from 8 pm

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 13. April 2016 | Tags: , , , , |  Keine Kommentare

Here’s lookin‘ at you, kid.

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Here’s lookin‘ at you, kid.

Forget geek goggles and NHS specs – glasses are a fashion statement, an accessory with zeitgeist, an eye-catcher with character, expression of trendiness and class. The British spectacle label Archibald Optics can usually only be found online. The claim oft he London-based eyewear label is high quality at an affordable price. The currently 16 models are produced in Fukui, the stronghold of Japanese optical glass craftsmanship. In 200 steps, absolute professionals craft high-class acetate or titanium frames and lenses, either extremely honed or coated with UV400, from British design and regional materials. The finished piece then costs between 200 and 500 Euro, that’s including everything, mind you. Archibald is strict about avoiding vendors which drastically reduces costs. Even though the glasses all sport the classic and timeless look of London in the 60s, they do have to fit the face and match different styles. For those who prefer the hands-on approach to finding the right look, the online shop offers a »Home Try-on-Kit« with three models that be tried on and combined with the contents of your wardrobe. Once you have decided on a model, you enter your optical details online and receive your tailor-made high quality specs in less than two weeks. On April 4th, Archibald opened its first pop-up store ever in the middle of Berlin and will be celebrating that three days later. So if you want to take a closer look at how British design and Japanese craftsmanship go together, just drop by the vanguard shop. And do it on April 7th for the opening party if you’re looking for drinks, music and inspiration to boot.
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Archibald Optics Pop Up Store | Brunnenstraße 195, 10119 Berlin | Mon.-Sat., 11 pm – 9 pm | Opening Party, April 7th at 7 pm | archibaldoptics.com

 

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Kategorien: Places | Autor: | Datum: 06. April 2016 | Tags: , , , |  Keine Kommentare