Autogrill: Best thing since sliced bread
Would you go all the way to Reinickendorf for a sandwich? Sören Zuppke and Clara Higham-Stoinova are betting you will. She’s the founder of natural wine delivery service Sips Berlin; he’s an all-round food dude currently doing PR for the Michelberger hotel and restaurant. Together, they’ve put together an irresistible lineup of hip young restaurants and low-intervention wineries that will be serving “sandwiches and sips” out of the art space Wilhelm Hallen for the next five Sundays.
We’ll cut to the chase. How else can you get a taste of Ember, the roving fire-centric cooking project that’s become one of Berlin’s hottest reservations over the past year, without paying €110 a person? There’ll be a grill set up so that chef Tobias Beck can work his magic in the service of a lunch that will cost €12 max. Come early for that one (May 29), as well as Stoke (June 19), a similar open-fire concept that won’t even open till autumn or so, but has been generating serious buzz. Other participants include The Panda Noodle, Otto and Oliver Lomeli from Paris wine bar Chambre Noire, alongside winemakers from Lisbon to Pfalz. Check Autogrill’s Instagram for more info and updates.
- Autogrill Kopenhagener Str. 60-72, Reinickendorf, May 22-Jun 19, Sun 12-20
Bite Club: A market by any other name
Is Berlin’s most famous street food market having an identity crisis? After kicking off on May 6 at former haunt Arena, Bite Club is back at Jules, the gravelly hangout by Gleisdreieck, every Friday evening under the name “Bite Park”, as well as every other Sunday as part of the food, plant and craft market “A Sunday Thing”.
Ultimately, it’s not about the name, but the bites. The selection of mobile vendors varies by week, but the birria specialists of Gringo’s Tacos are a constant, and you can count on veterans like Korean fusionista Fräulein Kimchi and chicken fryer Butter Bronson’s to make regular appearances. It’s the one-offs that excite us the most, though, like the Singaporean laksa pop-up Lilian or the (non-Neapolitan!) mobile pizzeria Backspace. Vendors are announced less than a week in advance, so keep an eye on Bite Club’s Insta – or just roll up with a few friends, preferably before 6pm so you don’t have to pay the €3 entry fee, and graze at will.
Bite Club Luckenwalder Str. 6b, Kreuzberg, Fri from 17, every other Sun 11-18
Thai Park: Legal but still hot
Everyone’s favourite Thai street food market went legit last year, and while the charm of traipsing among picnic blankets for black-market papaya salad may be gone, the fiery dishes, refreshing iced teas and sweet treats are still worth the trip out to Wilmersdorf. Most of the corona measures from last year have been removed, meaning no annoying caution tape and more vendors – 54 stands in total – but also the potential for bigger crowds and longer queues on sunny days. There’s still no word on if or when alcohol sales will be allowed again, so BYOB.
What’s cool is that you no longer have to worry about blowing anyone’s cover if you name-check, say, new vendor Wisnapat Düren and her sweet-savory pork-floss crepes. Some booths even have Instagrams now, like Chong Cha Thai with its buttery brioche toasts, Vegany in Thai Park with its meat-free larb, or the self-proclaimed “Queen of Pad Thai” at stand 4. Also commendable: the new trash-reduction campaign in which customers who bring their own containers get 50 cents off every dish.
Thai Park Preußenpark, Wilmersdorf, Apr-Oct, Fri-Sun 10-22