Cee Cee is a weekly email magazine with hand-selected recommendations for Berlin and beyond. Every now and then you’ll find paid posts as part of the newsletter, marked as “Sponsored Posts”. Subscribe here to receive Cee Cee every Thursday and follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more tips!
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Small is beautiful at Crackbuns, the grab-and-go slider restaurant that opened in December 2020 on Auguststraße. For those who haven’t witnessed the slider craze in its New York home: these are mini hamburgers which – like all good things – come in twos, sixes and twelves, making them a great way to taste several different burgers at once. Founded by the team behind gastro ventures Zenkichi and House of Small Wonder, this US/Japan-inspired joint offers four sliders to pick from, including classic beef with two organic patties, red onions, cheddar and salad as well as the flavorsome karaage chicken, marinated in ginger, garlic and soy sauce for an umami twang. For max indulgence you can add organic bacon, while veggie appetites are also well served with the red bean and mushroom burger. All are served on soft, glossy fuwa fuwa buns (Japanese for fluffy) that are baked daily on-site.
The mixing and matching continues with the sides, amongst them the mochi mochi fries with a crisp yet velvety texture and the cheesy-saucy shrimp gratin. You can order the whole line-up – which also includes combo deals and family meals – for delivery within a 3km radius or simply pick up at the restaurant. The place is easy to find: it is located, strangely enough, on the corner of Kleine Hamburger Straße…
Text: Benji Haughton / Photos: Sven Hausherr
Crackbuns, Auguststr.63 (corner of Kleine Hamburger Straße) 10117 Berlin–Mitte; map
Open daily 11–22h30 for pickup and delivery via Wolt.
This year fashion week is online only, but that hasn’t stopped the creative minds behind it from putting together a great programme. Case in point: the 2021 Reference Festival, which premiered in 2019 and is returning once again as part of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week from 21–23.01.2021 with the support of the city’s Administration for Economy, Energy and Urban Development. Created by the agency of the same name, the three-day Reference event serves up hybrid formats that present art and fashion in perfect harmony. At today’s launch (21.01) you can see the festival’s very special backdrop – the Zeiss Planetarium – with highlights including sculptures by Tobias Spichtig in collaboration with Balenciaga and a presentation by 032C to mark 20 years of the iconic magazine. Other must-sees include the show by Berlin label GmbH (22.01) and Saturday’s panel on the “Reference Prize” (23.01). The contest, which runs until the summer, invites up-and-coming designers from all over the world to submit their work for the chance to gain support from Reference and fashion label Slam Jam in creating their very own brand. With art, fashion and culture, this line-up has it all – and it’s just one click away!
Text: Annika Hillig / Photos: Rayan Nohra, Zeiss-Großplanetarium, Gentle Monster x Frederik Heymann
You can register for Reference Festival on the website.
@mbfw.berlin
@referencestudios
The water consumption involved in producing a single pair of new jeans is around 1000 liters – quite a statistic, and just one of the many problems caused by textile production. It’s also the challenge that Berlin residents Sophie and Niklas are facing up to with Avenir, the clothing label they founded at the beginning of 2020. The pair met at school and followed the same path, working for major fashion houses in Paris and London including Givenchy, Lavin and Jens Laugesen. But they soon gave up their permanent jobs to unite in pursuit of a shared goal, namely to produce sustainable fashion and in doing so achieve change in the fashion industry. What particularly alarmed Sophie and Niklas was fast fashion, with its rapid fashion trends and associated waste. Offering a real alternative became the duo’s starting point.
A visit to the textile storage halls of the Berliner Stadtmission and I:Collect – where many tons of discarded clothes are collected – confirmed what the pair had suspected: textile overproduction is enormous. So, they then asked, why not simply use existing materials to make garments rather than producing everything from scratch? It turns out this is easier said than done, since using existing material requires more work and creativity to overcome limitations like the dimensions and quantity of the fabric. But for the designers all this is worth it, and looking at their brand’s contemporary styles made from pre-loved denim, you can see why. Besides jeans, Avenir also offers basics like T-shirts, made not from water-sapping cotton but 100% recyclable cellulose. And when you are finished wearing your shirt you can simply send it back to Avenir, who from their recycling centre in Ahrensburg weave the fibres into new fabric, thereby closing the circle and helping reduce the amount of clothes and materials that get thrown away. The duo’s ideas don’t end at upcycling and recycling, however: they are also planning a collab with the Hamburg label Faible and Failure making pieces from leftover yarn – a project well worth supporting! In the meantime, if you want to know more about how Avenir makes their garments you can visit the website which explains the individual stages in full detail.
Text: Annika Hillig / Photos: Debora Brune & Avenir, Styling: Sophia Costima, Model: Friends, Kleidung: Avenir Jacken & Models Own
You can order all the pieces from the Avenir collection online.
@avenir_berlin
Every so often there’s a business idea so good you wonder why it hasn’t happened sooner. She Said is one of those: a bookshop for female and queer authors located in the heart of Berlin (and, of course, online). If this sounds like something you’d enjoy, we recommend setting aside quite some time to look through the selection. It is truly a treasure trove, from highly political polemics to colorful children’s books (see online for the shop’s current top picks). The space, designed by architects Mara Kanthak and Katharina Volgger is curved and bright, clean and comfortable, with enough room to browse with ease. The ceramic shelves custom made by Charlotte Dualé feature sculpted letters with the word “She” and are home to books by local and international authors alike.
Besides browsing, you can also visit the in-store cafe, which brews coffee from Vote and teas from Companion, all made fresh to-go by barista Lewis Soulier. Meanwhile baker and chef Fiamma Aleotti creates fresh baked goods on-site each day, with her legendary cinnamon bun the most popular among a selection of cookies and other sweet and savoury goodies. The value of elevating different voices and creating an inclusive space feels honest to each detail. Owner Emilia von Senger is quick to share that it was a huge team of people that made the idea happen: nine female and queer staff including artists and authors, activists and documentary filmmakers who all bring their talent and expertise to the job. You can read more about their work online or – better still – just stop by and say hello.
Text: Scarlett Peeters / Photos: Savannah van der Niet
She Said, Kottbusser Damm 79, 10967 Berlin-Neukölln; map
Mon–Fri 10h–19h, Sat 10h–18h
The shop remains open with measures in place to ensure safe shopping.
@shesaidbooks
In many circles it is becoming more and more common to drink little or no alcohol – something we gladly welcome. But alcohol-free alternatives are often too sweet or carbonated, missing the sharp, refreshing taste of spirits. The alcohol-free distillates from Easip Drinks are a new option made from natural essences without any artificial flavors or added sugar. The team behind the Berlin-based brand – Milan Eßer, Alexander Meister and Nicolas van de Sandt – are all passionate about zero percent drinks, and have carefully developed their two varieties, Woods and Fields, which have all the complex notes you get with spirits. Woods reminds you of a grounding walk in the forest, with earthy-sweet notes of beetroot and roasted malt combined with cinnamon and oak – perfect for autumn and winter. Fields meanwhile is the ideal companion for spring and summer, combining thyme, ginger, coriander and cucumber for a herbal, spicy, fresh flavor ideal for a Fields Tonic. Whichever you pick, expect an aromatic journey perfect for your next cozy evening at home.
Text: Lisa Strube / Photos: Easip Drinks & Spencer Davis
Easip Drinks
@easipdrinks
ANMELDUNG