MATERIAL — CAFE TURNED BAR SERVING COFFEE, NATURAL WINE AND EXPERIMENTAL BAKES

Not far from Kollwitzplatz there is a cafe turned wine bar turned…well let’s just say it’s a nice place with lots of potential. Material is its name, and you might already know it as somewhere where you can buy Spanish natural wine from a guy called Carlos. Both the natural wines – filling one of the walls – and Carlos remain but since April 2023 they have been joined by Ebrahim who has helped turn the space into a haven of natural wine and coffee. The quality of the drinks is so good that Material works both as a cafe and as a wine bar. Ebrahim and Carlos couldn’t be more different in their ways, but encountered together they make the most wonderful and harmonious company. Carlos talks about his natural Spanish wines and their makers – all of whom he has met personally over the years – in just the kind of subtle, serene way you’d want in this environment. Ebrahim, meanwhile, is brimming with ideas, thoughts and stories. His love of experimentation is reflected in the interior: a colorful mix of vintage furniture, exposed brick walls, bright tiles and small details. The design somewhat resembles Kajumi, Ebrahim’s first cafe which he opened in Helmholtzkiez in 2020.

As with Kajumi, Ebrahim and Carlos created a lot of the furniture at Material themselves. There’s the large wooden table in the middle of the room that the pair transformed into a centerpiece using leftover tiles from the kitchen. Then there are the funnel-shaped cups and plates with playful illustrations by Ebrahim’s girlfriend Anchi Bub. As for the coffee, the Farben Kaffee served comes from Ebrahim’s own roastery in Brandenburg. You order it according to color: the brown coffee has chocolate and hazelnut notes, the yellow brew is sweet and sour, while the blue brims with floral flavors. The pastries are made by the 11-strong team working in an open kitchen. The philosophy is all about breaking the rules: the team experiment with different textures and techniques to create their multi-layered laminated doughs and in-house sourdough. “Making it simple” is the motto, but the baked goods are anything but ordinary. The cafe (well, cafe-bar) is set to open on 01.05.2023 with a selection of four comfort food dishes, including croquetas made with leftover sourdough and whipped ricotta with aubergine, oysters on the side and roasted nuts. Whether you come with company or alone, for a morning coffee or a post-work wine, Material offers the perfect place to unwind, discover and – most importantly – savor…

Text & Photos: Robyn Steffen

Material, Schönhauser Allee 156, 10435 Berlin–Prenzlauer Berg; map
Daily 8–1h

@materialberlin

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Bars, Cafes

SPRITZ ON THE TERRACE OR ANTIPASTI INSIDE — ORANGERIE NEUKÖLLN IN KÖRNERPARK FOR COFFEE, LUNCH AND COCKTAILS

The first time I stumbled on Kôrnerpark I imagined it to be Paris: the grand lime trees, the bubbling fountain, the palm-lined terrace… If Orangerie was open then it may have been just enough to convince me. The elegant interior and arched windows are a relief from the bustle of Hermmanstrasse and Karl-Marx-Strasse just blocks away. Orangerie was opened in May 2022 by owners Simon Braus and Max Gerolstein (who previously ran Kreuzkölln bar Schwelgerei). Before that time, the space was a cafe called Zitronencafé which lay dormant before Simon and Max reopened it with their all-day cafe and bar concept. The building was originally designed to be an old orangerie, though it never operated as one. The high ceilings and rooms that meander into one another make the compact venue feel both spacious and intimate.

The interior, designed by Jacqueline Spiers, mixes high bar seating and more relaxed seated tables. Some glow under a neon red sunset-like arch, others underneath hung lamps and printed artworks. The terrazzo bar and walls, washed with forest greens, beige and pink, feel classy and modern. You can come for your morning coffee and cake (we loved the homemade lemon poppyseed), sample the weekly-changing lunch dish or end the day with cocktails and antipasti to match. Head Chef Finia Ulmer has designed a succinct and delicious (all vegan!) menu with antipasti and a rotating seasonal dish. Our recommendation? If you’re a sweet cocktail drinker try the peach and rose spritz, or if you prefer them a little more bitter, go for the Herrlich spritz with Campari, grapefruit and passionfruit. Then find a seat in the window and spend a few hours grazing on antipasti and gazing at one of Berlin’s most beautiful parks to add a little sophistication to your sunny day.

Text: Savannah van der Niet / Fotos: Robyn Steffen

Orangerie Neukölln, Schierker Str.8 (in Körnerpark), 12051 Berlin–Neukölln; map
Tue–Sun 11–0h

@orangerie_nk

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Bars

BAR SWAY: “ZERO-ZERO” WINE BAR WITH LIVING ROOM VIBES AND DJ SETS

“Accidentally good” is how one of the owners of Sway describes the Pannierstraße bar. While this downplays the quality and intention behind the space, it’s also exactly what’s appealing about it: the story of a group of friends that took something natural to them – drinking wine together in their living room and sharing conversation and snacks late into the evening – and brought it into a public space. Behind Sway are four founders: Jamie Tiller (wine), Rohan Bell-Towers (snacks), Hayley Morgan (decor) and Tasya Kudryk (spiritual guidance). Collaborating with them are creative and musical friends – graphic design by Munich record label Public Possession, a lamp by Anna Santangelo and, on some nights, records played on a mixer by Resør and handbuilt speakers from H.A.N.D. HiFi.

Jamie pours one of eight rotating wines available to drink by the glass or bottle (you can take away too). All are zero-zero – that is, natural wines with nothing added. These are the wines that he likes to drink – all organic and made in small quantities by producers outside the conventional industry. They taste exciting and lively on the palette; we particularly liked the slightly sparkling Lambrusco from Camillo Donati and the skin contact Ça me by Les Maisons Brûlées. Alongside the wines are snacks designed by Rohan to accompany your drinking – it’s a European tour with Pecorino from Italy with honey, juicy sardines from Spain with charred lemon and toast, air-dried salami from France and a grilled cheese sandwich with Bergkäse from Germany. The result is a bistro-bar that feels like how I would imagine the ultimate living room to feel. We’re just glad they decided to open it to us.

Text & Photos: Savannah van der Niet

Sway, Pannierstr.29, 12047 Berlin–Neukölln; map
Wed–Thu 17–0h, Fri–Sat 17–1h

@bar____sway

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Bars

STUECK — SCHLESI BAR SERVING QUEER HERITAGE AND COCKTAILS ON TAP

There’s a street on the edge of Kreuzberg that was once home to the city’s finest bars, best-stocked Spätis and lots of places to let your hair down. Its name – one which has tongue-tied many a non-native speaker – is Schlesische Straße. One of its most legendary bars was Barbie Deinhoff’s, a colorful, loud, wild and queer place run by performance artist Lena Braun. Known all over town for its “Two for One Tuesdays”, Barbie sadly didn’t survive Covid. That’s since been corrected with the 2022 opening of Stueck in the very same location. Though the interior and style of the new bar seem very different, owner Romy Gaines hasn’t forgotten the history of the place. While the dark walls, rubber-covered steel stools and large photographs by Giulia Daley are a far cry from the camp predecessor, Two for One Tuesday stays. The ethos remains queer, too: Thursdays are reserved for women, trans and non-binary guests and the bar staff are almost all women.

The high-end drinks menu is dominated by cocktails, which come from the Kreuzberg drinks lab around the corner and are served on tap. Much thought is invested in the combinations, which focus on infusions and (soy)milk “washed” drinks. In addition to signature classics like the “Hippie Cucumber” – whose pink base is a hibiscus-infused gin – there’s a cocktail of the month, which in September is the “Popcorn” (bourbon, popcorn, lemon and caramel, in keeping with the changing season). It’s an extravagant tipple that has a sense of fun camp. Drink a couple of them and you’ll soon be convinced that this new place is a gem too.

Text: Hilka Dirks / Photos: Giulia Daley

Stueck, Schlesische Str.16, 10997 Berlin–Kreuzberg; map
Mon–Sat from 19h

@stueck_36

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Bars, Events

SLAVS AND TATARS INVITES YOU TO THE PICKLE BAR: RADICAL READING WITH SCHOLAR LEAH FELDMAN

Not far from their studio in Moabit, Kasia Korczak and Payam Sharifi of the artist collective Slavs and Tatars have opened a space for thinkers, writers and creatives: the Pickle Bar. It’s not just a place for discussions and exchange, but a Slavic reinterpretation of a classic aperitivo bar. There, the team serve so-called “Malosolnie Ogurci” pickles (of course) as well as olives and cheese. To drink, there’s wine from Georgia and vodka too. On 14.07.2022, this wonderfully informal space will welcome literary scholar Leah Feldman from the University of Chicago for a workshop entitled “On phenomenologies of radical reading”, part of the space’s current summer program. Using a variety of texts, she’ll explore and discuss with the audience the failures that have allowed right-wing movements and their systems of thought to grow over the past twenty years. Drawing on 20th-century Soviet children’s books, the event explores how best to engage with these artifacts and to re-read and re-interpret them.

Text: Laura Storfner / Photos: Joe Clark & Slavs and Tatars

Slavs and Tatars Pickle Bar, Stephanstr.11, 10559 Berlin–Moabit; map

Open for events. 14.07.2022 18.30h “On phenomenologies of radical reading” Workshop with Leah Feldman

@picklebarslavsandtatars

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Language

MATERIAL — CAFE TURNED BAR SERVING COFFEE, NATURAL WINE AND EXPERIMENTAL BAKES

SPRITZ ON THE TERRACE OR ANTIPASTI INSIDE — ORANGERIE NEUKÖLLN IN KÖRNERPARK FOR COFFEE, LUNCH AND COCKTAILS

BAR SWAY: “ZERO-ZERO” WINE BAR WITH LIVING ROOM VIBES AND DJ SETS

STUECK — SCHLESI BAR SERVING QUEER HERITAGE AND COCKTAILS ON TAP

SLAVS AND TATARS INVITES YOU TO THE PICKLE BAR: RADICAL READING WITH SCHOLAR LEAH FELDMAN