Every town in Italy has its Sale e Tabacchi – a local cigarette shop and village meet-up. The restaurant going by the same name in Rudi-Dutschke-Straße, huddled between the TAZ, Axel-Springer, and galleries, doesn’t deal with tobacco, but with delicious Italian cooking. For 22 years it’s been the go-to spot for journalists, gallerists, visitors and Berliners alike – for lunch, dinner, Aperol, or coffee. Owner Piero de Vitis, who opened Berlin’s first osteria (N°1) in 1977, benefits from close ties to small producers in Italy. And you can taste it: creamy burrata from his home in Apulia, aromatic artichokes from Sardinia, and limoncello from Amalfi. My favorites: sautéed calamaretti with garlic and pepperoncino, and zucchini flowers stuffed with ricotta and mint. And a Slow Food Aranciata to go with it. Undisturbed with a big-city feel, sit in the soaring interior designed by Max Dudler and look through tall windows – during the summer with a terrace. The serving staff are mainly charming signori, who’ve been around since the restaurant’s opening. (Text: Ubin Eoh / Photos: Sven Hausherr)
Sale e Tabacchi, Rudi-Dutschke-str.25, 10969 Berlin-Kreuzberg; map
Mon-Sun 11-24h
Ubin Eoh is a consultant at Bureau N. She is a long-time Berliner with Korean roots and lives in Kreuzberg.
