The gala dinner will take place in the cool ambience of Kraftwerk Berlin, where around 500 invited guests will be able to enjoy dishes specially developed for the evening by Berlin’s best chefs and hosts.
Since 1997, Berlin Partner has annually honored the best chefs in the Berlin-Brandenburg capital region. By honoring Berlin’s master chefs, Berlin Partner is profiling the capital’s upscale restaurant culture and the diversity of its gastronomy scene as an important economic factor and flagship of the city. 116 chefs and restaurateurs have been honored so far in the various categories of the Berlin Master Chefs.
Former award winners include Kolja Kleeberg, Tim Raue and Ralf Zacherl. Many of the previous winners and nominees are expected at the big anniversary gala, so we’re in for a big celebration with lots of Berlin culinary celebrities.
After dinner party
And from 11:00 p.m., the hallowed halls of Berlin’s Kraftwerk will open for the big after-dinner party for everyone. Of course, the culinary experience continues. Various bars including BRLO Craft Beer, cocktails from Bar Salut, Berliner Pilsener and various food stations with sweet and savory snacks will be served.
There are still some tickets available for the after-dinner party here.
Preview of the gala menu
Actually, the big gala menu is considered a well-kept secret – but I have already had a glimpse of some of the evening’s dishes:
The winners 2016
Markus Semmler
The 2-meter and 1-star chef runs his restaurant like his living room – from the cozy chef’s table to the masculine cigar lounge. There is only one menu and that for a maximum of four days a week. (4 courses 85 euros to 7 courses 130 euros). Mostly open Wednesday through Saturday, unless a catered event lures the crew out of the kitchen. Then Markus Semmler is just as consistent as he is tall. When the A-Team is not in the kitchen, the store is closed. Basta. This is not the only reason why reservations are essential.
My report on the visit to the restaurant Markus Semmler can be found here.
Viktoria Kniely
Viktoria Kniely comes from tranquil Styria and grew up sheltered on her parents’ vineyard. The subject of wine and food were, so to speak, in her cradle. At the age of 5, she was already allowed to help her mother with the first guests in the Burschenschank at home. This was followed by positions in top gastronomy in Switzerland and Austria – including at the Almhof Schneider. Then, to manage the escape from the mountain region, it had to be a summer in Spain. In Berlin, she was immediately hired by the Hugos and met an employer who recognized her talent and challenged and encouraged her. Here she also met Michael Köhle – her current boss and owner of Herz&Niere Restaurant, who quickly recognized her sensory skills for the subject of wine as well as her joy in dealing with guests and took her to his side. She has now been restaurant manager at Heart & Kidney since 2014 and helped open the restaurant. Viktoria has also been an active member of the Sommelier Union Germany for a good year, as well as in the Sommelier College, a support program for young dedicated sommeliers.
Max Straw
Together with partner and host Ilona Scholl, Max Strohe has been running tulus lotrek in Kreuzberg’s Fichtestraße since November 2015. Here, the 34-year-old chef focuses on intense flavors, saying, “We want to appeal to militant bacchanals, belt-wideners, cork-poppers, anything-goers, and nothing-are-those who don’t necessarily find their culinary fulfillment in light, regional vegetable cuisine. We focus on full-on indulgence.” The two restaurateurs met at the restaurant “Frau Mittenmang” in Prenzlauer Berg. They realized that they ticked along similar culinary lines and soon toyed with the idea of opening a restaurant together. Strohe, who completed his training at Restaurant Hohenzollern in the Ahr Valley, says, “It was just clear that we had to do this. We both want intense flavors on the plate, a cracking wine to go with it, rather two courses too many than one too few, and have no desire for dogmas and moral apostasies. We think that decent shopping is an absolute prerequisite for good cuisine. We don’t have to talk about it all the time. After all, people know by now that a chicken penned up in the dark and fattened to immobility within 4 weeks can’t make a good product.” Asked about his culinary concept, he replies, “We want to cook the way we’d most like to eat and not sell our guests the smallest possible guilty conscience.”
Boris Radczun & Stephan Landwehr
9 years ago Boris Radczun and Stephan Landwehr found the perfect place for their vision. They wanted to open a restaurant where you can eat great food and meet friends casually. Steak and fish should be there, champagne and plenty of space. They found what they were looking for in the northern part of Friedrichstrasse, in the heart of Berlin’s new center. The Grill Royal was able to establish itself as a permanent fixture in Berlin’s gastronomy. The Grill Royal stands for straightforward dishes made from high-quality ingredients. The cuisine focuses on freshly caught fish and seafood and high-quality meats such as Koberind from Japan, Irish beef from Donald Russel or Omaha Natural.
Since 2012, the two have also been running their restaurant Pauly Saal in the former Jewish girls’ school. Inspiration is the golden Berlin years of the 20s and 30s. Arne Anker has been in charge of the kitchen since June 2015: the focus of the modern-oriented cuisine is strongly on regional and German products, closely coordinated with the producers and their fresh produce, oriented towards seasonality. Special preparation methods and spices can also come from other countries. Anker’s vision is the perfect interplay of an extensive network of regional producers, whose products he personally selects, and the rock-solid as well as elaborate work of his kitchen team. Thus, many products are organic and all animals come from species-appropriate breeding.
The Nordic-inspired cuisine at dóttir, the pair’s third venture, is led by Victoria Eliasdóttir. Root vegetables, Icelandic moss, Scandinavian mountain herbs and dried seaweed from Icelandic waters are the ingredients that will be served in the future in Mittelstrasse in Berlin-Mitte. For the culinary concept of dóttir, Victoria Eliasdóttir draws inspiration from her Scandinavian roots. The young chef, daughter of an Icelander and a Swede, worked in various restaurant kitchens in Iceland, where she learned about local dishes and preparation methods – fish from the Baltic Sea, vegetables from the region, lamb and special flavor carriers. She mixes this with the experience she gained in kitchens in Sāo Paulo and Berkeley.
Since March 2016, Le Petit Royal has complemented the culinary empire of the two and, since the summer of 2016, Café Einstein under the Linden.
Lisa Meyer and Robert Havemann
The restaurant “Rosa Lisbert” is the new meeting place for all gourmets and friends of Alsatian-French cuisine. The two managing directors Lisa Meyer and Robert Havemann have opened the first gourmet restaurant in Moabit’s Arminiusmarkthalle. In addition to the tarte flambée and traditional Alsatian dishes, the focus is on the modern French-inspired creations of the kitchen team. Foie gras, offal, snails, terrines, pâté en croûte and horse meat. Some vegetarian creations can also be found. A special attention is that everything comes from our own production, including the dough for the tarte flambée as well as the various pies. The heart of the “Rosa Lisbert” is the specially made wood-burning stove. It is unique and was specially built from hand-molded bricks from a sheepfold in Brandenburg dating back to 1780. The oven has the peculiarity of directing the flame over the tarte flambée, which is what gives it its authentic smoky flavor. In Alsace, a tarte flambée that does not come from such an oven is not considered original. Some special features can also be seen in the guest room and kitchen. For example, the counter, which is made of the delicate material pewter, on which guests can leave their mark, which is quite intentional. A pewter counter becomes more and more beautiful over the years.
Daniel Schmidthaler
Daniel Schmidthaler is a native of Austria. His professional career started in St. Christoph im Arlberg and led him via Mallorca and Berlin to Kitzbühel. There he met and fell in love with his wife Nicole. Soon after, they both started working in their home region in Templin. With the “Alte Schule” the couple has firmly established itself in recent years and together with his team can be pleased about the Michelin star and awards from GUSTO or Gault Millau. In the country hotel, guests can expect selected regional specialties, family hospitality and a stylishly furnished ambience.(C) Photos: Berlin Partner / goenz.com Power Station Berlin
