Europe's latest vegan paradise is not where you'd expect

The Age

2 days ago

This story is part of the June 1 edition of Sunday Life. See all 14 stories.
The meal in front of me perfectly suits this chilly night: a plate of agnolotti, fragrant with leek and caramelised onion, served in a pool of umami-laden onion consommé. However, more than just an elegant example of comfort food, this crowd-pleaser from the acclaimed Frea restaurant exemplifies Berlin dining on a plate: handmade, plant-centric and designed for maximum sustainability.
'Full taste, zero waste' is the motto of Frea's founders, Jasmin and David Suchy, and the kitchen of this cosy diner seeks to make the most of every food scrap.
'We use them to make our fillings and broths, our sauces and creams,' David explains. Whatever can't be used is turned into compost and returned to the farmers who supply the restaurant. The agnolotti, for instance, is stuffed with day-old, house-made sourdough.
If you love food that is good for the planet, Berlin is the place to go. The city has long been known for its embrace of alternative lifestyles, and that approach has filtered through to many of its best restaurants.
Take Nobelhart & Schmutzig, where chef Micha Schäfer embraces locavore dining through set menus that only use ingredients that grow naturally in the local area. That means more than just ditching bananas or pineapples – it also takes everyday spices such as cinnamon and black pepper off the menu.
At Café Botanico – cafe by day, restaurant by night – chefs source most of the ingredients for the Italian-inflected menu from an on-site, 1000-square-metre permaculture garden. Crunchy Jerusalem artichokes are served raw with soy ricotta, dukkah and orange, while salads are extravaganzas of oft-neglected greens, teaming purslane with Chinese mustard, lavender, lungwort, peppermint, ground ivy and chickweed.
Pioneering vegetarian restaurant Cookies Cream – founded in 2007, first awarded a Michelin star in 2018 – is still flourishing. The arrival experience is typically Berlin – walk down a dingy delivery dock before walking up the fire stairs to the restaurant – but the dining room is surprisingly light-filled. The menu is packed with winners, including a signature dish of onsen egg yolk with seaweed caviar, croutons, sour cream and chives.
When Berlin's cutting-edge restaurateurs think about sustainability, their focus goes beyond what's on the plate. At Happa, known for its vegan takes on traditional Bavarian food, the owners employ only female and non-binary staff.