These are the Berlin Master Chefs 2024

BERLIN.

The Berlin Master Chefs 2024 show once again this year that Berlin's cuisine never loses its excitement. The city's gastronomic scene is bold and inventive, sophisticated, internationally orientated and at the same time firmly rooted in the region. This year reflects a particularly wide variety of culinary approaches.

At the festive gala ceremony in the urban ambience of the former C&A building in Neukölln, the CANK, the best minds in Berlin's gastronomy were honoured for their outstanding achievements in the following categories: "Berlin Master Chef", "Rising Star of the Year", "Berlin Hostess", "Berlin Scene Restaurant", "Berlin Neighbourhood Champion", "Berlin Bar Culture" and "Gastronomic Innovator".

The Governing Mayor of Berlin, Kai Wegner: "Berlin celebrates its master chefs. In recent years, top gastronomy in our city has developed successfully and has long since ceased to shy away from national and international comparison. This year's Master Chef awards once again reflect the quality and diversity of Berlin's gastronomy scene. Innovation, creativity and sustainability, which are so important in restaurant culture, are also honoured. I would like to congratulate all the award winners and thank everyone on the jury and in the organisation who contributed to the success of this year's competition."

Dr Stefan Franzke, Managing Director of Partner für Berlin: "Berlin's gastronomy scene is a reflection of the diversity and creativity of our city. It unites different cultures, traditions and culinary innovations in a unique way. This diversity is not only a cultural wealth, but also an economic engine that creates jobs, attracts international guests and strengthens Berlin's global reputation as a cosmopolitan metropolis. The winners of the Berlin Master Chefs 2024 embody this innovative and multicultural spirit that makes Berlin one of the most exciting food destinations in Europe."

The award winners:

The "Berlin Master Chef 2024" award goes to Max Strohe from the restaurant "tulus lotrek". From the jury's statement: "It's a good thing Max Strohe exists. Otherwise you'd have to invent him. And that would be anything but easy. Because Strohe is a rather unique mixture. Not only can he prepare incomparably good scallops and barbecue pigeons, he can also write captivatingly about smash burgers and club sandwiches. He entertains on television and campaigns against right-wing extremism. Tulus Lotrek, the Kreuzberg restaurant that he runs with Ilona Scholl, is one of those lucky breaks that guests always leave with a smile. Here, fine dining is combined with feisty delights. Batman would eat here - claims Strohe. Who would disagree with him?

Karl-Louis Kömmler from the restaurant "Loumi" was awarded the title of "Rising Star of the Year 2024 ". From the jury's statement: "The story of Loumi began in 2017 as a supper club in a backyard flat in Neukölln. Just six guests per evening enjoyed the unpretentious, casual fine dining experience with a seasonal approach on selected dates. With the opening of the restaurant of the same name in Kreuzberg at the end of 2023, the circle has expanded and the concept has grown up - and that is a stroke of luck for Berlin! Karl-Louis Kömmler's cooking style is based on a French foundation with Japanese flavours and Nordic influences, interwoven with a common thread of spiciness and citrus notes. Kömmler places the high-quality base product at the centre and frames it with sauces full of character that lend every plate a new intensity. The fact that a self-taught chef is at work here makes his ability to effortlessly combine creativity and precision all the more impressive.

In the "Berlin Hostesses 2024 " category, the jury chose sisters Dr Sahar Sodoudi & Dr Forough Sodoudi from the "DR & DR Middle Eastern Culture and Food Lab". From the jury's statement: "Good food often connects more than words can," says Sahar Sodoudi. And good hosting is the crowning glory of the culinary experience. Like her sister Forough, she didn't learn how to host - the twins with Iranian roots come from a scientific background - but it is a matter close to their hearts. In 2019, they opened the Culture and Food Lab in Kreuzberg as "Dr & Dr", where they give cookery courses, organise dinners and offer catering. Their message is calligraphed on the wall of the studio: Love flows here - and that is exactly the name of their first cookery book. From the moment you enter to the moment you leave, the focus is on the guest. The sisters see themselves as ambassadors of Persian culture, whose narrative is defined by politics and religion. They set an example for the cuisine and hospitality of Persian culture - in their own unique way.

This year's "Berlin Scene Restaurant 2024" is the restaurant "Verōnika Berlin". From the jury's statement: "The façade from the imperial era is battered by bomb splinters, peace signs surround impact holes, the graffiti-coloured stairwell has retained the flair of the post-reunification era. On the fourth floor, it's sophisticated, lively Berlin! Our trendy restaurant 2024, Berlin's current No. 1 hotspot, has been created as the enjoyable centrepiece of Fotografiska Berlin, Berlin's new museum for photography, art and culture, in the former Friedrichstrasse passageway, which was converted with vision and intelligence into a war ruin and also housed the Tacheles. Honey-yellow upholstered furniture stands around tables elegantly set in white. The service staff is cosmopolitan and international. The stars at the cooker are Executive Chef Roel Lintermans and his head chef Philipp Tröbs. Their cooking is skilfully classic, creative and seasonal. The pumpkin gnocchi, for example, were wonderfully flavoursome with crunchy cubes of Hokkaido, vegan beacon, borlotti beans, candied walnuts and tangy, fresh verjus. Those who eat here can also stroll through the exhibition rooms free of charge and until 10 pm via a separate entrance. For a nightcap, head to Bar Clara in the futuristic, pyramid-shaped roof dome with a panoramic view over Mitte. More Berlin is not possible!

The "Berlin Neighbourhood Champion 2024" is the "Domäne Dahlem" in Steglitz-Zehlendorf. From the jury's statement: "With the Domäne Dahlem, we have a "sleeping beauty" whose potential and reputation needs to be shaken up more vigorously. This is exactly what we are doing with this award! Many people have certainly already eaten the vegetables from A for Asian lettuce to pumpkin and wax beans to Z for onions. After all, numerous restaurants source regional produce from here: 60 types of vegetables, 30 herbs as well as flowers, soft fruit, meat from seven types of livestock and eggs from the farm's own production are cultivated here, but the Domäne is more than just an estate with an underground railway connection in Berlin-Steglitz. It is a living museum where daycare children, school classes and other interested parties can find answers to questions such as: How was agricultural land worked in the past? Or: What does sustainable consumption mean today?
And that leads us to what the Domäne is all about: it is a publicly accessible, living place where we city dwellers can relive the development of our food from the field to the plate in the country inn, from the pasture to the shopping bag in the farm shop. And here, experiencing also means taking part! Whether it's the potato harvest on the domain's fields or workshops such as "Keeping chickens for beginners", "Working with draught animals" or even a "Scythe course".
In any case, we at the Berlin Master Chefs agree: Domäne Dahlem is unique and a very special place for Berlin, as this estate can look back on over 800 years of history. In 2024, it will finally become Berlin's neighbourhood champion. It took a long time - but better too late than never!

The award for "Berlin Bar Culture2024" goes to the "Wax On". From the jury's statement: "The reason why the "Berlin Bar Culture 2024" award goes to the Wax On Bar is twofold. Firstly, it is a relaxed, typical Neukölln neighbourhood cocktail bar. With a pleasant atmosphere and a cool crowd. Trendy, hip, but not exclusive in the sense of excluding. You just want a good drink? Wax On. Having a good time with friends? Wax On. Let yourself be introduced to the world of home-made drinks? Wax On! And best of all, the high quality is available in the bar run by Sam Orrock and his team at an extremely fair, neighbourhood-conscious price.
And secondly? The Wax On Bar has earned itself an international reputation - through exchange: guest shifts for the team in other European bars in one direction, and guest bartenders mixing here in the Reuterkiez in the other. The entire Berlin bar culture benefits from this international attention, which has long been playing at the global top level, but sometimes hasn't really recognised it yet. With this in mind: thanks and cheers, Wax On Bar.

And in the "Gastronomic Innovator 2024" category, the jury chose the visionaries Nadine and Tom Michelberger, whose family business is constantly evolving like a lifelong experiment and looking for sustainable paths and models. From the jury's statement: "Nadine and Tom Michelberger like to think big. Only on a small scale, in concrete terms. Above all in the community. The two hoteliers from Warschauer Brücke in Friedrichshain don't do projects, they do things with people. With Gerhard, the distiller at Preußische Spirituosenmanufaktur, which would no longer exist if the Michelbergers hadn't joined the traditional Wedding business two and a half years ago. With Alan, the chef from the Michelberger restaurant, who wanted a contemporary brasserie for Berlin. So they became involved in the wonderful Brasserie Ora on Oranienplatz. With Denise, Nadine Michelberger's sister, who became a farmer like her parents. At the Michelberger Farm in Naun-dorf in the Spreewald, a perma-garden whose harvest is now served in the Michelberger Restaurant. With Sam, who preferred to cook during the day. Which is why, since this spring, there has been a counter in Wedding, the, yes, tastiest lunch counter in the city. They like to say that successful gastronomic models have to be scaled up. Nothing is further from Nadine and Tom Michelberger's mind than that. They are not scaling business processes, they are scaling the spirit and the heart of the Michelberger idea. This has recently brought the city and the surrounding area many delicious and warm places. "Shine & Dine" was the motto of this year's award ceremony in the raw, industrial-architectural design of the former C&A building in Neukölln. 300 invited guests and the award winners were catered for by the winning restaurants from last year, including the Michelin-starred restaurants Rutz, Hallmann & Klee and Coda.

The expert jury is made up of the following judges:

• Dr Stefan Elfenbein, chairman of the jury, author for the magazines "Der Feinschmecker" and "Foodie"
• Tina Hüttl, Chairwoman of the jury, Berliner Zeitung
• Felix Denk, editor of the Tagesspiegel
• Prof. Dr Dieter Großklaus, "Chaîne des Rôtisseurs" (Honorary President)
• Lorraine Haist, freelance journalist and author for various newspapers and magazines
• Stefanie Hofeditz, freelance journalist, B.Z
• Alexandra Laubrinus, Managing Director of Berlin Food Week
• Clemens Niedenthal, Editor of Tip & Head of Food Department
• Nikolas Rechenberg, Gourmetwelten
• Annika Schönstädt, freelance author for Tagesspiegel, Zeit online, Feinschmecker
• Dr Erwin Seitz, freelance journalist, author and food critic
• Jan-Peter Wulf, specialised journalist and founder of nomyblog