Restaurant Review – Sauvage Prenzlauer Berg

I am sometimes surprised by how long I’ve been doing this blog, what seems to be a year or two in my head quickly turns into 3 or 4 when I check in with reality, must be the old age creeping up.  The good side of all this time passing by though, is that I get to see the truly good Gluten Free places here thrive and grow.  A little around 3 of those short seeming years ago I reviewed Sauvage in Neuköln, expressing my surprise that they were actually gluten free.  At the time I think the owners were also a little surprised to find out they were the only completely gluten free restaurant in the whole city, hence why back then, they thought it not important to mention it on their website.  Thankfully for us, 3 years later, the restaurant is a rather huge success in both the ‘regular person’ and Paleo diet world, meaning the gluten afflicted world gets to enjoy some good high end cuisine.  Imagine my joy then, when they opened a second location in Prenzlauer Berg.  Plus, they’ve embraced their gluten free-ness with abandon and gluten free icons on their website.  Happiness.

Another surprise is the benefits that doing this website occasionally affords me, the odd sample of products from Schär and such or the odd offer of a free slice of cake.  This time however, I was invited for a complimentary meal at Sauvage.  Normally, I would be worried this would affect the outcome of my review and I would not partake.  Fortunately though, having been there a few times over the years, I knew the food at Sauvage would be rather good.

First off, the decor.  I am a big fan of the cave/rustic theme of the Neuköln restaurant and this new place does not disappoint.

I do so love the twiggy lamp/light things on the ceiling.  Earth and Warmth is definitely the theme.

The second thing I noticed on my wander around is that the restaurant also has a mini shop and just look at what they are selling!

Paleo Gluten Free bread!  Now, yes, you may see that it costs €6.80 and think to yourself “oh my, that is a little steep” and you would be right.  It is expensive.  But there is one thing that is always worth paying for.  Expertise, quality and especially with gluten free products, taste.  So, I think you can guess my opinion of this bread, but I’m going to make you wait a little for me to say it.  First it’s time for the meal.

The initial mini-starter was this.  I’m not 100% sure exactly what it was, I was revelling in the fact that I did not have to ask what all of the ingredients in the dish were and forgot to inquire.  But it was rather delicious indeed.

Then came the cocktails.  Not that most cocktails have gluten in them, or that my drink order really belongs in a gluten free review, but they look good and they tasted great.  So that means I get to show them to you.

Beef with nuts and berries in a small crumbly tarte base.  It was absolutely amazing, really, amazing.  Shortly after, with a satisfied grin still on my face, the main meals arrived.

I had myself duck with ‘pan fried salsify, braised red cabbage and quince, turmeric quince purée and orange jus’.  Yes, it was every bit as delicious as that sounds, even if I don’t know what some of those things may be.

My partner had ‘Lamb carré with a pistachio-thyme crust, pan-fried brussel sprouts, a sunchoke sun-dried tomato creme, and cumin jus’.  Again, just ridiculous.

To add to this feast, some gluten free bread was also placed on our table.  Leaving me with a giant nightmare of what to eat first.

The bread of course!  It was amazing.  By far the best gluten free bread I’ve had in Berlin.  Well, maybe not for a sandwich, this is the type of bread you eat on it’s own with a little something spread on top.  It’s not to be used as a container for other tasty things, it is the tasty thing.  The flavours in the bread, especially the darker of the two, were a welcome refresh from the blandness of my bread based life here.  You should definitely buy a loaf to take away with you.

Now, you may be thinking to yourself, ‘my that is a lot of food, I bet you were giddy, very full and definitely satisfied without a chance of eating anything more’, and you’d be right.  I was all those things, especially full.  But, when you are in a restaurant where you can eat absolutely everything on the menu, you go a little crazy.  So a short while later, this arrived.

A small pumpkin tarte.  The contents were delicious, and here is where my only complaint of the whole meal is.  The crust was a little tough to get through, but ultimately worth the effort.

After the meal, as I wobbled out towards the door, this lovely sign caught my attention.

Check that, a completely gluten free brunch that is on every sunday!!

In conclusion, Sauvage continues to be THE best Gluten Free food and experience you can have in Berlin.  There simply are no other completely gluten free restaurants to start with, combine this with good food and you need to be there now.  But, stop, put down your coat and shoes, before you do go there is one downside.  The place is rather expensive, the main meals can reach over €30 each.  All this means though is that it is not a place to visit every week to have an evening meal, it’s a special place to visit and pretend you live in a world where you can eat whatever you want.  It is worth every penny that you spend there.

Click the banner below to see all the details of this restaurant on our sister site, Allergy Explorer.

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