Oak and Ice

It seems that 2016 shall be known as the year of the good gluten free ice cream, although this may be mostly due to me personally eating a lot more of it this summer.  But there are a few new standouts and Oak and Ice on Schönhauser Allee is definitely one of them with a much higher quality of ice cream than usual.

First off, the place is gorgeous and around 5000 times better that other ice cream places in terms of seating and comfort.

I’d actually go far as to say it’s more of a cafe than an ice cream parlour.

They have a pretty great selection of ice creams, although at the moment they’ve stopped labelling which are gluten free.  I’m not sure why they’ve done this, but they do say that their sorbets are all gluten free but only after asking will you be told that the other ice creams are all gluten free apart from one (the oreo cookie one on my visits).  This is a little worrying as you’re completely relying on the staff behind the counter to really know what they’re doing and as we’ve mentioned before, most people do not.  Add to this that almost every time I have been, I’ve asked if the ice cream is gluten free, ordered and then been offered the ice cream in a cone.  Suffice to say a little labelling and staff training would go a long long way here.

To be honest though, I wouldn’t be giving them a hard time if they were not offering things like this.

Yes, the signs are somewhat hard to read, but that’s a gluten free ice cream sandwich written right there.  So, on my first visit, I ordered one, because what else would you do?

Honestly, it wasn’t that great.  The cookies are from Jute Backerei next door and they’re good as British style biscuits but not really the american chewy cookie that you need for an ice cream sandwich.  They’re just very very dense.

But, on the bright side, the Marscapone and Fig ice cream within was absolutely amazing.

Not to mention the salted caramel varieties (they are ridiculously good).  Even their plain ol’ regular boring just vanilla is out of this world.

They do have a cake selection too, but I’ve only seen one or two gluten free options there.

All of the cake options I’ve seen are from Jute Backerei also.

In conclusion, definitely go and visit, their ice cream is simply the best I’ve had in the entire city.  But be careful, double check and ask them to cater more to gluten free people.

Gelateria Mos Eisley

Ice Cream is one of those things that confuses many my non-gluten free friends.  They often react with complete bemusement that such a creamy tasty thing could have wheat in it.  Which, to be fair, is a pretty good reaction, why on earth should it?  So, here in Berlin you run in to the usual Berlin problem.  There are plenty of places with ice cream here but the majority of the time you have to rely on the staff if knowing if there is any gluten within.  This often results in a response of ‘of course not!’ and then you have to judge yourself whether the staff actually knows what they’re taking about or whether they’re like most people and simply don’t understand.

Fortunately there are a few places that actually put little gluten free symbols on their labels, removing the need to try to and be a psychic.  Today we’re talking about Gelateria Mos Eisley, a little place in Schillerkeiz, Neukolln.  First, I’d like to point out the sheer genius in their name.  I think I have visited more times than usual just because of it.  If you need me to explain it, then the joy of it will likely be lost on you.

The place itself is quiet small but they do have a few seats inside and out, otherwise it’s a pretty standard ice cream place.

Their selection is usually pretty great and I have yet to be disappointed.  But the main joy is this little collection of symbols.

It just makes life much much easier.  Although, as with all ice cream places here, they tend to not think twice about using the same scoop for all ice creams, so there is a pretty good chance of cross contamination.

In conclusion, their ice cream is pretty great and well worth the visit.  Plus you can go for a little walk to the amazing Tempelhof Park after your purchase.

Cafe Review – Charlies Asian Bakery

The Berlin of 2016 is thankfully quite different to the Berlin of 2009 that I moved to. Back then you were lucky if you could find a lone slice of gluten free cake anywhere in the city and people were very proud to tell you that there was no MSG in their food when you asked about gluten. But, this new state of affairs is not without it’s problems. Gluten Free has become so popular that many places are now offering it, with not all of them being quite sure what gluten free actually is. The idea that you just change out regular bread for gluten free bread and everything is spiffy is quite prevalent and people are quite shocked that things such as mustard and soy sauce can have gluten in them.

Today, I’m reviewing Charlies Asian Bakery in Kruezberg.  They are thankfully a little bit in the middle of these two extremes and advertise themselves as a gluten free place. They do seem to be quite knowledgeable about it and have a pretty good range of gluten free meals and cakes. But there was a small problem, more on that later.

First off, the place itself is lovely.  All that Berlin decor of old furniture, warm lights and comfort, perfect.  When you walk in, you’ll be presented with this display on the counter.

Lots of gluten free!  Then you might notice this menu.

Even more gluten free!  Then if you take a look over at the cake display cake, you may pop. So much choice!

So, you may be wondering.  What was with my rant on the state of gluten free here in Berlin all about?  Well, I decided to order the Banh Bao and look what arrived.

Yes, that does look amazing, you are correct, it was delicious.  The problem was that little dish in the top right.  Soy Sauce and not of the gluten free variety.  Now, even though the rice bun is advertised as being gluten free and that I asked for a gluten free rice bun, it still arrived with the soy sauce.  I only avoided eating it as I double checked (always, always, always double check).  If this was a meal that you could specify to be gluten free as an option, I could understand, but it is specifically being sold as gluten free.  The staff were helpful enough to check on both of the sauces for me, but still, it’s rather worrying.

Plus, there’s the fact that they could spend an extra 50 cents and buy gluten free soy sauce and only use that in the whole place.  But what can you do.

Now, the complaining over.  It could, after all, have been a simple mistake or lack of training of their staff.  The food itself was actually pretty great and I have been a few times now and never suffered a reaction.  Plus, the cakes, oh my, the cakes are simply amazing.

This is perhaps my new favourite gluten free cake in Berlin.

This was was pretty awesome too.  There is absolutely nothing to complain about in the cake department.

Plus, they have some rather good drinks from ManuTeeFaktur there.

In conclusion, should you go?  Yes, they may have made a mistake, but this is par for the course in Berlin these days and we all have to be vigilant.  I’m pretty sure they will improve when more of us visit and point these things out.  The food is well worth the trip and any hassles.

Restaurant Review – Das Brunch

One of the advantages of living in Berlin is that there are lots of parties, events and other such cool/hip things to attend.  You could literally spend every night of your Berlin life visiting them and never quite see them all.  But, one of the disadvantages of being a gluten-less individual is that you cannot really attend any of the food based ones, or if you do, you just have to sit, sniffing, hungry and sad in the corner.  But, thanks to my friend Kate over at Sole Satisfaction, I discovered that Das Brunch is actually quite gluten free friendly.  In that all of the food on offer is 100% gluten free with the only stipulation that you have to ask for gluten free bread with your order!  The only downside is that Das Brunch does not happen all that often (there have only been three in the past 6 months).

But, enough of all that, you want to know about the delicious food don’t you?  You want to know if it’s worth keeping watch and finding out when the next one is?  Well, look at this menu.

That’s right, three options, all available gluten free with bread from Jute Backerei!  I plumped for the first (with both sausage and bacon, because, why wouldn’t you?) and look what arrived.

It was so good, just as amazing as it looks.  Now here is where I came across the only slight wrinkle in an otherwise great experience.  The meal came with regular gluten bread and only after I double checked with them did they point this out (always, always, always double check!).  Now, it wasn’t an issue, she apologised and went back to have it changed.  I’m not sure if they simply misheard me when I ordered or if there was a mixup in the kitchen, but I don’t think it was their fault, just a regular plain old accident.

They change the venue each time, but on my visit it was the CFL Canteen, which was pretty great.

They even had an oyster bar at the back.

In conclusion, I’d definitely recommend a visit next time they appear.  Keep an eye on their facebook events page for the next one!

Cafe Review – No58 Speiserei

Lunch.  It’s one of those meals that I really struggle with here in Berlin.  Burgers, Pizzas, Pastas and other such giant big evening meals are pretty easy to come by these days.  But what about a lighter lunch, a sandwich perhaps?  Or even, how about a soup that is definitely gluten free? (I’ve been burned once to often in places that have used ingredients containing wheat starch)

So when I find a place that serves smaller lunches at a reasonable price, I’m happy.  When that place is lovely inside with a nice relaxed atmosphere, I’m even happier.  When the food is fresh, healthy and tasty, I’m even happier.  Then when the place also has a wee little dog to play with too, I’m ecstatic.  Granted, the last one may be more of a personal preference (I am quite the dog person), but you get the idea, No58 Speiserei is great.

It is only a short walk from Bodinstrasse and not too far from Tempelhof Park (great for a digesting walk after).  Inside you’ll find a cosy little place with lovely wooden tables.

A weekly menu full of the food they are serving at the moment (oh, how I do love a changing menu)

Not to mention all the cakes that they have out front.

This one was perhaps the best cake I’ve ever eaten (ok, it may not be, but I forgot about all other cakes whilst eating it)

Plus the fact that they have gluten free beer.  Yes, not strictly a lunch drink, but hey, they have it and that’s such a rare occurrence that you just have to drink one.  It’s allowed.

I have been there quite a few times now and I’ve never been disappointed in the food (well, ok, the vegan gluten free cheese cake I tried once was a little lacking, but that is a pretty difficult thing to make both vegan and gluten free).  Mostly they have these amazing open top sandwiches.  Just take a look!

Along with soups and a larger dish, this one is Ratatouille.

And this one is a rather amazing Lime-Coconut Rice with beans and a peanut sauce.  So Delicious!

So, in conclusion, you should definitely go and visit, often.  The shear joy at being able to go every week and find a new dish that I can eat, plus a new cake, is just amazing.  So far I’ve never had a bad meal there and never had a reaction to any of the food.  Although it is worth pointing out that, when confirming a dish is gluten free, I have been asked “Is rice gluten free?”.  Which, whilst a fair question in most circumstances, is not when you are serving gluten free food.  It makes me worry that if they don’t know that rice is gluten free, what else are they missing when making the meals?  I think this was just a one off oversight though (it was a Friday after all) and as I have never had a reaction to their food and knowing that they take care in the kitchen, I personally am not concerned.

It is a little busy on the weekends so I’d arrive early if you can.  Overall, I’m pretty sure it will become one of your favourite gluten free lunch places.

Plus, whilst you’re there, give little Loki a scratch on the head from me.

Cafe Review – Lissabonbon

If there’s one thing that makes life easy for a blogger, especially one who writes reviews of cafes and restaurants, it’s when you have a gorgeous looking cafe.  With lots of little nicknacks, textures, antique furniture and good lighting.  Just pointing the camera in any random direction makes a great photo.  Easy.  Add into that amazing food and my life is almost complete.  But, just look at Lissabonbon.

I mean, what more could you want?  The place is a fairly small cafe, just south of Görlitzer Park in Kreuzberg.  Yes, it is a little bit of a walk from the nearest U-Bahn station (Görlitzer Bahnhof or Schlesisches Tor), but it’s well worth it and I’ve heard that there are these things called buses too.  There are only around 10 seats inside, but if it is summer, there are plenty more outside.

Back inside though, there is plenty of food to be had.  On first sight you may think there’s gluten free bread tucked behind some glass in a nice display, but, at the moment there is unfortunately not.

Just your regular gluten filled bread.  Although the owner (who is delightful and you should spend some of your time chatting to) is planning on making her own gluten free bread.  If you’d like this, go, often, buy all you can and let her know how much you’d love it (and her) if she made some.

But, let’s get to the food itself, this is what we are here for after all.

That’s right, sandwiches AND cake!  All of the sandwiches are individually wrapped to help avoid cross contamination.

I’ve been a few times and there has been a different cake on each visit.  Which is a welcome change, too many places here just bake the same gluten free cake again and again.

The sandwiches come heated and rather delicious.  The schaer foccacia bread isn’t absolutely amazing, but it’s also not bad.  Just regular.

Delicious!  The Slimey Limey cake, which absolutely had to be eaten with a name like that, came with whipped cream and lime sauce.

To say it was amazing would be an understatement.  Yes.  Go, hope that they have this, then stuff your face.  If not, their other cakes are also rather good, and certainly not a consolation prize.

They also have amazing soups (which I ate too quickly to take a photo of) and tapas with plenty of gluten free options (which I haven’t had a chance to try just yet).

In conclusion, they’re really trying to provide a good experience for those of us gluten afflicted.  A fairly varied selection of dishes which are different than what you can get in most other places.  And, hopefully, with your support of them, they’ll start to offer more and more.  Yes, you should definitely make your way there and eat as much as you possibly can.

Cafe Review – Eat Performance Bistro Ritterstrasse

Before I moved to the great city of Berlin, I had absolutely no idea what a Paleo diet was.  In my rather small and parochial hometown we were rather unlikely to ever hear about the concept of a Paleo restaurant, never-mind getting one.  Then back in 2010, Sauvage happened.  Out of the blue I found a diet that just happened to completely align with my various aliments and allergies.  Perfection!  Since then we’ve  had a second Sauvage with their delicious breakfasts.  And up until recently the pair were the only 100% completely gluten free restaurants in the city.  Thankfully though, Paleo is a rather popular diet, and we did not have to wait too long until the second opened up, Eat Performance.

Now, before we start on the review proper.  I have to warn you the place is a little hard to find.  To start, this is the view of the main entrance from the road.

Not your average entrance to a cafe/restaurant.  I walked right past on the first attempt and it took me a while before I even noticed the sign on the right of the picture.  But, get a little closer and you’ll see this.

Well, at least I know I’m walking in the right direction (although, I have been back and the banner thing wasn’t there).  Inside the (rather lovely) courtyard, you find the actual bistro!

Not the easiest to find.  But certainly not the hardest.

Before I went, I had no idea what to expect from them.  Was this to be fine dining a’la Sauvage?  Well, probably not with the bistro title.  But, you never know!  Inside, it’s rather nice, if a little sparse, and there’s plenty of room.

The menu gives you a pretty good run down of what they offer.  ALL GLUTEN FREE!!

EGGS! BURGERS! SANDWICHES! Oh my.

Plus, there are plenty of little treats to buy.

 

 

I ordered myself just a sandwich (well, it’s not like I get to do that often) and my friend ordered the baked eggs.  Now, it’s at this point I had my first disappointment, the sandwich was not something made to order, not something which came with a side salad or such.  But, it was one of the pre-made sandwiches from the fridge, albeit heated.

It was a surprise.  But I think more due to my expectations.  My feeling is that there’s a part of the  menu that is aimed more at the working quick lunch crowd and the rest (burgers and such) is more aimed towards sitting in.  This isn’t a problem really though.  Infact it’s great, if I worked nearby it would be a miracle.  It’s what you’d get from a regular lunch bistro, like a normal gluten person.

But, the sandwich was roast beef, and how on earth could I turn that down.

Yum!  It’s not the best sandwich I’ve ever had (it’s no Friedman’s Lunch in New York), but the bread was rather good.  I’d probably say it’s my favourite bread I’ve had in Berlin (including Jüte, the gluten free bakery), but then, I am a fan of chestnut bread anyway.

The baked egg dish looked a little better than my sandwich, and from my friends reactions, tasted rather good too.

Their smoothies are great and I had myself a beetroot filled one.  (I can’t stop stuffing my face with beetroot, I may have a problem).

I have visited once since then and tried one of their burgers.  Look at it.

Easily, very easily, the best gluten free burger I have had in Berlin.  I would highly recommend you go and try one.

The only other downside is that their service is rather slow.  It was pretty empty on both of my visits and the food took quite some time to arrive.  If it was busy, I would be concerned.  Hopefully this is just growing pains and they will improve soon.

In conclusion.  Yes, go and eat there, even if just for the burger or the delights of buying a quick takeout sandwich/salad like a normal person.

Ps. they do have a second location in Schöneberg which I’ve yet to visit.  I’d expect it to be just as good though.

Cafe Review – Feinkost Fraktion

I sometimes have quite a mix of emotions in my brainbox when it comes to finding new gluten free places.  I’ll be walking around the streets, as I’m oft to do, looking at all the menus in the cafes and restaurants.  Just waiting and wishing to see a glimpse of the magic word, “Glutenfrei”.  Although, this is mostly a fruitless exercise, even with things improving in Berlin.  I simply already know most of the gluten free places in the city.  But occasionally, very rarely, I’ll find one.  This is just how I stumbled upon Feinkost Fraktion one day, pure blind luck.

This now leads me to the aforementioned emotional maelstrom.  I am extremely happy on one side, “Wow, a new place!!”, but on the other side I’m annoyed that I haven’t found the place earlier.  Especially when that place is amazing and within walking distance of my apartment, plus it has probably been there for months without my knowledge.  This is something I am hoping to fix with Allergy Explorer soon, but we’re not quite there yet.  So, I’m left with extreme happiness tinged with lots of annoyance and frustration.

But, enough waffling about the inside of my head.  You’re here to read about what food you can stuff into your face.  Well, take a look at this.  It’s what first grabbed my attention.

Much of Gluten Free!

Inside, things get better, just take a look at these menus.

Lots of glutenfrei’s all over the place!  Plus, pretty normal prices!  A definite surprise in the world of vegan and gluten free food.  I have visited a few times now and I’m sad to say that they don’t always have everything in (I’ve yet to sample their quiche), but to be fair, they’re probably not getting a huge amount of gluten free traffic yet (fix this by going there now and telling them how much you love them and their gluten free food) (well, after reading the rest of the review of course).

Inside it’s kind of a combination shop/cafe with only ten seats at the time of writing this (plus a few outside if it’s warm enough).

The shop (and the cafe to be fair) is mostly focussed on Vegan food, so don’t expect to find a huge amount of gluten free products to buy.

But, do expect to buy a lot of food.  Just look at it.

Yum!  Now, you’re obliviously thinking ‘oh my, that looks rather good’, well, it’s even better than you’re currently thinking it is.

And look at that burger.  It looks like a ‘normal’ burger!  Plus, their Maniok fries are absolutely amazing! (screw regular potatoes and their inherent boringness)

Actual pancakes! Yum.

Plus, cake, of course.  Happiness.

The only downside is that they are still learning the art of gluten free.  For example, I’ll often be served a non-gluten free biscotti type thing with my tea, even though everything I ordered was gluten free (to be fair, this does happen a lot here in Berlin).  I’ve asked about their kitchen safety and I have been assured that they do their best to avoid cross contamination, although it was one of those conversations that you get in Germany, where you get the impression that the person you’re speaking to doesn’t really understand the seriousness of what you’re asking.  So, if you’re a celiac or have a very sensitive intolerance, I’d recommend having a conversation with them first and stressing the importance of avoiding cross contamination.  Although, I should point out that I have never had any reaction there, not even a slight one, and I’m definitely on the more sensitive side.

I’d expect this to improve with time, the staff/owners are very friendly and nice and I believe they genuinely want to provide good gluten free food that is safe for us all to eat.

In conclusion.  This is perhaps my favourite gluten free place in Berlin at the moment (pushing Suzette to a close second place, but only due to their lovely cheese and my lactose intolerance).  Their food is fresh, very good and reasonably priced and you have a large selection of varied dishes you can order.  There are not many places you can say that about in Berlin.  GO and visit NOW!

Cafe Review – Princess Cheesecake

When I heard that the cafe ‘Princess Cheesecake’ was offering Gluten Free treats I giggled like a little school girl.  I am going to eat Gluten Free Cheesecake!!!  Amazing news.  Yes, it is one of the easier cakes to make gluten free, but it’s also a freaking Cheesecake.  I rushed down there immediately.

I ran in and quickly glanced over all of the cake options on display.  They all looked absolutely amazing but none had a gluten free label on them!!  How could this be!  I sat down at a table in despair and checked the menu.

On special order.  Damn!  But, after a quick chat with the friendly staff, they assured me they did have a Gluten Free cake in the back.  Joy!  I asked them to bring me a slice as soon as they could.

Now, whilst not what I’d call a cheesecake, it was rather delicious indeed and close enough to satiate me.  I’m going to guess that the gluten free option they have changes, so you may not get the same cake, but I hope you do.

Inside, the place is a little small with limited seating.  So, especially in winter, you may have to wait for a seat.

In conclusion, if you’re nearby, it’s worth walking past to see if they have seats and what the gluten free cake on offer is.  Although, whether it’s worth a trip just to go there is another matter, I’ve tried a few times and been unable to get a seat.

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

Cafe Review – Ohlala Take 2

I realised, whilst sat eating a lovely gluten free brunch one afternoon, that it was about time I posted an updated review of Ohlala in Friedrichshain.  When I first reviewed them back in 2012 they’d only just started offering gluten free food and, to be honest, their selection was not the greatest.  Fortunately, this is now the future (2014) and things have improved greatly!  First off, they now run a gluten free vegan brunch EVERY Saturday and Sunday!  How amazing is that! (very)

Now, granted, I chose a bit of a mismatch selection for my first brunch plate.  I just piled as much as I could onto the plate so you, my dear readers, would have a little view of everything (honestly, I wasn’t just trying a little of everything and stuffing my face).  The quality and selection has rather improved since my first visit.  Especially the little tiny cupcakes, they are amazing.  It’s still worth getting there early (or late) as there are limited seats and the food gets snapped up pretty quick.  Fortunately though the seating situation has improved some.

Look, lots of places to sit and eat as much as is humanly possible!  Now, onto their new Gluten Free selection of cakes.

The one on the left (Tresor I think) is rather ridiculous and should definitely be eaten, although you may not be able to eat anything else for the rest of the day or week.

I’m pretty sure that says “Perverse Chocolate Cake”, which is delightful.

So much cake!

The big advantage is that they always have these little fellas on offer.

Glorious!  You can drop by anytime, eat a quiche and stuff your face with sweet treats.  Happiness indeed.

Plus, they also offer a deal with Salad/Soup for an extra €2.50.

In conclusion, if you haven’t visited here yet, you’re probably a bit loopy and you need to resolve this issue.  Get down there now!

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