Shifting Perspectives
If you think about Berlin, what crosses your mind? Asking the same question to several different people, we got many various answers - thinking of Berlin obviously brings up many thoughts, topics and perspectives. Most likely, the dazzling array of opportunities is also what makes the city so attractive to many different people nowadays: it’s a vibrant, multicultural hub with many different faces.
I was asked to give an introduction about my personal perspective of the city. Living and working here for the past 15 years, I certainly have shaped my own little world within it. For many people the roughness of the city, the many opportunities to dance the night away, the experimental scene for arts and culture are most appealing. I agree that Berlin would not be Berlin without these choices, which make the city fun and mysterious. However, working with food and constantly striving to find the freshest and best produce available, I have learned a lot about the green side of Berlin. Did you know that Berlin is actually the greenest city in Europe?!!
Shifting Perspectives was a dining experience designed to look at Berlin through the eyes of a food and nature lover.
Part 1. Big City Glamor
In collaboration with other artists, we created an immersive welcome performance celebrating the more well-known ideals of Berlin: the large city feeling, hidden urban spaces, creativity and experimental performance art.
Guests were guided through an artistic welcoming installation which finally led them to a creative studio space, hidden in one of those dark artsy neighborhood backyards. To match the topic they were greeted with a bright and magically color-changing cocktail: Cheers to the colorful, artsy and surprising side of Berlin!
Part 2. Urban Harvest
In the second chapter guests were invited to shift perspectives completely and embark on a culinary journey through »the green Berlin«. Having left behind the glitter, music and party-like atmosphere, people found themselves on a different floor to be greeted by a totally different setting: calm, mindful, and fully decorated with edible greens: the dining hall had been turned into an urban garden installation, where wild herbs, salads, edible flowers and salad toppings were hanging from the walls and ceiling, ready to be harvested.
Before taking a plate to harvest their own salad, guests were invited to take part in a hand washing ritual, which did not only prepare to use the hands for harvesting, but also served to calm the mind and arrive within the new setting.
To encourage re-thinking urban farming methods and how to use digitalisation and smart technologies to green modern cities, we used chemistry glassware to serve additional ingredients.
Part 3. Biodiversity
An apple is not just an apple. Did you know that Germany is home to over 2000 varieties of apples?!! Yet only about 5 are readily available in supermarkets. Biodiversity doesn't only make our plate more colorful and interesting, but it also plays a key role in protecting our environment. It’s not only tastier to eat diverse, it’s also healthier for you and the planet.
To learn more about apple varieties, guests had to draw either an »apple information card« or an apple, of which we offered three different kinds. Through smelling, looking and examining the apple people had to find their partner holding the matching card. Then, apples were peeled at the fitting peeling station: Spartan, Elise or Boskoop. Correctly sorted, the peeled apples were collected by the kitchen crew to be turned into a delicious dessert.
Part 4. Forest Tales
Digging Roots. Often we forget where our food is coming from… rarely, we still refer to »mother earth« and pay attention to the soil, which nourishes us. In English, soil is also referred to as »dirt«. We call our hands dirty, when they are covered with soil after gardening…
To continue our journey into the forests of Brandenburg (the region surrounding Berlin) we let our guests dig for roots! Using the ancient method of clay baking, root vegetables were cooked as a whole in their own juices and served on fresh lovely smelling compost soil.
November Forest on a Plate. Let’s imagine a stroll through the forest on one of those cloudy November days, when the sun shines occasionally through the bright colorful leaves, moist grounds and rich smells. Stumbling over paddles once in a while, finding the last mushrooms and wild herbs along the way...
The main course was composed of burnt butter celeriac puree, stuffed mushrooms, lingonberries, wild herbs, and cider-miso sauce - a visual and tasteful forest feast.
Part 4. Coming Home (Childhood Memories)
Is there anything more comforting than the smell of freshly baked apple cake?! For me, this means childhood memories…
A lighter version of apple cake is the strudel: loads of fresh apples baked in a layer of very thin dough. We prepared three apple strudels: each strudel filled with one sort of apple: Spartan, Elise or Boskoop. To encourage communication and exchange on the topic but also to emphasize the feeling of comfort, the final plate was served to be shared in couples of two.
Skills:
• food concept
• catering concept
• event styling
• creative direction
• event management
