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Shy Chef Secret Supper Club, Berlin

by Krista

Shy chef

The Shy Chef
A Secret Location in The Bohemian District of Kreuzberg

Date of Last Visit: Saturday, September 5, 2009

The Victims: Four Swedes, one Mexican, one German, one Yank (besides for me)

The Background: In planning for my visit to Berlin, I e-mailed Sylee, who writes the beautiful blog Berlin Reified. To keep things simple, I asked for her top three Berlin picks. The Shy Chef was one of them. Perfectly coincidentally, I remembered reading about The Shy Chef in The New York Times earlier this year. So I sent an e-mail and crossed my fingers.

Very shortly before I headed to Berlin, I got the word. I was in. Perfect.

The Entrance: Some people just have an eye for things. I paid a professional way too much money to help me decorate my living room back in 2004, and it doesn't achieve the level of gemuetlichkeit that the Shy Chef's living room boasts. Great art on the walls. Great books on the shelves. Comfortable more-than-slightly Scandinavian furniture with great upholstery. I'm jealous. (And I have also never stepped foot in a Habitat since the decorating debacle. I hate Habitat, and you should too.)

I'm the first to arrive but Patrick and Monika follow me in soon afterwards. He's American. She's German. They met at Oktoberfest. Enough said! This is quickly followed by four Swedes who are a little quiet at first but open up as the night goes on; around 2 a.m., I leave them in the after-bar and am truly sad to say goodbye. Teresita, our Mexican friend, is the hit of the party and goes back and forth between English, Spanish and German. (And I think with a few more glasses of wine in her, we totally could have had her speaking Korean.) In short, it's a nice international crowd, and I get to practice my Swedish, which is always a fun party trick.

The Food: Welcome cocktail first. It's called "Number 26." And it's lovely. Until I put it down on a window ledge–which I don't notice until a few seconds later has a slope in it–and it comes crashing to the ground. Nothing like a little party foul to get things started. I am so embarrassed.  I spend the next 15 minutes apologizing profusely to anyone who will listen.

We start out with an old jam jar full of quinoa, beetroot, and smoked salmon. There's also a bit of horseradish in there, which is a fantastic surprise. This starter is different and interesting and fun and gets me pretty excited about whatever is coming next. 

Shy chef trout

The "trout grenobloise with white beans" is my favorite dish of the evening. It's simple and hearty and boasts some great, honest flavors. Lots of capers and lemon and the white beans also have the same citrusy tang. It's a very generous portion, which really has me worried. If every course is going to be this big, I need to slow down. 

Next up is a bitter salad. And they weren't kidding when they named it that. To be honest, it is not to my taste. It's way too bitter for me as well as one of the Swedes, whereas nobody else seems to mind. Funny, those tastebuds. As I watched the bitter salad conversation unfold–why Daniel and I thought it was so bitter, whereas the rest didn't–I was vaguely remembering reading an article about just this–certain people are more sensitive to flavors than others. If I'm a supertaster, that sure would explain a lot of things. (Although I do love vegetables, generally. Broccoli in particular.) Daniel and I eat the artichokes and try to convince the other Swedish guy to eat the rest.

Rabbit…rabbit is next…and at this point, my eyes are crossed. Too much food. Too much wine. Too much conversation with young, sexy Swedes. You might know that I love rabbit. I could eat rabbit all the time. But tonight…I do not do it justice.

Because you know…I am saving room for the cherry tart…the cherry tart with coconut and premium tahiti vanilla ice cream. I love the cherry tart because it is simple and homey. Cleaned my plate up, I did. Really, this was lovely. 

I haven't mentioned the wines yet…they were really lovely matches. Thoughtful matches. I've e-mailed The Shy Chef and asked for the details but haven't heard back yet…I'll post them as soon as I can. The rose, in particular, was really quite right.

The Verdict: Ah, there are some regrets that you have in life. Why haven't I spent more time in Berlin? Why haven't I gone to more underground restaurants? Why didn't I take more notes at The Shy Chef? Why don't I put my art up on my walls and use more candles and buy more Scandinavian furniture on eBay? And why, why, did I leave the bar we went to afterwards "early" at the end of the night, when I was still enjoying myself?

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8 comments

An American in London 2009 -

You know, it’s great you had such a mixed crowd at the Shy Chef, because when I went to the Hidden Kitchen in Paris (an underground restaurant), the other ten people eating with us were all American or British tourists and expats. It wasn’t terrible, per se, but I’d had hopes of a bit more international mix to the diners (or at least more French people).

In any event, the Hidden Kitchen experience (while delicious) put me off underground restaurants, generally, which I know isn’t rational or reasonable.

Gourmet Chick 2009 -

Ok your first post on Berlin and already I am jealous. I am reading this while watching Jamie Oliver’s new show where he goes to an underground restaurant in New York -.

Funthyme 2009 -

Thanks for the review. I’m booked in to go in November and can’t wait. Will be interesting how they ‘do’ supperclubs in Berlin.

Funthyme

msmarmitelover 2009 -

Only just seen this…krista they cancelled me! The whole purpose of the bloody trip!
Agree re only having foreigners…
Also surprised they have so few people.

Krista 2009 -


Cancelled you? Or cancelled the entire dinner? I did get the sense that they were between venues and chefs at the moment, and the Shy Chef herself was not in Berlin when I dined with them.

Berlin rocks. You'll have a great time anyhow.

Have you looked at http://www.berlindinnerclub.com/

http://rodeo-club.net/

or

http://cookiescream.com/

?

msmarmitelover 2009 -

I’m going to cookies cream tonight…

sfrovin 2011 -

Apparantly it’s a new chef, and we felt it a total rip off when we left The Shy Chef-dinner. There was nothing unique or spectacular about the food. I don’t pay 60 Euro to be served lentil/bean soup, green salad with salmon or an average ravioli. The menu had absolutely nothing to do with what is shown on the website. Besides the actual chef was too full of himself and the atmosphere when he crashed on the couch obviously waiting for us to leave was more than unwelcoming.
Anytime I would spend my money in one of Berlin’s many restaurants where the standard is much higher at a lower price, and where there is nothing secret about the concept.

Krista 2011 -

Yikes! Sounds like a terrible experience. Yes, I have heard too that things are different now. Such a bummer because I had a totally lovely evening back in 2009!

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