Four days in rainy Berlin

[ElsieD]

Mmmm.  Love Matjes.

[Duvel]

1 hour ago, KennethT said:

I was curious about the doner - here, we have 2 different varieties of something similar - gyro which is basically a giant (doner sized) caseless relatively finely ground sausage revolving on the spit, and shawarma which is thin pieces of marinated meat stacked up on the spit to doner size, then shaved from the sides.  It seems like the German doner is more of what I would call shawarma - is that right?

In Germany, Döner needs to be comprised of stacked slices of marinated meat. It is, however, allowed to add a certain amount of minced meat, typically to smoothen the mass out and giving it a more uniform appearance. It also lowers the cost. A skewer just made from stacked meat slices is considered of higher quality. 

Edited November 17, 2021 by Duvel (log)

[heidih]

So in this connected universe we in Los Angeles have Al Pastor which is also a vertical stacked meat and some say came from immigrants to Mexico from the Middle East. One big happy tummy famiy.  https://www.spinninggrillers.com/blog/tacos-al-pastor-recipes/

[Porthos]

@Duvel I've eaten at a 5 Guys near us a couple of times when we took our daughter, SIL and their children. I don't understand the draw. It wasn't bad; for me it was just a burger.

[gfweb]

46 minutes ago, Porthos said:

@Duvel I've eaten at a 5 Guys near us a couple of times when we took our daughter, SIL and their children. I don't understand the draw. It wasn't bad; for me it was just a burger.

 

Heresy I know, but I never see much in any burger to rave about. Perfectly nice but not anything remarkable to me.

 

Perhaps I eat too many.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

My German professor back in the 1960's had nothing but ill to say about the  Brandenburger Tor.  "Last war we ever won."  She was more into stories of beer gardens.

 

[rotuts]

Ive been to two 5-guys here.

 

the attraction is you cn put all sorts of stuff on the burger

 

the bad is the bun , and many of the toppings are cold.

[ambra]

1 hour ago, rotuts said:

Ive been to two 5-guys here.

 

the attraction is you cn put all sorts of stuff on the burger

 

the bad is the bun , and many of the toppings are cold.

I had never been to the Five Guys in the US but went to the one in Milan and enjoyed it well enough, just because I hadn't had a crappy American fast food burger in ages. There is also a Steak n Shake (which I also didn't know) and that one was better though. 

 

The Berlin write-up has been so fun! I went the summer before locked down and I loved it. And now I just wante to go back. 😀 It's all your fault! 🤭

 

Coincidentally, I'm told that all of the Doner Kebab meat in Italy comes pre-made from Germany. I don't know if that's true, but that's what they say!

[Smithy]

This HAS been a fun writeup! Like many others, I'm impressed with your physical stamina - both for cycling and eating.  I didn't know about Doner Kebab, much less its kinship to shawarma, gyros, and the versions Heidi showed in Southern California. Thank you for that!

[gfweb]

17 hours ago, Porthos said:

@Duvel I've eaten at a 5 Guys near us a couple of times when we took our daughter, SIL and their children. I don't understand the draw. It wasn't bad; for me it was just a burger.

 

I say the same about In n Out.  I don't get the cult.

 

Perhaps its the limited availability.  Like when Coors was desirable simply because of limited distribution.  It made for a good movie, though.

[rotuts]

@Duvel 

 

just such a wonderful trip.

 

its dry where I am !

 

in terms of international franchises

 

or German ones

 

what is the situation 

 

re:  ' fried chicken ' ?

[Duvel]

3 hours ago, rotuts said:

@Duvel 

 

just such a wonderful trip.

 

its dry where I am !

 

in terms of international franchises

 

or German ones

 

what is the situation 

 

re:  ' fried chicken ' ?

Fried chicken is a concept that has never really caught on here. Sure, we have KFC, but it is not really that popular. If I take my parents at the quintessential German couple, the issue with fried chicken is the (multitude of tiny) bones and the greasiness. It is a perception thing, of course, as you might have noticed German food isn’t exactly lean either. Yet, a proper Schnitzel will alwys be perceived better than anything from a KFC bucket. Chicken McNuggets, however, are popular as they do not have bones and their coating conceals the frying medium better that regular fried chicken, which just bleeds out oil …

[rotuts]

@Duvel 

 

that is quite interesting .

 

indeed , very interesting

 

thanks !

 

Texture ?

 

a very proper 

 

Schnitzel  has several layers  of texture 

 

but the work for that delicacy 

 

was done in the kitchen 

 

not your plate

 

my view

[Duvel]

3 minutes ago, rotuts said:

Texture ?

 

a very proper 

 

Schnitzel  has several layers  of texture 

 

but the work for that delicacy 

 

was done in the kitchen 

 

not your plate

 

my view

True that !

[Duvel]

Very, very last day. With just a few hours to wander around we dropped by the Hacke‘sche Höfe, a restored historic landmark. Beautiful to see and wander around, but not so much to shop, actually …

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before returning to the train station, I pressured the family to get a farewell snack at a local Vietnamese …

 

Spring rolls (fresh) …

 

 

And fried …

 

 

Pho (ish) …

 

 

Duck with peanut sauce 

 

 

 

This time the train ride went smooth … I had purchased some extra meatball sandwiches, which the little one and me enjoyed …

 

 

 

And while he was having an Orangina, I enjoyed a lovely Jameson Crested from an IKEA plastic cup proper …

 

 

 

Edited November 18, 2021 by Duvel (log)

[ElsieD]

Thank you for taking us along.  I enjoyed it very much.

[rotuts]

@Duvel 

 

thank you for taking the time 

 

to sahre

 

esp. for me

 

the '' on the way to food '

 

pics 

 

stunning 

 

as is all the food.

 

imagine 

 

1/2 a day 

 

on that bike

 

as a reasonable 

 

Speed !

 

just saying

 

A very small

 

''USA"

 

Mars Bar

 

or in the olden days :

 

350 cals

 

35 mins on the treadmill

 

at 20 % ++ incline

 

at 35 Mins ?

 

bake is better

 

more opportunities 

 

to see things to

 

check out

 

and enjoy.

[KennethT]

Yes!  Thanks for this!

[Shelby]

Super fun and the FOOD.  Sigh.  I dreamed about the food last night I swear.

[Okanagancook]

I really enjoyed your tour.  Thank you for taking the time to do this. Cheers

[johnnyd]

Wonderful mini-blog, Duvel!  I've never been to Berlin. Your travelogue hit all the right notes and the diverse cuisine was most enjoyable. Thank you!

[gfweb]

19 hours ago, Duvel said:

Fried chicken is a concept that has never really caught on here. Sure, we have KFC, but it is not really that popular. If I take my parents at the quintessential German couple, the issue with fried chicken is the (multitude of tiny) bones and the greasiness. It is a perception thing, of course, as you might have noticed German food isn’t exactly lean either. Yet, a proper Schnitzel will alwys be perceived better than anything from a KFC bucket. Chicken McNuggets, however, are popular as they do not have bones and their coating conceals the frying medium better that regular fried chicken, which just bleeds out oil …

 

I agree on the bones.  When I fry chicken is is invariably boned thighs without the skin (ala Thomas Keller). Doing it skinless keeps it crispy and the breading adhered to the meat.

[TdeV]

Duvel, I liked your story so much that I told my Swiss friend all about it. For 20 minutes she was entertained (or at least pretended to be!) 🤣

[kayb]

Many thanks for taking us on the tour. You inspired me to cook German the other night.

 

[Anton4100]

Thank you, Duvel! Watching this thread is like I'm being there.. I'm living in Eastern Europe and I was in Berlin only once at the age of 14 (now I'm 23) when I was at swimming competition introducing my country at the international arena. These photos made me a bit nostalgic...