Cookies Cream — Restaurant in Berlin

My brother and I ate at Cookies Cream in Berlin to celebrate our last night in Germany, however our visit was cut short with a trip to the hospital due to an allergic reaction. This already scary experience was made worse due to the actions of a rude and disrespectful staff member.

My brother is allergic to nuts. When I made the reservation two weeks in advance, I asked the restaurant if he could still dine there safely. I received this very reasonable response: “We can serve our menu without nuts. Only we can not guarantee no traces because we work with the product.”

I confirmed this over the phone the same day, and in person with our waitress at the restaurant. Three courses into the meal, my brother’s lips began to swell and he began to have difficulty swallowing. We did not have his auto injector (EpiPen), so I notified the waitress that we would need to pay and leave early so that he could get medicine.

At this point I want to clarify that I am not writing this negative review due to the allergic reaction itself. I was motivated to leave this feedback due to the actions of a specific staff member, who I believe was the manager.

While the waitress was processing our bill, this staff member came over to see why we were leaving early. He said that the menu was modified and that this reaction should not be possible, and he accused my brother of eating the nuts off of my plate. Then he told us that we should not leave, and he gave my brother a random allergy pill and asked us to stay at least for the next five minutes.

At this point, I was having a near panic attack, so we took the pill and I told the waitress I would pay any amount to leave. Several hundred Euros later we were on our way back to the hotel.

My brother’s condition continued to worsen with difficulty breathing, so we headed to the nearest hospital. On the way, I called the restaurant to find out the name of the allergy medicine this man had given my brother so we could tell the doctors in case of any drug interaction.

The same man answered the phone and he said condescendingly “why do you want to know the name of the medicine? Because it worked so well you want to buy it for yourself?” Then he told me “I gave him a very basic allergy medicine, you know to save someone’s life.” I finally got the name of the medication (Lysotossil) and my brother made it to the hospital safely to receive treatment (he is OK!). I later learned from the doctor that this medicine is for coughs and not used to treat allergic reactions to food.

I was shocked by this staff member’s flippant attitude throughout this experience. It is clear he did not take my brother’s allergy or his life threatening reaction seriously. For more context, my brother has had this allergy his whole life, however he has never had a reaction since the first time when he was 2 years old. It is highly likely he has been in contact with trace amounts of nuts at some point in his life as he is 17 now. I suspect that at Cookies Cream he was exposed to much more than trace amounts of nuts, and that the same lack of seriousness extended to the meal preparation.

I expected much better from a Michelin star restaurant, especially one that already caters to dietary restrictions. I would not be upset if this restaurant told me upfront they could not accommodate the allergy. Instead, they told me they could, and then did not take this...

It had been on my bucket list for a very long time to visit a fine dining restaurant, but since I'm vegan, my options are quite limited worldwide. Finally, in Berlin, this place was my immediate thought.

The place is extravagant in its own way. The interior is super simple, with no extraneous details. The music in the dining hall was a bit too loud, so I had to strain my voice every time I spoke to my partner.

Water is not complimentary, which may be a German custom. My belief is that when you're paying over 150€ per person, some still water could be offered as a courtesy.

The food was the star of the night, and as a vegan chef myself, I had high expectations. It did not disappoint. The presentation, plating, and flavors were spot on, and the dishes complemented each other perfectly.

We started with a Jerusalem artichoke tartare with tonburi and yuzu gel—a very fresh and appetite-inducing way to start.

Then we continued with the bell pepper tartare, which, for me, was the highlight of all the savory courses. The flavor was so intense yet gentle at the same time; it felt like I was tasting this everyday staple vegetable for the very first time. Each bite offered something new, whether it be a flavor note or a new texture.

Sometimes certain flavors were overpowering, like the verjus glaze on the celeriac.

The dish with beetroot, chicory, and shallot confit had all the elements playing and complementing each other well, even though I would have preferred the beetroot to be slightly more tender.

But the dessert was magnificent, with the combination of contrasting flavors, textures, and temperatures merging into a wonderful finale for the entire menu.

The service staff were very attentive and friendly, each with their own character and manner of interacting with guests. Due to a misunderstanding, instead of receiving two vegan menu versions, we received one dish that was vegetarian, which they handled gracefully by providing us with a discount, a replacement, and complimentary pralines.

Overall, I can rate my experience as meeting expectations (in a really good way because they were high). I highly recommend it for a...

We took the five-course menu with wine pairing. To start, we got the onsen egg to share with a cocktail each. The cocktails were nothing special, and even though they might be innovative the tastes just didn’t match the quality of the rest of the meal to be honest. On the other hand, I really recommend the egg (sharing worked out great!), a symphony of textures and just a perfectly balanced palette with simple ingredients. That turned out to be the case for most of the remainder of the menu as well. Nice balance between temperatures, textures, heat, tartness, umami and new innovative flavor combinations. The bread was GREAT. Wine pairing was good, but as the menu was light so was the wines - not my personal taste and there could be more variation here (note, different types of wines but all light). The main component of strawberry dessert was bland. Coffee was incredible!! The wait for the second dish (first of the menu) was quite long. The waiter kept us informed which was good, but still too long. We took a shot together with the waiter on the house with the bill! Nice! (Not everyone got this so we felt special!). Our meal was about €445 total (+tip).

We had an amazing night, but there are some minor details I think would be an easy fix for a substantially better experience: I took sparkling, and my partner still water. I got this small metal slab under my glass so that the waiter could tell who wanted sparkling. However, it stuck to my glass multiple times which once made me spill water. Just not a nice experience. There should be a small bread plate. The bread is so good that you want to eat it in between meals - or just not place it on the plate etc. There are crumbs on the table and once again - just not a nice experience. The water was €7.5/person... I really think they should include this (rise prices if necessary!) as it is just not a nice gesture. The wine is just too cold. There can be no debating of this fact! Would like some more info about the wine pairing Would like more info about sourcing and preparation...