Little Korea in Adlershof
Restaurant mani mogo
Adlershof was once seen to be the Far East of Berlin, albeit without even the remotest reference to its culinary offerings. In the meantime, this science city has evolved into a vibrant, lively part of the capital and the Far East at home in Adlershof. And that in a highly appetising form – with kimchi, bulgogi, and mandu.
It is said that Korean cuisine is a particularly harmonised combination of differing, sometimes even completely different flavours. This can be tested at Mani mogo, a Korean restaurant that Young-Mi Park-Snowden and Andrea Volpato opened in 2015 at Erich-Thilo-Straße 3. Following Kimchi Princess and AngryChicken in Kreuzberg, this is their third restaurant in Berlin. Mani mogo means something like “Eat a lot”, but also “Enjoy your meal” or “Feel at home”. The name says it all. Besides Korean cuisine, Park-Snowden also intends to communicate the culture, lifestyle, and hospitality nurtured in the country of her ancestors. The interior, a meld of Korean playfulness and casual airport charm, builds a bridge from Adlershof to Korea. There’s a lot of aluminium and paint here, combined with white, beautiful wood surfaces, and traditional textiles. For her, it is “a challenge to cultivate a Korean ambience in the science city”.
Mani mogo offers, of course, the traditional Korean cuisine with bibimbap, bulgogi, and cellophane noodle salad, as well as fusion meals like e.g. the Bulgogi Beef Burger. The guests can choose from offers that change daily. Meat courses always come with a vegetarian and vegan alternative. The managers make clear their claim that the food they serve is healthy, varied, and freshly prepared. Korean cuisine has known kimchi for 2000 years, a kind of fermented white cabbage that in Korea is served with virtually every meal. Young-Mi Park-Snowden also never fails to emphasise its health promoting effects. A surprise is the list of beverages,offering Italian coffee and wine specialities next to Korean honey teas and selfmade iced teas. No wonder: Andrea Volpato is Italian.
Ensconced on the ground floor of the Adapt Apartments, this establishment provides breakfast in the form of a substantial, varied buffet from as early as seven o’clock in the morning. Also freshly made panini sandwiches and homemade cakes and desserts are served. Mani mogo offers its delivery services for company and festival events as well. And special occasions can book this location at the heart of Adlershof. The interior offers room for fifty, with the terrace taking up to 150 more. Young-Mi Park-Snowden, pioneer of Korean gastronomy in Berlin, is delighted at the encouraging reception she is being given in the science city. “This is undoubtedly due to the many professional and science contacts with Korea.”
By Klaus Oberzig for Adlershof Special