For a snack and 5 questions with... Per Meurling from Berlin Food Stories
What does cuisine mean to you? And what are the food trends for the coming year? The answers to these questions (and many more) are available once a month in the Stories+ Snack, the Kitchen Stories business questionnaire.
This time, answer Per Meurling from Berlin Food Stories.
Per Meurling publishes Berlin's best food spots on his independent blog, and his loyal followers on Instagram have now grown to over 118,000 people.
Per is actually very reluctant to eat “cold”, but for once he has opted for us for Smørrebrød decided.
You're one of Germany's most successful food bloggers and there's probably nothing you haven't already tried. What does “cuisine” mean to you?
Cuisine is about the art of cooking. The nice thing about my job is that I get to see cooking skills at every level. Fine dining is not the same as fine dining. Perfectly rolled Turkish manti a la “housewife style” as well as Tim Raue's wasabi Kaisergarnet are included here. There is simply a wide wingspan here. If you look very closely, everyone can encounter this form of cuisine every day.
On your Instagram profile, you describe yourself as probably the “hungriest person in Berlin.” It's about much more than just satisfying hunger, isn't it?
Of course, it's about more than “satisfying hunger.” It's about an insane curiosity about food and cuisine. I have been studying the topic of food in a very intensive way since I was a child. Eating in restaurants in particular and experiencing restaurant culture was something incredibly fascinating for me right from the start. As a child, I dragged my parents to thousands of pizzerias because I was already so impressed by the dish “pizza” back then. And that hasn't changed in adulthood, on the contrary: it has escalated much more. This is primarily about knowledge and fascination for the diversity of the subject of food.
Per is actually very reluctant to eat “cold”, but for once he has opted for us for Smørrebrød decided.
Not only your followers, but also the Berlin food scene is on your lips. What is behind “Berlin Food Stories”, what is your secret? Why are you welcomed everywhere with open arms?
I don't think it's really a secret. It is more about the fact that I have been following what I do for a very long time with very high quality standards. There are a lot of food bloggers these days, especially on Instagram. When I started blogging about food in 2012, I was more or less the only one. Many people jump into this type of business, with the goal of “I can eat for free” or “I'll be invited everywhere.” But that was never my goal; even today I only very rarely get invited... from friends yes, but when I discover something new, I work according to a fixed principle: I prefer to go to new restaurants unannounced, I remain anonymous and pay myself. That is very important to me, that is my quality standard - and only a few have that.
My authenticity has become my brand and you can see and feel that in my content. That is the reason for the strong following. I don't get invited by PR companies, I never go to openings or blogger events. I'm making my own content while everyone else is writing about the same things. I'm going my own way, with my unique content, my unique channel. I feel privileged to be able to do that.
We all know how difficult it has been for the catering industry in recent months. But it is also possible to see how many new restaurants with exciting ideas are sprouting up from the ground. What do you think are the food trends for the coming year?
Berlin as the gastronomic capital of Europe: That's right, there's a lot happening here. I always say that Berlin is probably the fastest growing gastronomic city in Europe. I'm sticking to that, even now after the lockdowns. Berlin did well during this time; in Germany, restaurateurs were well supported by the state. You'll see that in the coming year too; other countries simply had a much harder time there.
Increasing capital meets consumer-loving consumers: A lot is going to happen in Berlin. We must not forget how little money there has been on the Berlin catering scene in recent years — there have hardly been any restaurants that were started with venture capital. That will definitely change now, there will be a lot more money flowing into this scene. Also because average consumer spending is increasing, people have more money. The food will also be more expensive as a result. There will be many more smart food concepts. There will be more business.
Modern cuisine, sustainability, convenience: What could be other trends? Definitely areas that were as yet unestablished. This can already be seen now, for example in modern Indian or Mexican concepts. So much is happening right now, simply because there is so much catching up to do. Sustainability is another major issue. Or even convenience recipes mean more “live stuff at hand,” such as salad sandwiches.
Pizza as a lockdown winner: Other topics that are currently exploding, such as pizza, are of course also due to the entire pandemic. Pizza is an easy concept that always works: Everyone loves pizza, it works in lockdown, that works as a delivery service. There will be more and more of them all the time. Crisis-proof is perhaps the keyword. People will plan smarter. We can state that the scene is definitely going to explode in the next few years.
Which ingredient could you always do without?
As already mentioned, I actually eat everything. But there are two things that I can not only do without, but that I really don't like at all...
First: bananas. I don't eat bananas, in any form. Second: cucumber salad. A real trick of mine and yes, I really mean these EU-standard, long, green cucumbers. Cucumbers in a different form - okay. But they just don't taste like anything.
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