At Terracruda you can taste dumplings seasoned with beetroot pesto, macadamia nuts and burrata, spaghetti with cheese, pepper and lime, grilled pecorino with bergamot jam, pizza with ‘nduja and olives.
The Italian culinary tradition in Berlin is reinvented with the best ingredients by Terracruda
Dumplings with beetroot pesto, macadamia nuts and burrata (spun-curd cheese), spaghetti seasoned with cheese, pepper and lime, grilled pecorino (Italian sheep’s milk cheese) with bergamot jam, pizzas with ‘nduja and olives – but also with mortadella (Italian sliced meat), lemon and pistachio nuts. All types of pasta are homemade, as well as the delicious desserts. These are some of the delicacies that can be tasted at Terracruda, Silvia Veronica Bellusci’s Italian restaurant that is a few feet away from the Admiralbrücke – in Kreuzberg, Berlin.
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«All our recipes are made with the best ingredients and many of them come directly from Italy – especially from Calabria, where I was born. I want let all the Berliners know Calabrian flavors and aromas: starting from the typical ‘nduja (a kind of soft and spicy salami), to the Reggio Calabria bergamotto (an oil obtained from bergamot plant) that is used to produce excellent juices and jams. The oil that we use is Italian too – it is produced in my aunt’s olive oil mill. I prefer buying my products from small manufacturers, both Italian and German. For example, we use two different types of coffee: a Calabrian one and a Berliner one, based in Paul-Lincke-Ufer. The honey and the vegetables that I use are regional products too, even if I like using also some exotic ingredients – like mango or lime – to exalt and revalue some traditional recipes. Furthermore, we use Fair trade products – like “viva con agua”, that supports the organization aiming at guarantee potable water in the poorest regions of the world.»
«I have been living in Germany for ten years – I moved there thanks to an Erasmus project. I studied languages and sinology and – despite the facts that my parents owned a restaurant – I didn’t use to think about a future in the restaurant business. After two years of traveling, I decided to open my own restaurant in Berlin. I had already worked in some restaurants – and in Italian restaurants too – but it was the first time that I took a so big commitment: my own project, with all its various responsibilities. At the beginning I was a little bit afraid but fortunately, two months after the opening our cooker – Alex Maiorano – arrived. He has always been working in restaurants and thanks to his skills and his passion, we let people esteemed us since from the beginning, creating little by little a group of attached clients.»
Terracruda. «This name comes from the technique used to decorate my restaurant. In fact, our decorations are made with cob (“terracruda” in Italian) and they were realized by one of my friend – a peculiar artist. This is one of the most ancient ad traditional construction techniques. On the walls there are figures of animals, printed by one of my Italian friend who lives in Berlin. Tradition with the addition of some colors is what I am trying to propose in my restaurant. In fact, we organize many biodynamic wine tastings, produced by some Sicilian and Calabrian wine cellars. Furthermore, we organize also events dedicated to “Amaro del Capo”, the Calabrian herbal liqueur. There is no lack of the Italian aperitif – during it you can taste the “mezzodì”, the typical Calabrian aperitif, made of herbs and Italian juicy citrus. We offer our clients some interesting alternatives to the traditional Aperol.»
Terracruda
Grimmstraße 1, 10967 Berlin
Open from Monday to Sunday, from 11:00 to midnight
Telephone number: 0049 (0)30 54876251
info@terracruda.de
Translation edited by: Federica Presta
