Ristorante Cumberland Italian Grandezza on Ku'Damm

Lush crystal chandeliers glitter from above, the floor and walls are decorated with luxurious marble, and the eight (!) metre high ceilings are almost reminiscent of a cathedral - the Ristorante Cumberland on Ku'Damm is possibly one of the most beautiful restaurants in the city.

A fireplace from 1914 peeks out from behind the bar: "I really wanted to integrate this gem into the interior. It is so beautiful and exudes a very special flair," explains restaurant manager Mika Rahimkhan. The same goes for the disused paternosters, in which the champagne can now stand chilled. Everything about the premises in the listed Cumberland House screams Italian grandeur - so upscale Italian cuisine is probably just the right way to go.

In the front, in the Grand Caffé area, you can enjoy handmade specialities and an obligatory espresso - porcelain with filigree gold rims and the image of the listed Cumberland House - or enjoy exquisite Italian antipasti and aperitivo drinks in the afternoon - we sip indulgently on a Cumberland Bellini and a fruity Spicy Guava.

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In the back of the restaurant, on the other hand, fine Italian fare is served that doesn't want to commit to a particular corner of the country but to one thing: classic Italian cuisine that focuses on uncompromising product quality and at the same time does without clichés. Nine chefs from all over Italy followed Mika Rahimkhan's call to Kurfürstendamm in Berlin.

The home-baked bread and grissini, which we dip in bitter-fruity olive oil from Sicily, are convincing all along the line - they are baked daily in the in-house bakery. Then we taste the tender Vitello Tonnato with caper leaves and the truly perfect Parmigiana made of aubergines, San Marzano tomatoes, Parmesan and mozzarella. This is how you want to start an Italian evening.

In a truly unique atmosphere, we taste authentic traditional cuisine with a special flair, and so we have pasta served as primi piatti at Ristorante Cumberland - as the first main course, if you will. Just as it should be in Italy. We choose ravioli with a filling of red prawns and a crustacean stock, to which Cima di Papa adds a welcome, grown-up earthiness.

In contrast, the scalloped cannelloni with white ragù and ricotta tastes like an Italian childhood we never had but miss a little at this moment - fascinating what pasta can do. So the two dishes, which couldn't be more different, demonstrate the whole variety of Cumberland cuisine.

While we eat our pasta, the white-clad service at the next table frees the Catch of the Day from its salt crust. In general, the service at Ristorante Cumberland takes its professional ethics seriously and pampers us from back to front and in the highest manner. He also serves one or two first-class wines from the well-stocked wine list with positions from France, Germany, Spain, some other regions and, of course, from all 20 wine regions of Italy.

For secondi, we choose a fantastic grilled chicken leg with pointed peppers and braised leg of lamb wrapped in pasta with Sicilian artichokes - both deliciously proving that Italian cuisine can do much more than pasta and pizza. Nevertheless, the dessert menu naturally includes the obligatory tiramisu or mixed Italian cheeses.

Instead, we go to the front café area of the gem again to choose our desserts because in the showcase there, various tarts and cakes - one more beautiful than the next - from the in-house patisserie are waiting to land on our table: Tortra Meringata al Limone, cannoli, pistachio eclairs with hibiscus.

We choose an apple and cinnamon tartlet with buttercream and the sinfully chocolatey torta caprese with an almond base, accompanied by caffè. While we stir some sugar into the crema, we dream of a stroll through Milan's Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II - after all, it could be right around the corner here.

Ronja C. Kolls

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