Sakura Bakery & Patisserie Vegan, sustainable and with a touch of Japan in Berlin-Mitte

When the cherry blossoms bloom pink in March, there is a mood of joy in Japan. After all, it initiates the end of winter and the arrival of spring with all its joyful promises. Sakura, cherry blossom, is the name Jojo Aoyama has given her bakery, which she opened in Berlin Mitte district in autumn 2021.

Since she was a child, she has loved baking: "The joy of creating something beautiful. And then to see how it brings joy to others..." Because no one should suffer for these sweet delights, all cakes, tarts and cookies at Sakura are vegan. All ingredients are sourced sustainably and organically. Artificial flavours and substitute powders are taboo, and the menu changes according to the season.

In the back of the bright Sakura Café, you can watch the artful creations being made through a pane of glass. The young chef has developed the recipes herself over the years. It takes patience and intuition to get the vegan doughs to the right consistency. Her specialities are sablés: French butter biscuits that are available here (purely vegetable) with lemon and rosemary, with Japanese matcha and black sesame or as sakura sablé with cherry blossoms.

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Jojo Aoyama also drew inspiration from her second home, Japan, for her signature cake, the chocolate yuzu cake. The airy chocolate sponge cake meets chocolate cream and a dark chocolate coating - a cake revelation for a chocolate lover like me. The cake's freshness and a pleasant bitter notes are provided by Yuzu, a popular citrus fruit in Japan. For the second cake course, I try the Chocolate-Hazelnut-Banana-Bread: Wonderfully moist and - like the cake - not too sweet.

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Another highlight is the Mont Blancs: another classic French patisserie, which Sakura offers in a vegan version. The dome-shaped tartlets consist of several layers of pastry, candied chestnuts and cream. Works of art that are almost too beautiful to eat! The same goes for gluten-free cheesecakes, created according to the season. Furthermore, there's a homemade baguette with Japanese-inspired toppings for those who fancy something savoury.

I'll stick to chocolate cake and banana bread for now, which fits perfectly with the recommended floral sakura latte. It is flavoured with cherry blossom tea and slightly salty pollen. Classic coffee specialities are also available; the beans come from the Kreuzberg roasting company Vote.

Jojo Aoyama and her team are currently working on vegan macarons (with aquafaba instead of beaten egg whites) and new spring creations. Among them is one of her favourite cakes: A matcha shortcake popular in Japan with strawberries and a cream made of vegetable cream and white chocolate.

But the master baker and her guests will have to wait a little longer: Until spring comes and with it the warm days and the first local strawberries.