Since 2007 the Berlinale’s Culinary Cinema has shown films focussing on food and ecological topics. After screenings from the main programme, chefs make meals inspired by the films and prepared according to the Slow Food motto “good, clean and fair”.

For the 64^th Berlinale, this year’s Culinary Cinema will be taking food to the street. In collaboration with Markthalle Neun and Slow Food Berlin, it will provide Street Food. During the Festival, six trucks will offer food to go at the corner of the Alte Potsdamer Straße and Varian-Fry-Straße.

Berlin is a place where gastronomic traditions from around the world cross. Over the last decades, the migration of different groups has caused cuisines to fuse as well as changed people’s tastes. Markthalle Neun saw the potential of this and since April 2013 has organized “Street Food Thursday”. For this initiative, it was awarded the title “Gastronomic Innovator 2013” by the renowned “Berlin Master Chefs” jury.

Festival Director Dieter Kosslick is delighted about the award: “We have supported Markthalle Neun from the start. Now the Street Food cooks will offer festival-goers delicious and healthy culinary alternatives.” Beverages will be provided by Berlinale partners: Craftwerk beer from Bitburger, Deutsches Weininstitut, LemonAid, Rabenhorst and Viva con Agua.

Markthalle Neun (Eisenbahnstr. 42, 10997 Berlin) will also be the second venue of Culinary Cinema. In cooperation with the “Berlinale Goes Kiez” series, Eiszeit Kino (Zeughofstraße 20, 10997 Berlin) will show a film from the Culinary Cinema programme on February 14, 2014.  After the screening, food that fits the film will be served in Markthalle Neun. A discussion of the film will follow. “This new event will be more down-to-earth and the ticket prices will be lower - so we also want to attract especially the younger audiences,” states head of Culinary Cinema Thomas Struck.

“We are very pleased to make the idea of Slow Food attractive to Berlinale audiences with Street Food. We will offer cuisines specific to different countries, ranging from Korean to southern German – delicacies whose origins and histories can be savoured immediately. Good quality affordable for everyone”, says Bernd Maier from Markthalle Neun.

This photo is available for download at:http://www.berlinale.de/media/images/download/Heisser_Hobel_Copyright_Nina_Strassguetl.jpg