Chef Karl's Berlin Culinary Journey

I will start with the food, as that most impressed me. We were told that if we mention what we eat, to let others know that the menu changes daily. I cannot imagine how many hours went into the preparation. This was all lovingly handcrafted. We began with homemade charcuterie and some good German cheeses, along with a sour rye bread. I was most excited by the hot smoked salmon, but everything was delicious. Our second course was a salad plated like a flower, a beautiful presentation. We then had pasta, handmade ravioli stuffed with goat cheese and leek in a light tomato sauce with chorizo. (I included a photo, excuse the shadow) I would have taken more photos, but the temptation to dive in and eat was too great. Chef Karl told us that his style was Grandma and our main was served family style. Racks of lamb and pork ribs, spice rubbed, no sauce came out of the smoker and a vat of cheese and Macaroni along with some vegetables were set into the middle of the table. We went to town and 6 people managed most of what was a huge amount of food. The sweet was small but delicious, chocolate tart kind of thing. Copious amounts of wine were included, and a homemade liqueur finished the night. 5 of the best hours I have ever spent. I have taken a lot of food tours, and I am over groups of 12 to 20 traipsing around eating bites off of toothpicks. 6 guess makes this tour exclusive and intimate. The tour itself showed me a new part of Berlin and his family's history in Germany made it personal and moving. Book now or wait til 2026. It is sold out for the next several weeks.

I taste so many foods for the first time at this event, all of which I loved. We had a successful tour of East Berlin and learned a lot about the recent history of the wall and the occupation. Fascinating to see a non-touristic part of Berlin with so much history. The food was so delicious at Karl's place. Home-made cured meats, with a smoker right on the terrace. Salads and vegetables and then gnocchi with blue cheese and walnut sauce, followed by fried chicken, the same recipe he won an award for, along with homemade biscuits with sides. Dessert was chocolate mousse. We were told that we can talk about the food, but each tour will have a different menu. I suggest you have this experience. To eat here is better than any restaurant we tried in Berlin and you get such an interesting tour and host. Milou, his little dog is a part of the evening, so cute.

I went as a fanboy. I love Karl Wilder's Detective Novels, and I wanted them signed. This was not like most food tours. We had an informative and enthusiastic tour of East Berlin with Karl and Milou, the most amazing dog. I can't say enough about the food. We were told to be an omnivore and had no idea what to expect, but he was clearly in a Southern mood because we had a New Orleans-style dinner, complete with the best gumbo I have ever tasted. If there is something you don't eat, worry not, there is so much to enjoy. We learned about food and wine and he shared some hysterical stories from his career. This tour is a must for Drew Brees fans. If you do only one experience in Berlin, this should be the one. This was the best tour and the best meal we had all combined into one night. We ended just before midnight, and yes, he signed my books!!!

Where to start. I live in Berlin and learned things on the tour portion I never knew. Karl is a natural storyteller. I spent most of the tour going, "Really?? I never kneeeew!" Now the food. OMG!! I'm a Southern Boy and Chef Karl did his THING! While the menu changes daily, I had no idea the menu included traditional Southern delicacies with a European twist. From the charcuterie board that included smoked pork & duck, cured ham and candied bacon. Yes, candied bacon! Delicious. Next course was an fresh salad I would like to add more detail but I wolfed it down. I do remember the presentation. The "bowl" was lettuce and all of the vegetables were seasoned lightly enough crisp crunchiness to give you a mouthful of freshness. After the salad was a lovely cheese course. Bio cheese where Karl told us about the farmer who supplied the hard goat cheese. That and the Limburger cheese made a great contrast with each other. Shrimp gumbo came out next. I haven't had a proper gumbo in well.. Never in Europe. There was just enough heat in the spiciness to make it welcoming, but not overpowering for people who don't normally eat spicy food. I wanted a second round of the gumbo, but glad I didn't indulge because what came out for the next course. What came next was almost sinful. Smoked ribs and chicken. The meat just fell off the bone. The rib rub was so spot on you didn't need any sauce. The table lost all notion of manners and picked those ribs up to make sure we got every morsel of flesh off the bone. The sides mac & cheese made with a Bulgarian cheese if memory serves correct. It should become a law that Mac & cheese must be made with that cheese. Ridiculous. Throw in the black eye peas and fresh biscuits with soft French butter I was in Southern heaven. Now, for the dessert. I originally wasn't so excited when Chef Karl said Bread Pudding. My experience with Bread Pudding was consistently underwhelming. Well that all changed with Chef Karl. Sweet Baby Jesus. He used croissants instead of bread. Then added dark chocolate and a home made bourbon sauce. No words can describe the state of joy going on in my mouth. From start to finish, this meal is definitely in the top 5 of myculinary experiences. And I didn't even fo into the perfect wine pairing! This is a tour one could do over and over again.

I live in Strasbourg and have taken Chef PJ's amazing tour in Paris. I was equally thrilled by Chef Karl. He and Milou are a team, so dog haters stay away. The menu changes daily, and it is exciting to see. I noticed in other reviews that Southern Food was mentioned, but we were French and Italian on the night of my tour. Trofe with Pesto sauce, handmade trofe with basil from his terrace. To make pasta for 6 must have taken him hours, but we ate it in minutes. A 5-star Italian Grandmother. We learned that he had a 3-year internship in Italy. We had a leg of lamb stuffed with Rosemary and garlic, and my friends don't like lamb, but devoured this presentation. I suppose with dessert, we did go Southern, it was a black bottom banana cream pie. And the wine was incredible. A natural storyteller, the tour before the dinner was also wonderful. Our next stop with be Istanbul and I promise to report on Chef Basak. The Chef Tours is clearly the food tour company to keep an eye on.