Da Baffi, Italian Food, Wedding

There is something about the combination of the gold lettering and the white pleated curtains in the window of Da Baffi that makes me think of an old-fashioned box of chocolates.  The kind where once you took the carton lid off, you had to peel a sticker off the seam of the thick pearlified paper.  Each chocolate would be housed in its own ruffled white paper.  Picking one up would create a pleasing commotion of paper wrappers rubbing against each other.We are seated in the back room.  Instead of table cloths, there are tea towels that have been sewn together to make perpendicular runners.  The adornment of the room comes from the squiggly white flourescent light on one wall and the fat bodied vases on each table.  The flowers, not the €1.99 bargain tulips you can get at any Lidl, but a composition of spiky leaves and small flowers you might expect to find somewhere in the mediterranean.There is something of the Lavanderia Vecchia in that back room, the colour scheme, the neon - not as extreme nor as contrived but if the two restaurants were people and I found out that Da Baffi was the son of a cousin twice removed, it wouldn’t surprise me.  I don’t think there is any relation of course.  In fact, Lavanderia employs a young man from Munich (?) as their chef whereas walk by the kitchen at Da Baffi and amid the clinks and the clangs you will here the long ‘a’s’ of Italian.The menu, excuse me as I make the cross (I am not religious you understand but some things just warrant excessive gratefulness), is printed on a narrow piece of paper.  It lists a variety of carpaccios, a caponata, a burrata from Puglia, as starters. Followed by a choice of 3 pastas, tagliolini with truffle for example, or a risotto with gorgonzola, pear and nuts.  No Bolognese although the kitchen kindly makes a small plate of farfalle with tomato sauce for Layla. We don’t bother with a pasta but decide to order the tagliata of organic beef for 2 (€21.50 pp).  The friendly waiter goes to some pains to explain that the price is per person.  I guess they’ve had some run ins in the past.  The meat is full of flavour, the potatoes are sweet, the dish is a hit with us especially because it is delightfully unembelished.  We order dessert. Because I am the Foodie in Berlin and because I have promised Layla a treat. The molten chocolate cake is for her. The panna cotta with mango for us.When we get home, our dinner hasn’t weighed us down.  The way a good home cooked meal will satisfy you without bloating you.  It’s a charming and surprising place (did I mention that I found out about it from Sylee. And they were featured in the Italian magazine Gambero Rosso).  Although local magazines like Tip & Zitty haven’t picked up on it, it’s already doing well on Tripadvisor and Qype and I think had we not booked a table for Friday night, we wouldn’t have gotten one.

Da Baffi
Nazarethkirchstraße 41,
13347 Wedding
T 0175 692 65 45
www.dabaffi.com
Tuesday to Saturday 18:30 to 22:30

15 Responses to Da Baffi, Italian Food, Wedding

  1. Sylee says:

    Ah, such gorgeous light! Love your chocolate box comparision with those pleats and ruffles.

  2. wow! i don’t wanna be full of prejudice, but i wouldn’t expect this type of place in wedding. very nice, i’ll definitely go for it.

  3. ceciliag says:

    Just divine, i can see why you would make the sign of the cross in gratitude!! c

  4. Anna says:

    Sounds lovely. Miss the choice of restaurants in Berlin.
    The cook from Lavanderia Vecchia is from a small town called Tutzing, South of Munich.

    • There is a sentence I never thought I would read ‘Miss the choice of restaurants in Berlin’
      You must be going to town on lovely Swiss cheese and all that.
      Are you going to visit Berlin before June the 4th (when I go to London?)

  5. LOVE your photos! I definitely will try the place, it looks a lot like the restaurant I design in my brain on those I-want-to-quit-my-job-in-order-to-open-my-own-restaurant-days!

  6. Pingback: Foodieinberlin-Blog wrote a nice article about us… «

  7. Simon Dance says:

    Beautiful photos. I want to head back to Berlin!

  8. Nora says:

    How much did you pay? It seems like a place where I could celebrate my birthday next week, but I’m afraid it gets too expensive in the end. I’m rather new in Berlin, and it’s easy to find very cheap and very expensive places around, but something in the middle… any ideas? I read through your blog but I’m still not sure. thanks :)

    • Hi Nora,

      Happy birthday. I can’t remember now but it wasn’t cheap - not extortionate either. What do you want to pay per head without drinks?
      Some friends and I celebrated at Renger-Patszch in May, we mostly had the flamkuchen and dessert and it was lovely.
      Depends what you are after, how many you are etc

      • Nora says:

        Thanks for your answer! I’m searching for a laid-back/not fancy place where having a starter is avoidable and it’s also okay to stay for a few more drinks without emptying my student wallet :) I used to live in Leipzig where I know these kind of places (maybe more of a bar with good food!), but when you are new in a city, it’s not easy to find something like that only with the help of Berlin blogs. But I can rely on your personal recommendation :) So if you can think of a place like that, I would really aprpreciate it! I still have a week to decide… Thanks again!

      • I may have missed your deadline on this but I only just got my home broadband to work. So here goes:
        Renger Patzsch is a great laid back place, if you order well, you can keep costs down (http://www.renger-patzsch.com/)
        HBC you can linger all night, the food is ok sometimes really good and the room and views are great (menu 33 Euro or so) (http://hbc-berlin.de/restaurant/)
        Kimchi Princess is loud smelly korean in a big dark space, prices are reasonable. (http://www.kimchiprincess.com/)
        Lavanderia Vecchia has a menu around 30 Euros (http://www.lavanderiavecchia.de/) and is a really fun space
        Those are a few of the more reasonable places I think. Of the 3, Renger Patzsch has best food and quality I would say

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