Comments on: Elsewhere in Germany…

By: kean

kean — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 22:10:20 +0000

no idea of seasonality with watercress, but i’d be surprised – surely greenhouses obviates the ‘need’ for seasons?
btw, i’ve just discovered the joys of grunkohl… so tasty when added as part of an improvised/malaysianised larb thai/gai, with its crinkly leaves and sweetness complementing the tangy base just so

By: bowleserised

bowleserised — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 16:06:49 +0000

I thought it might be seasonal, but hadn’t thought of flogging out to Wedding to find it. Hurrah! Problem solved! Now who will save that kitten from the tree? Eh?

By: Ed Ward

Ed Ward — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 10:20:16 +0000

Vinh Loi gets greenery in on Thursdays, and it’s dependent on the greenhouses in which they grow it in Holland. Is watercress seasonal? Maybe that’s the reason.

By: kean

kean — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 21:19:03 +0000

i’ve bought watercress at vinh loi’s in wedding (seestrasse u6) twice, but supply is irregular for some reason.

By: bowleserised

bowleserised — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 05:25:07 +0000

Yay! Vitamins! I’m substituting it with spinach just now, but it ain’t the same.

By: quetzlcloth

quetzlcloth — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 16:45:04 +0000

Watercress it is! We shall make it our mission. HIB greenleaf task force fan out…

By: Ed Ward

Ed Ward — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:33:53 +0000

When I think of Munich, I think of the Viktualienmarkt. Truly an overwhelming experience in its variety of food on display — you won’t find anything like it in Berlin, that’s for sure — and not for the impoverished, by any means.

By: bowleserised

bowleserised — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 09:41:57 +0000

All I could think as I walked round the store was, “How much does it cost to have so much stock on display? Where do they make money?”

Serious about the watercress. There must be some market somewhere that stocks it.

By: quetzlcloth

quetzlcloth — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 08:03:23 +0000

Whole Food stores are beautiful, and frightening. There’s a reason they’re lovingly called “Whole Paycheck” by some. It’s also turns out they’re as corporately predatory as any big company — they successfully set up shop right next door to a very good local chain I use to love in Seattle area, and drove it right out of business. I suppose that’s life in the supermarket biz.

It’s not Germany, but I miss Berkeley Bowl, the greatest of all possible supermarkets, in Berkeley, of course.

By: bowleserised

bowleserised — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 11:36:05 +0000

I’m still recovering from my first trip to a Whole Food shop. In Kensington. I felt like a peasant – even though I’d been in the KaDeWe foodhall the weekend before. I did not know, I really just did not know there was so much food in the world, and I hadn’t seen watercress for *years*. Thank God I literally had neither cash nor cards on me.

Plus they had the New Internationalist. Prominently displayed. Wonders will never cease.

Spotted an elderly posh Kensington man (of the type who instinctively shops in Fortnum and Mason, or, at a pinch, Marks and Spencer) slot his shopping trolley into the trolley escalator, step onto the human escalator and be swept upwards while his groceries remained in the basement. His face was a picture.

Any HiB posts on where to find fresh watercress in Berlin would be wonderful. I’m jonesing for peppery watercress soup.