Food
Sara & Gogi Georgian-Israeli cuisine that moves with the times
Map
Opening Times
Monday to Friday: 5:00pm - 11:00pm
Saturday & Sunday: noon - 11:00pm
Address
Sara & Gogi
Suarezstraße 20
14057 Berlin-Charlottenburg
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Opened earlier this year, Sara & Gogi restaurant on Amtsgerichtplatz in Charlottenburg combines two of the most popular cuisines in the capital at the moment: Israeli and Georgian. Part-owner Ilia, who already runs the Georgian restaurant Tsomi in Prenzlauer Berg, came up with the idea on a trip to Israel. There he met a couple, the Israeli Sara and the Georgian Gogi, whose unity in the domestic kitchen seemed ideal to Ilia for a Berlin restaurant.
The restaurant Sara & Gogi is accordingly cosy and familiar, its cuisine fresh and modern in thought. Anyone who has ever been to Georgia knows that the food there is quite meat-heavy, besides fresh vegetarian dishes, which are primarily starters and snacks. Sara & Gogi, on the other hand, manages a balanced menu: On the menu, there are as many vegetarian and vegan starters and main courses as there are meat dishes.
There are Georgian classics such as khachapuri, pastry boats filled with cheese and other various ingredients (14-16 euros), handmade khinkali, stuffed dumplings with a twisted top (11-12 euros) and the various cold starters for which the country is famous.
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This is where Israel comes in because the cold plates of the two countries' cuisines complement each other perfectly. For example, Georgian aubergine rolls with walnut cream go well with baba ghanoush and hummus, as we are delighted to discover while enjoying our mixed starter platter.
Alongside the cold starters, we try the vegan chinkali, which you don't usually find in this variation, filled with portobello mushrooms and basil. The juicy dumplings are best eaten by hand, holding the dumplings by the rolled top and sizzling the aromatic sauce from the inside first. You can taste the freshness of the dumplings immediately because khachapuri prepared for a longer time often become a bit hard or have a thicker dough, whereas this one is wafer-tender.
The wine list is also well-chosen and keeps up with the times. We were particularly taken with the Rkatsitelli Qvevi, a dry Georgian orange wine (glass 6 euros): exciting, fruity and light. The wine list includes mainly Georgian and some Israeli wines. Those who know Georgian wine know that the earthy taste of amphora wines does not appeal to all Western wine palates, but the four drops we taste during the evening do without this flavour note and convince us.
For the main course, I sample a down-to-earth and typically Georgian stew of braised chicken (18 euros), while across from me, they enjoy the vegan "Georgian in Tel Aviv". Baked aubergine with hummus, falafel, tahini, spicy plum pesto, coriander tomatoes and walnuts make for a real taste explosion (also 18 euros).
The dessert menu is small, while the desserts themselves are not. A slice of tarte Napoleon, the unifying dessert of the countries of the East, and a Medovik tart (8 euros each) of honey caramel and morello cherries are both as delicious as they are mighty. So maybe next time, we'll treat the slim line to just one slice.
In any case, Sara & Gogi fully confirmed our love for these two exciting cuisines.
