Grüne Lampe prepares dressed herring
Russians love herring. In this recipe, it's smothered beneath a thick layer of vegetables. Julia Gutsch from the restaurant Grüne Lampe shows us this culinary classic from Russia.
A revolutionary background
"Grüne Lampe was a club in St. Petersburg, where Pushkin, our most famous poet, our everything, met to dine with his friends. And it was in this club, the Grüne Lampe, that the Decembrist movement of the most noble and aristocratic young people who took a stand against the tsar in December 1825, developed." - Julia Gutsch
New to the gastronomy industry
Julia Gutsch was born n Leningrad, known today as St. Petersburg, in 1963. After school, she studied art history and came to Berlin in 1990, right after the fall of the Berlin Wall, with her son. She did a retraining course and for many years, ran a small travel agency. In 2005, she again started anew, opening Grüne Lampe.
Chosen home: Wilmersdorf
Grüne Lampe is in Berlin's Wilmersdorf district, on the border to Charlottenburg in western Berlin. In the 1920s, many Russians lived in this neighborhood. At times, there were more Russian than German shops here, giving it the nickname Charlottengrad. It was the perfect place for a Russian restaurant, says Julia Gutsch.
A Russian classic with a lot of red beets
A layered salad that is easy to prepare and often served on holidays, dressed herrring is served as a small cake at Grüne Lampe, where it's a best-seller. It's especially eaten on New Year's Day, as it's said to help against hangovers.
A flavorful experience
"I decided to open a restaurant after my German mother-in-law tried this dressed herring and said it was so delicious and that they knew it in Germany as 'Häckerle.' 'But yours is better, much better,' she said and I thought, 'Well, why not? Let's open a restaurant if the food is so good.'" - Julia Gutsch