The Oderberger Straße in Berlin is a bustling area. People are strolling over the cobblestones while green chestnut leaves are softly moving in the wind. Late-night convenience stores and cafes are competing for space next to small concept stores and bars. Right here, you’ll find one of Berlin’s best-kept culinary gems: the neighborhood restaurant Otto.
For about five years now, chef Vadim Otto Ursus and his team have been creating a place where people can come together, share ideas, and discover the beauty of food and its natural yet inescapable connection to living well. While the open kitchen allows the guests to have an insight into the chefs’ work, small tables, and wooden chairs are placed right next to a grey concrete wall. Especially during sunny summer days, the restaurant gets crowded and the air starts buzzing through laughter and loud conversations. Whether you describe Otto as rustic, modern, fancy, lively, or intimate doesn’t really matter – one thing is certain, everyone is welcome here.
SLEEK meets Vadim and restaurant manager Sören Zuppke on-site during their shoot with BIRKENSTOCK: By combining Otto’s passion for good food with the brand’s love for quality, a partnership was created that celebrates innovative craftsmanship and the value of living well. On set, SLEEK had the chance to get a unique glimpse into the work and vision of Otto while Vadim and Sören could wear the new styles of BIRKENSTOCK’s all-time classics: the Zurich, Arizona, and the Boston.
SLEEK: First things first. What does good food mean to you?
Vadim Otto Ursus: Good food means a lot of things to me. Firstly, there’s the obvious aspect—how it tastes. But there’s also everything behind it: how it was produced, how it fits into the context. So, where are you consuming it? How authentic is it? What’s the atmosphere like? Good food doesn’t have to be fancy for me—instead, all these factors have to come together and work in harmony.
Sören Zuppke: Exactly. Good food can also be something as simple as a perfectly cooked breakfast egg. If the base ingredients are good, then good food becomes a simple joy and a way of living well.
S: Can you give an example of a recent time when all these factors came together while you were eating?
SZ: We were recently in France, and there was a small wine bar. I wouldn’t say it was the best food I’ve had in a while, but somehow everything clicked. It was straightforward. There were snacks like ham and some excellent cheese that was sitting on the counter, kept at the right temperature. With that, you could have a fresh beer or a small glass of wine. It was just a perfect moment.
V: Yeah. Good food doesn’t have to be perfect—it’s about a blend of moments and impressions.
S: How do you incorporate the thought of living well in your workplace?
SZ: We try to structure our work in a way that makes us feel comfortable. In the restaurant industry, it’s normal to work 14, 16, or even 18 hours a day. But at Otto, we have a four-day workweek. This helps us to ensure that we don’t burn out after five years.
V: We also recently introduced a daily staff meal before service starts. This moment when we slow down and enjoy good food together strengthens us as a team and is definitely a way for us to include living well at Otto.
S: What’s it like working as a team?
V: Because the restaurant is very lively, very crowded, and intimate in a way, we’re relatively close-knit as a team. And that rubs off on the guests—I like going to places where I can tell people enjoy their work and believe in what they do.
S: What challenges do you face in Berlin?
SZ: Our goal, but also a challenge, is to create something that has lasting value. Berlin is a city that’s always looking for something new, so a place has to keep evolving. We talk a lot about what the future of Otto might look like. What happens when the initial buzz and attention wear off? We want to create a place that’s just as interesting in five years as it is now.
V: Another challenge is that we source 90-95% of our ingredients from Berlin and Brandenburg. That’s part of our concept. But this means we don’t always get everything we need, because not everything is grown and available everywhere all the time.
S: What role does the quality of regional ingredients play for you?
V: Quality is important in so many ways. It’s not enough, that the ingredients are just local. It’s also very important to us how they are produced. That’s why we generally go to small or medium-sized farms that mostly practice sustainable agriculture and don’t grow monocultures. We also only buy whole animals and try to use everything.
S: Do you cook at home?
SZ: I definitely do.
V: Of course. Especially since I became a father. I’ve adjusted my work hours to work less in the evenings. Now I cook a lot of simpler things that young children enjoy. Mashed potatoes, for example.
S: What are the little moments in the kitchen that make you happy?
SZ: I’m more with the guests than in the kitchen. So for me, it’s magical when I see that the guest is open to what we’re doing and trusts us.
V: For me, the most special moments are when things get hectic: when the restaurant is full, but only two or three people are in the kitchen. That’s when you notice everyone falling into sync, working together without many words.
S: When you look back at your culinary journey, what do you wish for in the future?
V: I’m still having a great time, and I look forward to creating more places that bring people together and create a network of agriculture, production, restaurants, and people.
SZ: I hope we can keep going and keep reinventing ourselves. Anything can happen. Otto could become a farm. Or maybe the next thing is an Otto bakery. Not that these are concrete plans. But I want to keep traveling, connecting with guests, and getting inspired.
CREDITS
Photography: Florian Thoss
Styling: Hakan Solak
Creative Direction & Production: Claude Gerber
On-Set Production: Jule Nötzel, Kaya Wolfinger