Schwips in fizzz

publication in the december issue 2025 of fizzz

"Leonardo Foriglio and Fabio Fedele both come from Rome.
They never met in the "Eternal City," however, but only in Berlin,
where they managed the bars of the related and adjacent restaurants
"Cookies Cream" and "Crackers" for about three years.
While searching for their own location, they found "Schwips."

They took over the name, practically the entire mid-century modern interior,
and were able to convince the previous owner, Wei-En Chan, to join the project as a partner:
The Vienna native with Taiwanese roots curates the specialty teas
and selects the sharing dishes with a Mediterranean-Asian touch,
from burrata with soy sauce and black rice vinegar to seilan steaks with black sesame.
The drinks menu is modular:

It's based on four different basic mixtures made from "rescued" ingredients,
such as vegetables from the Neukölln farmers' market or their partner farm.
Baked goods from Rewe or whatever the Too Good To Go bag contains.
A "Cornetto & Jam" made from croissants and plum jam, mixed and clarified with smoked tea,
can be mixed with a filler to create a mocktail,
with sparkling wine (with or without alcohol) to create a "Mini-Kir",
with a soft drink and spirit to create a long drink, or with whiskey to create a cocktail.
Thus, four basic drinks, including the option to serve them neat, form 24 combinations.
And for those who find that too complicated, there's always the standard menu
with various other creations. Highballs, wines, coffee, and of course teas
from Sencha and Oolong to Puerh complete the offering.

Many guests order non-alcoholic drinks to accompany the sharing dishes, we are told.
In addition to positioning itself as an aperitivo bar with early opening hours
(and closing time), they now also want to focus on the lunch menu,
which has become rare in Berlin."