Ocassionally our group gets invited to serve up delicious international dishes at pop-up cooking events like Bite Club, United Street Food at Markthalle Neun, and has even catered at a Berliner Philharmonie event. Here we run with the big guns, dishing up delights alongside some of the city’s best-known street food vendors. In this way the Open Kitchen provides chefs with a refugee background the opportunity to lead a team of volunteers to set a menu, shop, cook and deliver delicious food to hundreds of people - an excellent opportunity for growth in their new home. In this way, several people in our community have trained to work in gastronomy, got their first work experience here in Germany in restaurants and one has even opened his own street food stall.

How do I become part of this project?

We rely on you, our wonderful partners and volunteers to help us make these events possible. You’re sure to pick up some sweet culinary knowledge along the way! Please join our Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/1630802003874623/) or look in our events calendar to see our upcoming events. Any questions? Email Ricarda Bochat ( [email protected]).

Give Something Back To Berlin is the largest project platform and network that makes social engagement and neighborhood work accessible to the large migrant population of Berlin. Our hundreds of volunteers come from over 60 countries, including the US, Sudan, Poland, Syria, Hong Kong, Israel and Brazil, with all different backgrounds and stories. Some are privileged enough to be able to work and travel anywhere they want. Others have refugee status and don’t even know if they can stay in the country. We call ourselves “50 shades of immigrants”, but the way we see it we are all neighbors, both in Berlin, and on this one planet. First and foremost, we are all people who want create change and positive outcomes on different societal challenges.