What does Enlightenment taste like? On six Sundays in May and June, the Jewish Museum Berlin and the Museum Café Lina are offering a journey into the Enlightenment era with breakfast.
on selected Sundays in May and June 2023, from 11 am
Where
Old Building, ground level, “Meeting Point” in the foyer
Lindenstraße 9–14, 10969 Berlin
The Fromet Mendelssohn Brunch will dish up special culinary discoveries from the Jewish Enlightenment, also known as Haskahlah. On the menu you will find, for example, kurkumen fricassee, broken pea salad, and mulberries with macaron cream. The brunch can be enjoyed either before or after the tour.
The tour into Fromet Mendelssohn’s era begins at 12 noon. In Berlin’s salons, men and women, Jewish and Christian alike, would meet to discuss the issues of their times. It was not only literature and music that were discussed, but also questions of emancipation and belonging – neither women nor Jews had equal rights in Fromet’s era, but much seemed possible.
Fromet, born Gugenheim, met her future husband Moses Mendelssohn in Hamburg. Moses was a frequent guest at her parents’ house. Even back then, culture and politics were discussed at the table – and you can continue this tradition at the Fromet Mendelssohn Brunch!
Portrait of Fromet Mendelssohn née Gugenheim (1737–1812), lost, Fig. in: Moses Mendelssohn: Brautbriefe (Bridal Letters), Berlin 1936; Jewish Museum Berlin, photo: Roman März
Portrait of Fromet Mendelssohn née Gugenheim (1737–1812), lost, Fig. in: Moses Mendelssohn: Brautbriefe (Bridal Letters), Berlin 1936; Jewish Museum Berlin, photo: Roman März
Who is Moses Mendelssohn?
Moses Mendelssohn (1729–1786), a leading philosopher of the Enlightenment who championed legal equality for Jews in Germany
What is Haskalah?
Haskalah, (Hebr. for education or enlightenment), describes the age and the movement of the Jewish Enlightenment in the 18th/19th century
A Glimpse of the Menu
Broken Pea Salad: Vegetable Salad with Peas and a Side of History
In the eighteenth century, unripe legumes began to be “broken” out of their shells and were either used fresh or elaborately preserved. Peas were an expensive vegetable. At first they were only available at court, but later the middle classes also profited from this new discovery. Recipes for “broken” peas could be found in all the cookbooks of the late eighteenth century.
Spinach-green Tree Frogs with Kurkumen Fricassee
These frogs are vegetarian! A recipe from the first printed Kochbuch für Israeliten (Cookbook for Israelites), written by Josef Stolz, a Catholic. In the Enlightenment period, he visited Jewish households and peered into people’s cooking pots. And by the way: kurkumen are cucumbers!
Fresh Mulberries on Macaron Cream
The Enlightenment began with mulberries: when Moses Mendelssohn came to Berlin, he was working as a silk merchant. Silk worms eat the leaves of mulberry trees and there must have been a lot of them in and around Berlin. Now you can find out what mulberries taste like!
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Public Tours: Current Dates and Topics of our Guided Tours (8)
Current Dates and Topics of our Guided Tours
You can currently participate in the following public tours. Details and ticket information can be found on the page of the respective guided tour.
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Highlights of the Core Exhibition (90 minutes) – in German
The core exhibition and its history of Jews in Germany from the Middle Ages to the present day from a Jewish perspective
Guided Tour
Sundays, 11 am -
Highlights of the Core Exhibition (90 minutes) – in English
The core exhibition and its history of Jews in Germany from the Middle Ages to the present day from a Jewish perspective
Guided Tour
Saturdays, 3 pm -
Judaism Aloud
An Audible and Palpable Tour for Blind and Visually Impaired
Guided Tour
26 Apr, 4 pm, 21 May, 2.30 pm, 7 Jun 2023, 4 pm -
ANOHA for Adults (60 minutes) – in German
A visit to ANOHA – the Children's World of the Jewish Museum Berlin for the inquisitive without children
Guided Tour
Every Sunday, 2.45 pm -
Taster Course in German Sign Language
Four dates in April and June (with Aya Scheikh-Suleiman, Arezou Azizi and Michel Dahdal)
Workshop
27 & 28 Apr, 17 & 21 Jun 2023, each 4.30 pm -
The Museum Made Easy
An inclusive event as part of the Special Olympics World Games Berlin 2023
Guided Tour
Thu 22 Jun 2023, 3 pm, Fri 23 Jun 2023, 3 pm (in German – plain language) -
International Museum Day 2023
Free Offers for Museum Visitors (in German)
Guided Tour
Sun 21 May 2023, 10 am–7 pm -
Brunch Fromet Mendelssohn
A Tour into the Enlightenment Era with Breakfast (in German)
Guided Tour
on selected Sundays in May and June 2023, from 11 am
