TEE.SALON.IKI

A few steps from Schönleinstraße, Panagiotis Manologlou has been running a tea salon in Berlin-Kreuzberg since February 2016, offering more than 40 organically grown herbal varieties. The goods come from small producers in Northern and Central Greece and Crete. Each variety can be enjoyed as an infusion in the shop or taken away pre-packaged.

Tee.Salon.Iki: Greek Mountain Herbs in Graefekiez

The tea salon is located on Böckhstraße in Graefekiez, a few minutes from Schönleinstraße, and thus in a part of Kreuzberg that has largely become a low-traffic zone. Panagiotis Manologlou opened the shop in February 2016 and has since made it a fixture in the neighborhood. Behind the shop door, glasses and cans stand in dense rows, interspersed with honey, olive oil, and natural cosmetics. The collection includes more than 40 organically grown herbal varieties.

The herbs come from Northern and Central Greece as well as Crete, exclusively from selected small producers. This includes the Botanokipos farm north of Thessaloniki, which collects around 150 herbs, many of them wild on Mount Paiko at altitudes of up to 1,650 meters. Some of these products are exclusively available here in Germany. The assortment is complemented by a small selection of classic teas from Asia and South Africa, including Assam, Darjeeling, Pai Mu Tan, and Rooibos. Those who seek advice will receive the history of each plant’s origin, from the collection area to drying.

Own Tea Blends and an In-Store Pick-up Market

Every herb and tea variety can be enjoyed as an infusion directly on-site at Tee.Salon.Iki or taken away pre-packaged. The house blends are formulated according to their effects and bear their own names. „#Thyme is on my side” is intended for cold seasons, „#Halará” combines lemon balm, lavender, and chamomile into a mild relaxation blend, in addition to „#Herbes de Crétence” and „#Katharsis”. If desired, customers can create their own blend from the available herbs.

Beyond tea, the shop offers Greek honey from thyme blossoms from Crete, the Peloponnese, and Northern Greece, as well as olive oil, olives, capers, tahini, soaps, and propolis, plus Greek and Serbian wines. The honey is supplied by the bee different apiary, and the olive oil comes from Betty and Giorgos under the name Belía, so almost every product has a story behind it. Since 2017, the salon has also hosted the Marktschwärmerei (food assembly) in Graefekiez, with its weekly pick-up market taking place in the shop. For the neighborhood, this place has long been more than a tea shop, and anyone looking for a tea salon in Berlin with a clear origin story will find here one of the few addresses fully dedicated to a specific region.