Planet Berlin: Oriental delicacies
35 years after opening the first delicatessen in Germany to sell oriental specialties, Adib Harb's Tiergarten store remains a shrine to the best middle eastern products, from spices to cosmetics.
Family business
Adib Harb came to West Berlin from Lebanon in 1967. In 1984, he opened his first-of-a-kind store on Potsdamerstrasse, which at the time mainly sold ingredients for Lebanese cuisine. While the founder has since withdrawn from the daily running of the business that is largely handled by his children, Adib Habib can still be found most days in the store.
Wide assortment
The offer has steadily expanded over the years and decades. Today at Harb, customers can purchase Levantine food staples such as stuffed grape leaves, hummus or tabbouleh, but also crockery, cosmetics such as Aleppo soap, lamps, chess boards and crafts. Shishas also form part of the ever-expanding range.
Ancient wine culture
The Harb gourmet grocery store also attaches great importance to its selection of red, white and rosé wines sourced from Lebanon's award-winning Château Ksara winery, which was founded in 1857 and is the oldest in the country. Adib Harb raves about his homeland as one of the oldest wine-growing regions in the world.
Food and culture
For over 35 years, Adib Harb has succeeded in helping educate Berliners about the virtues of Lebanese food and culture. Today, few can resist the store's deli classics, including sweet baklava pastry, freshly ground coffee with cardamom, or marmalade made of orange blossom.