High summer and ‘raise your cups’ at the senior cooking club: Isidoro - a staple of the cooking club since 2019 - is celebrating his 90th birthday and the atmosphere in the market kitchen is exuberant. Potaje de garbanzos, a hearty Spanish chickpea, potato and spinach stew, is served on Isidoro's special day. As an exception, there is a glass of Garnacha for everyone to celebrate the day.

Twice a month, Kochschule Neun - the team led by Anna Kabacinska and Mago Weidemann - invites senior citizens to cook together. Each time, one of the participants takes the culinary reins. A three-course meal is then conjured up - convivial, healthy and affordable. Sometimes there are Japanese or Thai dishes, sometimes Balkan classics - and sometimes simply Senfeier. ‘When you eat with kind people, you stay happier and healthier,’ says Isidoro, while the next course is prepared together in the market kitchen.

In the middle of Markthalle Neun, where Brandenburg flowers are tied into lush bouquets on Fridays and Saturdays, between fruit and vegetables, next to the meat and cheese counter, is the home of the Neun cookery school. It's all about the essentials - eating and cooking together. Kochschule Neun is a place of learning, a meeting place and an educational centre for senior citizens and children from the neighbourhood.

Eating and drinking - preferably well, preferably together. It enriches the soul, heals the body and creates connection. ‘But the relationship with good food needs to be nurtured. It is not something we are born with and our society does not provide great feasts for old age per se,’ says Mago, who has researched the history of food at the FU and HU Berlin. ‘Children and senior citizens often fall by the wayside when it comes to food culture. Many children lack basic nutritional education, while older people often eat alone and inadequately,’ adds nutritionist Anna.

This is where the non-profit Kochschule Neun comes in. With the conviction that everyone - young and old - can and wants to eat a healthy, balanced and sustainable diet if they are given the right tools and inspiration. It's all about the basics - understanding our food system, developing or rediscovering the joy of preparing meals and promoting an appreciative, convivial eating culture.

At Kochschule Neun, Kreuzberg schoolchildren spend a whole week chopping, frying and baking together. Ayla and Karim are absolutely thrilled that Mercimek Çorbası - Turkish red lentil soup - is being prepared with their class. ‘We have it at home too!’ For other children, the dish is new, Ayla and Karim can explain how to season the soup properly. ‘Cumin, nane and then a little lemon on top later.’

Here, children experience success - outside of the usual pressure to perform. Whether cooking dinner for parents and teachers or visiting the farm, curiosity always wins out. At first, they often turn up their noses at the barn or compost: ‘Eww, that stinks!’ But a little later, pigs are being stroked and hands are enthusiastically digging in the vegetable patch. The pride of growing the first beetroot they have harvested themselves is unforgettable.

The non-profit Kochschule Neun is a place where people not only cook, but also experience community. It conveys the joy of food, preparation and a respectful approach to food. However, even this place has not been spared from current cutbacks and is dependent on donations.

The Kochschule Neun needs your support so that senior citizens can continue to share their favourite dishes and children can discover new things. Even a small donation helps to keep the pots boiling.

Kochschule Neun is an educational programme run by the non-profit cultural association Markthalle Neun e.V.. A donation receipt can be issued if required. If you have any questions or comments, please email us at bildung@markthalleneun.de.