119 replies to this topic

[malacitana]

Hi.

My husband and I are heading to Berlin for a couple of nights at the end of May and am looking for some restaurant suggestions.

Anyone know of anything a little special?

Thanks

I personally like VAU which serves very accomplished
modern German food. They have a lovely terrace as well.

malacitana

[kai-m]

Hope this doesn't come too late:
The 2 most highly praised restaurants in Berlin right now are "44" at the Swissotel on Kurfürstendam and "Fischers Fritz" at the Regent Hotel on Gendarmenmarkt.

Personally, I didn't like the very modern (in design in cuisine) "44" that much, though. But I stand pretty alone with that.

"Fischers Fritz" is more classical. I haven't been there yet, but reviewers say that it could be the first place in Berlin to get 2 michelin stars in a long time. (It already has one).

The Ferran Adria-inspired "Remake" ist said to be good restaurant, too (though by not as expensive -and good- as "El Bulli", of course)

Hope that helps a bit.
Have fun!

[Catherine Iino]

Bump. Thanks to all for the recommendations so far. I will be in Berlin at the very beginning of August, so any further suggestions would be most welcome.

[sem]

Hi Catherine

We were in Berlin in May and had a lovely dinner at Restaurant Maxwell

Sue

[Ed Ward]

I have to say, having lived here for 13 years, I don't think anyone comes to Berlin to eat. Certainly not high-end food, at any rate. Maxwell's is near my house; I pass it every day. You get very small portions of indifferent "creative" cooking at inflated prices, and get to see loads of celebrities you probably won't recognize if you're not German. The couple of times I've been there with Americans they've been outraged at the ticket and the service.

My suggestion is to try to hit the mid-price restaurants for German food (Lutter & Wegner, for instance, or the Brecht Haus), and maybe one of the Muntagnola family's Italian places (Contadino Sotto le Stelle).

Downgrade your expectations and you'll probably have fun.

[ameiden]

In May we had a wonderful meal at the Lorenz Adlon, the Gourmet restaurant at the Hotel Adlon. Silver service and some great classically inspired cuisine. The chef has worked at the Auberge de l'Ill in Alsace and it shows in faboulous dishes such as Esturgeon with sauerkraut and caviar. Depending on where you sit, you also have a view at the Brandenburg gate. The wine list offers lots of good choices in German wine. We noticed that due to the hotel this restaurant has got a high celebrity factor and recognised Walter Scheel at the table next to us, Germany's President during the seventies. I can only recommend a visit to the Lorenz Adlon, this is as good as it gets in Berlin.

[Catherine Iino]

Thank you all. Ed, I have definitely gotten that impression from my research so far--beginning with the fact that Germany doesn't even get it's own region in the Europe forums. If you know of any funky, amusing, unusual, or downright weird food-related spots, I'd love to hear about them. I have a particular interest in traditional breads; do you, or does anyone, know of interesting bakeries in Berlin?

Sue, Restaurant Maxwell does look lovely.

[kai-m]

I have definitely gotten that impression from my research so far--beginning with the fact that Germany doesn't even get it's own region in the Europe forums.

Well, don't be fooled, because this doesn't tell you *anything*...
In fact, germany has more michelin-2*&3*-restaurants than any other european country besides france...not that the michelin is the "holy grail", but, well, you get the picture...

Go to "Fischers Fritz" and you will taste what I'm talking about...

best
kai

[Behemoth]

I have definitely gotten that impression from my research so far--beginning with the fact that Germany doesn't even get it's own region in the Europe forums.

Well, don't be fooled, because this doesn't tell you *anything*...
In fact, germany has more michelin-2*&3*-restaurants than any other european country besides france...not that the michelin is the "holy grail", but, well, you get the picture...

The distribution of forums on egullet can be taken as an indication of the interests of a mostly english speaking audience, as well as the forum's resources in terms of managers and moderators. It cannot be taken as an indication of the quality of the cuisine in this region. I got the impression Ed meant Berlin has some catching up to do in terms of fine dining; I doubt he was speaking about Germany as a whole. There are a lot of very fine places to eat in Munich or Hamburg, for example, but Hamburg is not a huge tourist destination and when Americans/Brits come to Munich on vacation they are more interested in biergartens than Michelin-level restaurants. Which is fine...but I wouldn't read into it any more than that.

[Catherine Iino]

Thanks, Kai-M. I'm going in any case, so of course I'll be looking for interesting culinary finds. I was kind of joking about the names of the forums, by the way. I should have put in a smiley.

But, help! Does anyone know of a good Turkish restaurant in Berlin? My husband, who is there now, sent an emergency request for information. There must be some.

Thanks!

[malacitana]

Thanks, Kai-M. I'm going in any case, so of course I'll be looking for interesting culinary finds. I was kind of joking about the names of the forums, by the way. I should have put in a smiley.

But, help! Does anyone know of a good Turkish restaurant in Berlin? My husband, who is there now, sent an emergency request for information. There must be some.

Thanks!

There is the Hasir chain (5 restaurants) which offer decent Turkish food. Their newest restaurant is on the Oranienburgerstr. near Hackescher Markt. But don't expect high-end dining.

[malacitana]

I have to say, having lived here for 13 years, I don't think anyone comes to Berlin to eat. Certainly not high-end food, at any rate. Maxwell's is near my house; I pass it every day. You get very small portions of indifferent "creative" cooking at inflated prices, and get to see loads of celebrities you probably won't recognize if you're not German. The couple of times I've been there with Americans they've been outraged at the ticket and the service.

My suggestion is to try to hit the mid-price restaurants for German food (Lutter & Wegner, for instance, or the Brecht Haus), and maybe one of the Muntagnola family's Italian places (Contadino Sotto le Stelle).

Downgrade your expectations and you'll probably have fun.

Berlin has nine one-star Michelin restaurants, most of which are deserved. So there is definitely the possibility of high-end dining in Berlin. Maxwell, by the way, is certainly not in that category. Definitely noteworthy, in my opinion, are the restaurants VAU, with a style of cooking which is not French, but creative takes on german and austrian food, and 44, where Tim Rause does some fantastic and very creative cooking (not recognized by Michelin so far).

[Catherine Iino]

Thanks, Malacitana. I arrived in Berlin yesterday and actually ate at VAU last evening. My husband, who has been here for a couple of weeks already, said it was 4 or 5 times better than anything else he had had here, but we both thought it was nowhere near up to the standards of, say, some wonderful restaurants we tried in Sweden a couple of years ago. Vau's food was creative and attractive, and the service was just fine, but in most of the dishes, the flavors did not quite come together gracefully. I do appreciate the recommendation for 44; I'll try to get there.

Do you by any chance know of any really good traditional bakeries here? I'm particularly interested in bread, but I'm more than happy to go hunting down good pastry as well.

[legourmet]

Thanks, Malacitana. I arrived in Berlin yesterday and actually ate at VAU last evening. My husband, who has been here for a couple of weeks already, said it was 4 or 5 times better than anything else he had had here, but we both thought it was nowhere near up to the standards of, say, some wonderful restaurants we tried in Sweden a couple of years ago. Vau's food was creative and attractive, and the service was just fine, but in most of the dishes, the flavors did not quite come together gracefully. I do appreciate the recommendation for 44; I'll try to get there.

Do you by any chance know of any really good traditional bakeries here? I'm particularly interested in bread, but I'm more than happy to go hunting down good pastry as well.

Another good restaurant is the "Quadriga" in the Hotel "Brandenburger Hof" near Kurfürstendamm. The chef there is Bobby Braeuer who was several years chef in the "Koenigshof" in Munich.

Traditional Bakeries ?? All German bakeries offer the same stuff in different qualities. What's the best belongs to the clients taste.

Look for this sign "Goldene Brezel 2005/2006" the following bakeries are awarded.

Axel Kaczmarzik, Charlottenburg
BackWerk
Nehringstr. 3
14059 Berlin

BackHaus GmbH, Falkensee
H.-J. Leib
Bahnhofstr. 6-8
14612 Falkensee

Bäckerei Hohenschönhausen
Jürgen Rauch
Sandinostr. 14
13055 Berlin

Bäckerei Köpenick
Jürgen Buhrmeister
Wiebelskircher Weg 39
12589 Berlin

Rainer Schwadtke, Köpenick
Dresdner Feinbäckerei
Bölschestr. 89
12587 Berlin

Bäckerei Köpenick
Ralf Sommerwerk
Borgmannstr. 6
12555 Berlin

Feinbäckerei Lichtenberg
Uwe Richter
Einbecker Str. 46
10315 Berlin

Bäckerei Pankow
Karsten John
Wollankstr. 110
13187 Berlin

Bäckerei Prenzlauer Berg
Kempe
Hufelandstr. 9
10407 Berlin

Bäckerei Prenzlauer Berg
Manfred Kädtler
Danziger Str. 135
10407 Berlin

Bäckerei Prenzlauer Berg
Lars Siebert
Schönfließer Str. 12
10439 Berlin

Bäckerei/Konditorei Schöneberg
Johann Mayer OHG
Kurt und Karsten Berning
Ebersstr. 42
10827 Berlin

Bäckerei Schöneberg
Walter Seitz
Brot und Wein
Hochkirchstr. 10
10829 Berlin

Familienbäckerei Spandau
Rösler GmbH
Falkenseer Chaussee 194
13589 Berlin

Bäckerei Steglitz
Walf GmbH
Hans-Joachim Blauert
Lankwitzer Str. 2 - 3
12209 Berlin

Bäckerei Steglitz
Alfons Wagner
Sachsenwaldstr. 30
12157 Berlin

Bäckerei Steglitz
Georg Hillmann GmbH & Co. KG
Hindenburgdamm 93 a
12203 Berlin

Bäckerei Tempelhof
Ingo Wüstenhöfer
Marienfelder Allee 99
12277 Berlin

Bäcker Tempelhof
Wiedemann GmbH
Wilhelm-v.-Siemens-Str. 26-28
12277 Berlin

Café Obergfell GmbH, Tempelhof
Lichtenrader Damm 36
12305 Berlin

Bäckerei Tempelhof
Stefan Obergfell
Alt-Lichtenrade 140
12309 Berlin


Enjoy hunting

[Pork Belly]

Thanks, Malacitana. I arrived in Berlin yesterday and actually ate at VAU last evening. My husband, who has been here for a couple of weeks already, said it was 4 or 5 times better than anything else he had had here, but we both thought it was nowhere near up to the standards of, say, some wonderful restaurants we tried in Sweden a couple of years ago. Vau's food was creative and attractive, and the service was just fine, but in most of the dishes, the flavors did not quite come together gracefully. I do appreciate the recommendation for 44; I'll try to get there.

Do you by any chance know of any really good traditional bakeries here? I'm particularly interested in bread, but I'm more than happy to go hunting down good pastry as well.

Another good restaurant is the "Quadriga" in the Hotel "Brandenburger Hof" near Kurfürstendamm. The chef there is Bobby Braeuer who was several years chef in the "Koenigshof" in Munich.

Traditional Bakeries ?? All German bakeries offer the same stuff in different qualities. What's the best belongs to the clients taste.

Look for this sign "Goldene Brezel 2005/2006" the following bakeries are awarded.

Axel Kaczmarzik, Charlottenburg
BackWerk
Nehringstr. 3
14059 Berlin

BackHaus GmbH, Falkensee
H.-J. Leib
Bahnhofstr. 6-8
14612 Falkensee

Bäckerei Hohenschönhausen
Jürgen Rauch
Sandinostr. 14
13055 Berlin

Bäckerei Köpenick
Jürgen Buhrmeister
Wiebelskircher Weg 39
12589 Berlin

Rainer Schwadtke, Köpenick
Dresdner Feinbäckerei
Bölschestr. 89
12587 Berlin

Bäckerei Köpenick
Ralf Sommerwerk
Borgmannstr. 6
12555 Berlin

Feinbäckerei Lichtenberg
Uwe Richter
Einbecker Str. 46
10315 Berlin

Bäckerei Pankow
Karsten John
Wollankstr. 110
13187 Berlin

Bäckerei Prenzlauer Berg
Kempe
Hufelandstr. 9
10407 Berlin

Bäckerei Prenzlauer Berg
Manfred Kädtler
Danziger Str. 135
10407 Berlin

Bäckerei Prenzlauer Berg
Lars Siebert
Schönfließer Str. 12
10439 Berlin

Bäckerei/Konditorei Schöneberg
Johann Mayer OHG
Kurt und Karsten Berning
Ebersstr. 42
10827 Berlin

Bäckerei Schöneberg
Walter Seitz
Brot und Wein
Hochkirchstr. 10
10829 Berlin

Familienbäckerei Spandau
Rösler GmbH
Falkenseer Chaussee 194
13589 Berlin

Bäckerei Steglitz
Walf GmbH
Hans-Joachim Blauert
Lankwitzer Str. 2 - 3
12209 Berlin

Bäckerei Steglitz
Alfons Wagner
Sachsenwaldstr. 30
12157 Berlin

Bäckerei Steglitz
Georg Hillmann GmbH & Co. KG
Hindenburgdamm 93 a
12203 Berlin

Bäckerei Tempelhof
Ingo Wüstenhöfer
Marienfelder Allee 99
12277 Berlin

Bäcker Tempelhof
Wiedemann GmbH
Wilhelm-v.-Siemens-Str. 26-28
12277 Berlin

Café Obergfell GmbH, Tempelhof
Lichtenrader Damm 36
12305 Berlin

Bäckerei Tempelhof
Stefan Obergfell
Alt-Lichtenrade 140
12309 Berlin


Enjoy hunting

Thanks for the great post on Berlin bakeries. I'll be in Berlin for a few days at the end of October.

[Catherine Iino]

I'm afraid I didn't receive the list of bakeries until after I'd left Berlin. I'm glad Pork Belly can use it. Thanks again to all for the suggestions.

[RobinsonCuisine]

I'm headed to Berlin in the next couple of days and interested in recomendations.

Is the 44 mentioned the restaurant in the Swiss hotel?

What is the restaurant in the Madison at Potsdamer Platz like?

What was the atmosphere at VAU? What would be an equivalent in NYC for example.

Thanks,

ps--any other recomendations would be welcome also.

[Anne Paris]

Dear e-Gullet,
Five Frenchies, and one Franco-American just returned from 5 days in Berlin (October 2006). We found several upper-end establishments to be disappointing in terms of "value for money". Some of the best food and overall experiences were found at the more reasonable end of the spectrum. Below are a few of our Berlin restaurant recommendations (with thanks to others who shared thoughts here and elsewhere!).
Bon appétit!
** Anne in Paris
______________________________________________

1) Lutter & Wegner
56, Charlottenstrasse, Gendarmenmarkt
+49 20 29 540
Brasserie style German-Austrian cuisine served in an elegant traditional room lined with contemporary art on the walls. A setting that speaks of both the past and present. Excellent fish and updated versions of many traditional dishes. Reasonable prices 17-25euros/ main course. We found it a very enjoyable experience overall. (Thanks to Ed Ward for his posting on this one).

2) Dachgarten Restaurant (Käfer Berlin)
Within the glass dome of the Reichstag we enjoyed superb views over the city of Berlin with inventive cooking coming from the open kitchen. Part of a very successful Munich based restaurant group, and the best way to cut the queues to get into the Richard Foster-designed glass dome of the Reichstag. (Suggested to us by a local)

Platz der Republik, 11011 Berlin
http://www.feinkost-kaefer.de (German only)
Tel. +49 30 22 62 99 0

3) Lunch and Tea spots . . .
a) Self-service restaurant in the 7th floor glass dome of the KaDeWe department store (Tauentzienstrasse 21-24 (Wittenbergplatz). (Suggested to us by a local)

b) Oxymoron Rosenthaler Strasse, 40-41 (Hackescher Markt) -- German-Italian cuisine in a brasserie-style setting. Very good desserts as well, and just a short walk from the Museum island and Berliner Dom. (Suggested to us by a local)
c) Cafe Einstein -- Unter den Linden 42 (at Friedrichstrasse). Not the original, but great stop for coffee and excellent cheesecake, or a glass of wine, while people watching or reading newspapers from around the globe. (Also suggested to us by a local)

d) Hotel Adler Bar -- great for tea of hot chocolate if you want to experience the Adler ambiance for "un petit prix".

4) Restaurant Remake -- very good food, nice atmosphere, pity about the service! (Again, thanks to e-Gullet member for posting).
32 Grosse Hamburger Strasse
10115 Berlin
http://www.restaurant-remake.de
Tel: +49 30 200 54102

Just a few more comments about REMAKE because it was in part through recommendations in e-Gullet that we made the decision to go . . . REMAKE has had a lot of positive press and has been sought after by diners in the know. On the night that we dined, the classical singer Renee Fleming walked in with two others, as she was apparently in the city in preparation for a concert there next month. Our group enjoyed our dinner here, despite what we considered very average service from a young waitress whose primary interest was clearly to make our bill for the evening as high as possible (perhaps presuming a large tip?) The restaurant was conceived by owner Stefan Dreier. Having lost it's original chef, a new duo of Andreas Dietrich and Michel Wendel displayed the talents they developed at several Michelin starred establishments. Their cooking showed both modern creativity as well as respect for traditional German ingredients and cuisine. A very good 4, 5 or 6 course menu was on offer for between 45 and 68 euros, depending on the number of courses. We were impressed and would certainly come back, except . . . our universal complaint about the service was significant. It did not match the quality of the cuisine. Our waitress was not knowledgable about the dishes, and her manner varied form inappropriately informal and lacking in descretion, to outright pushy (when it came to ordering higher priced items) and inattentive (when it came to checking to see if everything was okay). All of us felt the service was not good enough for an establishment trying to pitch a certain degree of sophistication. For example, having ordered our meals, we asked for recommendations on a moderately priced bottle of wine preferably from the region. Our waitress recommended a (hardly local) Spanish Rioja which I quickly noted was listed in euros for the equivalent of USD $120 a bottle. Though we made an alternative choice, we had to stop her from opening a second bottle before we had ordered it. We decided not to go for another bottle since we had already had drinks at the hotel before dinner, and a glass each of champagne upon arrival at Remake. At the end of the meal, we had been through so much with her that there was collective laughter as she tried to push everyone to have coffees. At that point, the few who did want them decided to retract their request. It was enough.

Let's hope REMAKE can remake the front of the house so that it is a true complement to what is going on in the kitchen.

[legourmet]

We were impressed and would certainly come back, except . . . our universal complaint about the service was significant.  It did not match the quality of the cuisine.  Our waitress was not knowledgable about the dishes, and her manner varied form inappropriately informal and lacking in descretion, to outright pushy (when it came to ordering higher priced items) and inattentive (when it came to checking to see if everything was okay).  All of us felt the service was not good enough for an establishment trying to pitch a certain degree of sophistication.  For example, having ordered our meals, we asked for recommendations on a moderately priced bottle of wine preferably from the region. Our waitress recommended a (hardly local) Spanish Rioja which I quickly noted was listed in euros for the equivalent of USD $120 a bottle.  Though we made an alternative choice, we had to stop her from opening a second bottle before we had ordered it.  We decided not to go for another bottle since we had already had drinks at the hotel before dinner, and a glass each of champagne upon arrival at Remake.  At the end of the meal, we had been through so much with her that there was collective laughter as she tried to push everyone to have coffees.  At that point, the few who did want them decided to retract their request.  It was enough.

Let's hope REMAKE can remake the front of the house so that it is a true complement to what is going on in the kitchen.

Sorry about your bad experiance concerning the service in the rtestaurant Remake. When I am not satisfied with the service I'd ask for the restaurant chef to get the appropriate information and help. If there is no blame, the current situation will never change.

You asked for a moderately priced bottle of lokal wine. The German wines shown in the wine list
are

Whites
4 dry Rieslings (Kabinett, Spätlese)
1 dry Riesling (erstes Gewächs)
1 dry white pinot
1 dry pinot grigio
Reds
1 dry Lemberger
1 Spätburgunder
1 Cuvee

As I know from many contacts with American wine freaks dry rieslings are not to be liked abroad. So you've had just three other choices. These German Württemberger reds are overpriced and at the lower end of good wines. IMHO.

The waitress should have offered Austrians instead, but those good ones listed are also high in price.

[tomweir]

I recommend Tutun (Tobacco) a Persian restaurant. Iranian royalty on their glassware, shoes off, carpets, low tables and excellent authentic aromatic food. Ask them for their recommendations, have a hubbly-bubbly with scented tobaccos... Just remember to bring cash, no credit cards taken. A great place for a group meal

Address : Reinhardtstr. 19
Tel : 23 45 56 28

Open daily :17:00-24:00

[Anne Paris]

Thank you Tom for the Persain suggestion, and to Heinz, for your analysis and comments on the Remake wine list. Personally, I found that many of the Rheingau Rieslings can be excellent. However, due to preferences at the table on the night we were at Remake, it was decided to go with a well balanced Austrian Red.

I agree with the comment regarding asking the staff to ask the chef when you are not satisfied. Just so I'm not misunderstood, I don't mean to single out Remake for bad service, only to indicate that on that particular night, with that particular waitress, the service detracted from what was otherwise an enjoyable experience. Everyone was uncomfortable. We all know that getting the balance "right" between cuisine/kitchen team, table and wine service, restaurant ambiance and pricing/profit model, is always an enormous challenge for a restaurant. Rarely can one find a place where they are all at an equal level of perfection. My feeling is that is important to be a good customer first by establishing with the service staff the right rapport from the start. When this doesn't work for some reason, it helps to guide the staff about your expections ("could you ask the chef how such and such is prepared?"), and if this approach still it doesn't work, I tend to escalate things up the chain, but usually doing it quietly either as a whisper or by excusing myself for a moment to take it up with the MD or chef. The situation becomes more difficult when in a group, and particularly when someone else is has the "honor" of serving as the host.

I hope to have a more positive experience to report next time!

[ExpatC]

Berlin is not really a real impressive restaurant town, although there are some little gems around if you are familiar enough with the city, but I am surprised that no one has mentioned KaDeWe , the 6th floor. I have been in Berlin many times and really the fun thing, food-wise, to do IMO is go there. Plan your day around lunch and go there. Keep dinner light. Berlin seems to have a pipline to some good fresh fish and seafood (not all of it by the way. The Lobster I had last month there was frozen, ugh.) and all that seafood is sold at KaDeWe. It is actually a great business model. (Paul Bocuse actually had an outlet up there until just recently. And, shock of shocks, that was where I had the frozen lobster. NZ not Canadian).

The Paris bakery Lenotre has a little cafe on the 6th floor also. They had the single best simple chocolate torte that I have ever had, it is called L'Etoile if anyone goes up there.

I have been to Berlin twice in the last month and recently had an oyster orgy at KaDeWe. One little cafe on the 6th had oysters from 6 different European areas. Way interesting but as usual the ones from Brittany were the best .

For restaurants, per se, the only places we return to are this little Chinese place called Good Friends and right next door is a little Japanese/Korean sushi and yaki bar (great crispy chicken-skin yaki. One is enough but very intersting to try) You can find them near to the corner of Bliebtreustrasse and Kant Strasse. About one block off Kuferstendamm right in the center of W. Berlin.

[John Talbott]

In the May 2007 Food & Wie they mention: Bieberbau, Carmens Restaurant in Eichwalde, HH Muller, Leo Bettini, Ottenthal + Shiro I Shiro.

[minichef]

anyone elso got any input for berlin? I am going on Sunday and on quite a tight budget. Will check out Ka De We and possibly Lutter & Wegner, any other mid-low budget secret gems?

[robyn]

We're not leaving for Berlin until next weekend - so all I know is what I've read. Don't know if it's available where you are - but why don't you try to pick up a copy of the Let's Go guide to Germany (formerly known as the Harvard Student Guide). Extremely useful in terms of sightseeing tips - and budget travel suggestions. It's geared for students (who are almost always on tight budgets) - but I think the suggestions are useful for older people too.

If you can't find a copy - why not pick up a guide when you get to Germany? The Michelin red guide is only in German - but it's very comprehensive and you can at least read the ratings and the price ranges even if you don't read German. Plus - it gives you restaurants by neighborhood (Berlin is a big city). Robyn

[robyn]

P.S. I am guessing from your posts that you are a younger woman (I'm an older woman). From what I've read - there are areas of Berlin that are kind of rough - and some of the cheapest restaurants might be in those areas. The Let's Go guides are very honest about which areas of town are safe - and which aren't - when it comes to recommending cheap hotels and cheap restaurants. If you can't find a copy before you leave - perhaps you can find one in a large bookstore in Berlin (or at an airport bookstore). Robyn

[kai-m]

Just a short note regarding "safety" in berlin, since robyn mentioned it: apart from some areas where no tourist ever goes anyway (like "wedding" or "neukölln"), berlin is a pretty safe city.

On the other hand, unlike in the US, you will see many young and drunk and noisy people in the streets in all areas of the city, even in yuppie areas such as "Mitte" or "Prenzlauer Berg". Sometimes there is some "agresiveness" in the air with certain groups of drunk/stoned youngsters, but rarely (or never!) have I really felt "threatened"...

Relax and have fun!

[robyn]

The German soccer cup final will take place in Berlin the weekend we're arriving - so we might see a few of the people you're talking about .

To Minichef - I don't know how long you're staying in Berlin - but that weekend should be very busy in the city. Robyn

[Behemoth]

If you are on a budget I would not recommend Michelin guides. Even their "bargain" choices tend to be fairly expensive and of a certain type. (Plus, all that info is on their website for free. )

I highly recommend the "Time Out" books -- especially since there is one especially for Berlin. The point of view is a bit more plugged in to what is going on culturally, and I've found their restaurant and bar reviews to be very reliable. I don't like the "Let's Go" guides, they always seem to be five years out of date.

Viel Spass in Berlin! It is a wonderful (and quite safe!) city.

Edited by Behemoth, 19 May 2007 - 05:45 PM.

[SideBurns]

Hey everyone!

I'm going to be in Berlin for the first time for two days this Friday and Saturday, and I'm looking for somewhere to eat on the Friday night.

I'm on a pretty tight budget and don't really want to spend more than €20-€30 for two or three courses including drinks (non alcoholic). As I'm on a budget, and don't posses that sophisticated a pallet (!), somewhere serving traditional good home-style German cuisine would be perfect.

I don't know Berlin at all, but I'm staying on the Hallesches Ufer, just down from Potsdamer Platz, so somewhere in that area would be ideal, but I'll probably buy a public transport pass, so it's not essential.

I'll certainly make sure that I visit KaDeWe on the Saturday afternoon to splurge a little for lunch; after what I've read on here it sounds like quite a fantastic place!

Many thanks in anticipation.

With all best wishes, Jack.