The best of Berlin
Berlin, the city where we 'used to' visit many times, worked and partied (and both at the same time), where we still ate the best sushi we can remember and where we had the best vintage scored items that are still hanging in the closet. We don't go there enough. And that while you're inside no time sitting, especially by train. It was high time to change that and for a Berlinupdate!
Although you can also get to Berlin quite quickly by car (seven hours from Amsterdam), you can get there an hour faster by train and you will be right in the heart of the city centre upon arrival. Yes, it may take a bit longer than by plane, but just subtract the airport waiting times and stress… And then we haven’t even mentioned the environment. Exactly! In addition, you don’t have to change trains if you travel from Amsterdam Central Station, so you can gaze out of the window or take a nap and wake up in Berlin. Oh, and tipped by experienced train travelers: reserve your seat! We have learned the hard way and now ensure that we always have a seat on an international train journey so that we can travel undisturbed. Once in the city, you can easily get from A to B with a Berlin WelcomeCard. This not only allows you to use all public transport, but also gives you a discount on tickets for museums and other highlights.
Where we sleep in Berlin? In a gem of accommodation on the very pleasant Oderberger Straße. A short, attractive (catering) street in Prenzlauer Berg that leads to the Mauerpark. More about that in a moment.
Let's go back first: yes, we know – and love – the Michelberger Hotel and the SoHo House Berlin is also among the top favorites. Das Stue, Hotel Zoo, The Circus Hotel, i31 Mitte, 25Hours Bikini... Off the top of my head. All crazy. But no dogs welcome. Booh. Or quite unaffordable for a nice weekend away. In comes Brilliant Apartments. An apartment complex indeed, right above a very nice (brunch) café: Cafe Krone Berlin. A café where you definitely want to be for (Sunday) brunch.
You enter through a gate (you will receive the code by email), then through a small hallway, further through an inner garden and then the guest house itself. The apartment is fully equipped, colourfully decorated and from the apartment you can roll into the always cosy Mauerpark in. Whoops, we've got the next hotspot.
For those who prefer strolling around to sitting down at a restaurant: Markthalle Neun in Kreuzberg. A covered market hall from 1891 where you can find authentic and pure food in a super relaxed atmosphere, from fresh bread and cheese to street food from small producers. None tourist trap, exactly the kind of place where locals do their shopping and hang out. In addition to the permanent market, Markthalle Neun regularly organizes neighborhood dinners and flower markets. Be sure to check what's on the agenda before you go.
Short but sweet: Albatros is simply a Very. Good. Bakery. Delicious bread, croissants to die for, and unique pastries you don't find everywhere; think lemon curd brioches, ricotta cakes, canelés and focaccia with toppings. The place itself is small, so sitting inside is not an option. Grab a bench outside or take everything with you to Wrangelbrunnen or Hasenheide Park.
In the middle of the Tiergarten, on the shore of a lake under tall trees, lies Café am Neuen See, a place that feels like a holiday in the city in the summer. The beer garden attracts Berliners who come to unwind after work with a cold beer and a good grilled chicken. In the winter, it gets quieter and the candles are lit, and honestly, it is at least as beautiful then. You can also rent a rowboat on the Neuer See – a real joy, with both children and your loved one.
Tucked away in the Bethanien Künstlerhaus, one of Kreuzberg's oldest buildings, sits 3 Schwestern, and you really have to know it's there. Once inside, you walk through a spacious, historic dining room, but on fine days, the garden is the reason to visit: one of the nicest places to eat outdoors in Berlin. The menu is regional and seasonal, the prices are reasonable, and on weekends, locals gather there for live concerts.
3 Sisters Berlin
In the fun Mauerpark you will find musicians all year round and when the weather is nice it is full of picnicking young people, parents with children and here and there a good-natured wanderer hangs around. On Sunday it's a real party: that's when there's market in the park, a large collection of stalls, stands en foodtrucks with the best of the market being: there is vintage for your body and junk for your home, there is food from all corners of the world and there is art from local creative birds. Not to be missed.
Speaking of markets, every Tuesday Friday there is market in Neukölln. Here, market wanderers can have fun with lots of local products and all kinds of other trinkets. The market can be found on the Maybachufer and is called - how could it be otherwise - the Maybachufer Markt.
Neukölln has much more fun shopping. The fun one (in our opinion the nicest) choose is full of vintage shops. One of the favorites: The Good Store. A more than greedy selection vintage designer items for usually good prices in a tidy and light interior with wooden floor, pine counter and bright green plants. You'd rather shove everything in your basket here, so be careful. The same goes for spatz vintage en Sing Blackbird Vintage.
We will stay in Neukölln for a while because it is also full of nice eateries, such as Cultural Café Friedelstraße. Good coffee, good (vegan) soup and good atmosphere. A person doesn't need more.
Yes, indeed. A lunch dessert. Ice cream from Mrs. Frost, a few doors down. Locals were queuing, then you know you're in the right place.
To dine we add Barra. In this cozy restaurant they serve the most delicious dishes to share (because 'better shared', as they say). Everything is equally fresh and equally delicious. This also applies to the wines, of which they have an extensive collection. The kind of place where you want to come back again to taste the rest of the menu.
Neukölln is also the right place for a drink. For example at cocktail bar TiER. A huge cocktail menu, dark murals, old-fashioned record player, stuffy wallpaper and the walk of a cat being stroked by an anonymous hand on a small television screen. This pretty much sums up the retro mood of its own. in TiER. You drink perfect ones there pisco sours en mezcal negronis, or one of the other amazing and special cocktails, both vintage as own creations.
At kink you can also enjoy cocktails, but be sure to try something from the snack menu and take a look at the dinner menu and the delicious, mainly Mediterranean dishes that you see passing by. Guaranteed that you will stay there after the afternoon drinks. It is cozy inside and when the weather is nice it is great to relax on the large terrace.
An out and out (read: a creative hodgepodge) Berlin's beer garden on top of the parking garage that belongs to a (dull) shopping center Klunkercranich. In bad weather you can go to the brown café that belongs to the roof terrace, with live music as you often hear at an original dive bar belongs. A bit alternative, a bit rustic, a bit grunge, nice and casual and oh so cool. When the weather is nice, you can enjoy the best view and the most fantastic sunset in Berlin on the terrace full of beer tables.
Our Berlin friend and whisperer of the best addresses locally (Carmen) told me: You MUST write about the Spati culture. We tried and tested and indeed, hanging out for an evening (or just for a while) at one of the semi-hidden Späti's (read: what you need to know) is very pleasant, quintessentially Berlin and just... Something completely different. A Späti is actually a night shop (Spätkauf = late sale), but in Berlin these small shops are actually so much more than that. Many Spätis have (super cozy) terraces here and a number of the Spätis have really become a hangout for cool people. There are even Späti-raves. The hippest brands (and there are quite a few in Berlin) hold their parties in and around Späti's. Top phenomenon. A nice one is the one on Diefenbachstrasse, close to Gräfestrasse (a nice neighborhood anyway). Or the one on the Choriner Strasse, near Zionskirchstrasse, but they are everywhere.
Bar 25: if you know it, you know it. The club on the Spree that felt like a universe of its own in the early 2000s. Long closed, but the people behind it just carried on. Holzmarkt 25 is now operating in the same spot on the Spree: a complex featuring club Kater Blau, restaurant Fame, and a garden right on the water. Chilling during the day with food trucks and a view of the Spree; dining in the evening, followed by dancing.
Situated midway between Prenzlauer Berg and Friedrichshain lies one of Berlin's largest and greenest parks, and on a sweltering summer day, this is an absolute lifesaver, especially with small children. For in Volkspark Friedrichshain, you can have a blast with water. There is a kind of mega waterfall that cascades down, where kids can enjoy hours of water fun without you having to entertain them. Adjacent to it: a beer garden for much-needed beers and currywurst. Everyone happy, no one overheated.
In addition to New York, Berlin also has one House of Small Wonder (HOSW for intimates) and you want to go there for breakfast, lunch, drinks or brunch. HOSW Berlin is located in a quiet street around the corner from the always nice Friedrichstrasse, in the middle of Mitte (the city center). You have to look a bit, because the tent is in an office building and from the outside you can't tell that it is one of the most Instagrammable and beloved brunch spots in the city. The vibe is hippie-chic-relaxed with lots of wood, plants and sunlight (if available of course) through the high windows. On the menu: tacos, eggs, croissants with Nutella and mini sandwiches to order (much) more than one of them and all with a Japanese swung.
Drink beer at the oldest beer garden in the city Talker Biergarten. A gigantic outdoor area (kid proof too!) around the corner of Oderberger Strasse. Long beer tables, parasols, cozy lights and of course beer, lots of beer. You will find it in the Prenzlauer Berg district, near the Mauerpark, around the corner from the French Les Valseuses Restaurant (recommended!) and bar Kapitalist.
A little further from the center you will find a nice beer garden Schleusenkrug. This beer garden is located next to the Berlin Zoo and it is always (provided the weather is reasonable) pleasantly busy. In addition to drinking beer, you can play jeu de boules and in the evening the atmospheric pink lights are turned on.
Restaurant Heimlich Treu is one of the nicest, slightly classic and most wonderful addresses in the city. A place that meets all the typical Sunday requirements. Inside there is beautiful, colorful art on the walls. A bit modern (the classic version), a bit subdued, a bit expressive. Moreover, the store is large and baby, child and dog friendly. When the weather is nice, the garden is a great tip. The brunch menu is different than usual: you choose a number of ingredients, individually, and you get your sandwiches with them. And then just build. The rest of the time the restaurant is there for cocktails and dinner, the atmosphere is a bit Scandinavian, a bit country chic, a bit German. We like.
At ABC – Allans Breakfast Club & Wine Bar on the Rykestrasse in Prenzlauer you can sit cozy and nice, eat delicious and you can go there all day, from breakfast to wine. You can sit inside and outside and the whole family is welcome there.
Betty 'n Caty is a similar place, but only for breakfast and brunch. They have traditional German egg breakfasts with a modern twist but also bowls and breakfast for the kids. Something for everyone at Betty 'n Caty. Oh yes, here you can also sit both outside and inside.
In the district Kreuzberg you will find the famous Checkpoint Charlie, the Viktoriapark and Görlitzerpark and all kinds of restaurants and bars. The Golden Rooster is a modern Italian restaurant around the corner from wine bar NOMI and for the best pizzas in Berlin you have to go there Gazzo en Zola are. At Zola you can sit on the terrace by the water when the weather is nice.
Would you rather go for a more chic dinner? At restaurant Time They serve gems of dishes accompanied by a huge selection of wine. You can also go here for just a drink, because it is also a wine bar. Oh yes, this building used to be a pharmacy.
River Spree runs straight through Berlin and, when the weather is nice, is the city's hotspot to stay in (and next to). The nicest places on the river? They come.
At Badeschiff Berlin you can swim in a pool, in the river. A swimming pool has been made from an old container that was once dumped in the Spree. For example, you can swim in the Spree, but in a city swimming pool. Do you still get it? They also have a city beach with beach chairs from which you can have a drink while looking out at the pool and the river. If the weather is nice you can also take a dip Plötzensee beach.
At Holzmarkt25 is a special nothing-must-everything-is-possible place with a typical Berlin atmosphere where small events are organized and live music is played. There is also an occasional DJ in the summer. You can order food and drinks there bringing your own is also allowed.
Club of Visionaries is a unique nightclub on the water in the evening and a lounge area during the day. And Sage restaurant & beach is also the place to be we have been told.
Right on the Spree and the edge of Friedichschain is hotel nhow Berlin. Each nhow hotel has a specific theme, in Berlin it is music. Appropriate, because if there is a city where people dance all night long, it is Berlin. The tone is already set during check-in. The reception desk is shaped like a guitar and there is a piano in the lobby. No standard elevator music here, but playlists curated by hotel employees. Each elevator has a different color and a different music style.
Aan vegan There is also no shortage of restaurants in Berlin. Have breakfast or lunch (you can also do both!) before or after you enter the Mauerpark, do the following: Café Morgenrot.
For vegan Vietnamese you have to eat 1990 Vegan Living are. At this popular restaurant you have the feeling that you are in Vietnam, and that is also the intention of the owners. A cozy living room atmosphere with really good vegan food.
Also Momos is well known among the vegan residents of Berlin. Here you eat organic, completely vegetable dumplings with of course, vegan dips. Perfect for lunch or pre dinner snacks.
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