Prost! Where to Eat and Drink in Berlin

Walking through Berlin’s top culinary districts is a real treat. You’ll encounter no shortage of frothy Saxon beers and mouth-watering schnitzels, world-class Korean dumplings and pisco sours from underground speakeasies. Let’s check out these districts one by one, journeying through the courtyards of quirky Kreuzberg and the much-trodden streets of Mitte!

Kreuzberg

Squat bars and shabby-chic dives, craft beer haunts and ad hoc jazz bars, quirky galleries and crowds of resident drainpipe jeans-wearing hipsters have all fused to make Kreuzberg the bohemian neighborhood par excellence in Berlin. Grids of graffiti-clad, tree-peppered streets cut through this former squatters’ area sandwiched between bustling Potsdamer Platz and the Brutalist Soviet War Memorial.

These roads hide oodles of enticing eateries, many of which come with a curious Turkic twist courtesy of the area’s booming immigrant community. Check out the countless falafel holes-in-the-wall on Oranienstrasse, while Café V nearby offers a medley of vegan treats. For drinks, expect bikers and thrash metal at Clash (a personal favorite), or head to Vögelchen for smoky alcoves and antiques worthy of Hemingway and the beatniks.

Friedrichshain

Friedrichshain does well to continue on the boho vibes of Kreuzberg from its place north of the River Spree. There’s something about this one’s lesser-known drinking joints and crumbling East German veneer that lends itself to all things alternative, and it’s always a pleasure to break out and wander the East Side Gallery and tenement courtyards here, chatting to students and past-it revolutionaries pining for the red days in the makeshift cafes.

Foodies hitting Friedrichshain should be sure to kick off the morning with a jaunt to Silo Café, complete with ethically-sourced coffee beans, crushed avocado-and-egg breakfasts and a stripped-down interior of recycled seats and tables. Later on, make a beeline for the chili-doused tables of Agüevo, arguably the city’s prime Mexican joint, or enjoy some hearty Saxon food at Schwarzer Hahn – this is schnitzel country after all!

Schöneberg

Leafy and green Schöneberg is more straight-laced and well-to-do than its near neighbor of boho Kreuzberg. Instead of chipped and crumbling USSR-style tenements, this one has pristine boulevards lined with plane trees. Instead of graffiti murals, this one boasts gilded Art Deco frontispieces and painted facades.

The bars and restaurants have something of a more classy edge to them too. For starters there’s the 1930s speakeasy styles of Rum Trader (also known more scientifically as the Institute for Advanced Drinking). Expect bow ties and meticulously created long drinks. Meanwhile, the Pinguin Club oozes a 50s and 60s swing; rock-and-roll twisting and turning between its nostalgic airs. Food wise, there’s arguably no better joint in the area than Ixthys, which serves some of Berlin’s most acclaimed Korean dishes.

Mitte

With its wide boulevards and totemic sights – think the Brandenburg Gate, The Reichstag and the leafy Tiergarten – Mitte is arguably the most important district in all of Berlin (at least historically and culturally). It ranges from high-street boutiques on Friedrichstrasse to roaring nightclubs on Potsdamer Platz, and encompasses oodles of shopping, art and history in-between.

Start a culinary adventure here by delving into the wealth of establishments that crowd around Hackescher Markt and burst out of the adjoining Jugendstil frontispieces of the Hackesche Höfe courtyards. These include the hip, 1920s-esque Oxymoron, and quirky Café Cinema, its chairs and tables spilling onto the streets by summer. Fine-dining is also a big pull in Berlin’s beating heart, and Mitte comes complete with the likes of Ristorante A Mano (Mediterranean) and Sucre et Sel, a perfect Parisian bistro with all the frills!