THE BEST FOOD IN BERLIN*

*a subjective guide

me laughing all the way home after every delicious bite of food we ate

Hello everyone,

I hope you are all doing very well and enjoying this Spring soft launch that we’re experiencing. I don’t want to jinx it, it could well be fake Spring, but I am enjoying the lighter evenings and balmier days. When my boyfriend and I were preparing to spend February in Berlin, we treated it like an expedition to the North Pole; we bought thermal underwear, thermal leggings, thermal vests, thermal gloves ! We went in with knitted hoods and extra warm down puffer jackets. We were expecting the famous Berlin winter, temperatures of -10c and fierce winds making it feel like -20c. I think in some perverse way we were maybe looking forward to enduring a proper winter, armed with a wardrobe full of heat tech. But what we found instead was a largely mild, and grey climate. We barely wore the thermals and my heat tech hood didn't make it out of my suitcase.

We both had big projects to work on while we were away and found the pace of life in Berlin very conducive to focused work. In comparison to the busy hustle and bustle of London, Berlin felt like a breath of fresh air, a welcome break and a far more manageable pace of life. Not only that, but in comparison to London, it is unfathomably cheap. You can go out for coffee, buy a book, get lunch out and maybe even go to the cinema all in one day and not feel like you’ve just sold off a limb. For that reason, amongst others, we ate out more than we ever have in our life before. And let me tell you, it was a whole vibe. I have never been so happy. I have never eaten so much delicious, vibrant, diverse, exciting food in my life. I am SO excited to share all the places we discovered with you. I am even more excited to go back, eat their food again and discover more of Berlin’s culinary treasures.

I have broken these recommendations down into three categories: coffee & pastries, lunch & dinner and other things to do besides eat (this was tough for me). I have a few caveats, the first being that we were only there for a month, and Berlin has a lot to offer on every street corner. So out of ease and laziness, we stayed within walking distance of our place, resulting in nearly all of these recs being around the Neuköln area. My boyfriend is veggie and I am pescatarian, so you won’t find any meaty recs here, although I’m told there is a lot of delicious meat to be found in the city (stop it). Berlin is a city really set up for the plant based, vegetarian eater and we didn’t once encounter a place that didn’t have great options. We also didn’t make a point of researching places that catered to veggies, so if you are vegan leaning, you don’t need to worry, this city is for you.

A lot of these places came recommended by friends, so if you know the city well you may already know of them, I am just scratching the surface. I would also like to mention that this is really just the highlights, there were several places that didn’t make it to the list and I have truly given you our favourites only.

I hope you enjoy this guide and find it useful. Please please please let me know if you end up going to any of the places! I can’t wait to hear what you think. If you have other recommendations, drop them in the comments, I am all ears.

If you’ve never been to Berlin, this is your sign to book a trip, you won’t regret it.

Sending love, Rosie x