last month I went to Berlin, Germany for the first time and very much enjoyed the trip. of course, we did a lot (perhaps too much!) research on where we should walk and shop and eat, so i’m here to share our travel recap with you all.

i’ll give my usual disclaimer: please know that i’m noooot a travel expert, i’m just sharing our research and recommendations as tourists with fellow tourists!

our Google Maps list got a little…unruly! we somehow saved over 130 spots for a 5-day trip, so wade through this list at your own will!! also – Berlin is a super big city (duh) so there’s tonnns of options. here are some takewaways:

• don’t look just at aesthetically cute or appealing storefronts, you can find great food at non-trendy spots! definitely do a mix of late-night food, mid-range, and nicer dining for a good variety.
• bring cash for sure, lots of places will require it.
• the server does not come to you to ask if you want the check, you go to the server. (honestly genius!)
• this is a super vegan-friendly city! from observation and experience, restaurants at all levels of dining will have an option for the vegan folks.

we got a lot of recs from the following lists too: Infatuation, Eater, CN Traveler, Time Out, World’s 50 Best, Service 95.

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breakfast + coffee

where we went:

silo coffee: wow I never thought I would like mushroom toast more – Silo’s was fantastic! this spot is great for brunch or a more casual morning coffee-and-sit. we also had some OJ and I got a coconut coffee slushy (more of an afternoon bev lol). truly don’t sleep on the mushrooms – its also served with a homemade ketchup which was so good.

SOFI bakery: the most Copenhagen-coded bakery ever — and it did not disappoint. allegedly a fav of Harry Styles when he visits too! 🤭 we got the cheese and mustard pastry, a cardamom bun, and bread with butter and jam. devoured — easily!

gorilla bäckeri: also quite good! we got a slice of the pepper pizza, a vanilla croissant (basically a croissant with vanilla pastry cream, yummy), and a sour cherry tart. great people-watching at this place too.

calm coffee: in need of a bathroom and a caffeine break, we had some decent matcha drinks here, and a vegan cinnamon roll too.

refinery coffee: really in need of a snack and shelter from the rain, we had some fresh juices, coffee and some quiches (only ok) at this spot near the Boros Collection museum.

more ideas: Steel Vintage Bike Cafe, Distrikt Coffee, Cafe Mu, Daluma, LAP Coffee, La Maison, AERA, Two Trick Pony, Father Carpenter, Round & Edgy,

lunch and casual eats

where we went:

mcdonald’s: yes, we landed and we were starving so we did our favorite activity, McDonald’s in a foreign country! the snack wraps here are really superior, we got a mango curry situation? and they had curly fries? elite.

curry 36: currywurst is a popular German street food, featuring steamed or fried sausage topped with curry ketchup/tomato sauce and served with fries. on our last night post-club we were starving and snagged some currywurst at this chain just in time – with vegan sausage of course. I loveddddd it – considering I looooove ketchup and I love fries with mayo lol.

hamy cafe: super-good Vietnamese food, very hole-in-the-wall. they have a full menu, but people say the specials written on a chalkboard are the way to go, so that’s what we did! we had a brothy chicken soup (Ga Kho Ot) and a curry noodle soup (Pho Ga Chua Cay) broth with chicken, plus a watermelon juice and a Pennywort smoothie which was very herby! huge portions for eight euro each.

knödelwirtschaft: dumpling central right here! we shared a few knödel including cheese, tomato, mushroom, and a vegan, plus the must-order creamy mushroom sauce. the plate was served with pickled cucumbers, beets, sauerkraut and a salad. we also got the dessert knödel, with apricots and whipped cream and cinnamon. we enjoyed all of the sampling here and the dumplings were so soft and pillowy!

more ideas: Mustafa’s Gemsue Kebab, Han West Dumplings and Bao, Magic Johns, Kepap Baba, Bahn Mi Stable, The Tree, Mädchenitaliener, Kimchi Princess, Hako Ramen, Sisaket, Kepap with Attitude, Sahara Imbiss, Umami, Chutnify, Saravanaa Bhavan, HAPPA, Burgermeister, Soi & Co

dinner

where we went:

trio: peak small-plates orange wine, girly pop vibe here at Trio. their sister restaurant is Otto, another German-with-a-twist spot. we had some great orange wine (my favorite Gewürztraminer) and five dishes: a pickle plate (with a pickled egg! oy!), fried oyster mushrooms, beet salad, vegetarian goulash, and schlutzenkrapfen (little ravioli). we also got the chocolate mousse and a little Riesling for dessert. our favorites were the pasta and the mushrooms, and definitely the wine and people-watching here too!

aleppo supper club: we came here on the later end pre-club, and had a smattering of drinks and dips: turkish coffee, arak, G&Ts, tea, hummus and halloumi, metabel, pomegranate salad, vegetarian menazale (tomato and eggplant stuffed with cheese). we were not hungry enough for the rice dishes, but there is plenty to try here, and the staff were very nice.

ma-makan: this place rocked! very cute and female-run vibes, the food was really tasty and spicy! they have a mix of Singaporean and Malaysian food here, we got the corn pakoras, the Nasi Lemak with chicken and rice, with a side portion of Rendang chicken curry. also consumed: a pandan pina colada (I am such a sucker for pandan!) everything here was great, couldn’t recommend more.

more ideas: Fleischerei, Jaja, Otto, Lokal, Jager & Lustic, Frieda Schlamassel, No Bananas, Beuster Bar, House of Small Wonder, Lavanderia Vecchia, Max and Moritz, Khao Taan, Barra, Cookies Cream

bars and desserts

where we went:

cafe frieda: this place was wild, lol. I initially had a dinner reservation here, which I had found off of Infatuation, but we decided we didn’t want two fancy dinners in a row after Trio. but, I was past the cancellation period, so they wouldn’t let me cancel without a fee, so we decided to keep the res and just have drinks and dessert here instead. this was fine – we were excited for the desserts anyways. we got some bread and oysters and cocktails and skipped straight to dessert – with this crazy soft serve topped with a salty cheese and a strawberry compote – so good. but, they did charge me the no-show fee anyways…which was odd, even though our bill equaled the fee (just seems a little off for “fine” dining behavior). the vibe was cool and trendy here, and safe to say the staff and clientele were entertaining — but not a necessary visit for a full meal.

brammibal’s donuts: all-vegan donut spot with a few locations around the city, very cute and a good little snack place!

cafe lúzia: a chill cafe with beer and wine and some basic cocktails, lots of couches and outdoor space for chatting.

cafe richie: same vibe! we got a few beers here and sat for a bit!

material: Dua Lipa, you never steer us wrong! Service95, Dua Lipa’s magazine recommended this daytime cafe, nighttime wine bar and it was so cute! while my umbrella did get stolen here (womp) pay no mind because the personalized wine pours were super good, the atmosphere is chill and vibey.

more ideas (bars): Geist im Glas, Lerchen&Eulen, Herr Lindemann, Velvet, Silverfuture, Yuma Bar, ORA Wine Bar, Noble Rot, 8MM, Fraulein Frost, Blanc de Fuck

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hope this is helpful to you in your travels to Berlin!