Germany’s food capital: The best and latest food spots and trends in Berlin

Berlin is a culinary trendsetter, renowned for its diverse and innovative food scene. The city is a melting pot of various culinary styles and international cuisines. From avant-garde creations to traditional Berlin dishes, from fresh vegetables to aged meats, and from renowned chefs to passionate newcomers, Berlin offers a feast for the senses! We introduce some of this year’s core trends.

“Berlin has the most interesting restaurant scene in Germany. Together with the innovative chefs, we are scouts for our guests. After all, eating well is one of our visitors‘ favourite pastimes,” says Burkhard Kieker, CEO of visitBerlin.

The Michelin Guide, one of the world’s premier restaurant guides, has once again crowned Berlin as Germany’s gourmet capital in late 2024. With 28 Michelin stars across 21 restaurants, Berlin shines brightly in the culinary world both nationally and internationally. This includes the three-star restaurant Rutz, five two-star establishments – Horváth, Coda, Lorenz Adlon Esszimmer, Facil, and Tim Raue – and 15 one-star restaurants. Each chef showcases unique creativity and culinary artistry with their individual signature. The global appeal of Berlin’s top chefs is further highlighted by their rankings in The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, with Tim Raue at 30th place and Nobelhart & Schmutzig at 43rd.

Restaurant Bandol sur mer. Photo: visitBerlin, Pierre Adenis

Pioneers at the top

Hallmann & Klee with chef Sarah Hallmann in a gastronomically insignificant corner of Neukölln was newly awarded a star in 2024. She and her team started out with an exceptional breakfast menu. Today, with her fine dining concept, she is one of the top chefs who demonstrate a pioneering spirit and combine sensitive cookery with authentic hospitality. They put the guest at the centre and open up unknown corners of the gourmet world. The one-star restaurant Irma la Douce is no exception. It polishes up the culinary side of Potsdamer Strasse, which was once known for its bustling red-light district. The two-star Restaurant Tim Raue and Nobelhart & Schmutzig also opened a few years ago in an undiscovered neighbourhood near Checkpoint Charlie.

Photo: visitBerlin, GettyImages, Chalffy

Mirari, for example, is located in a park that Berliners can also rediscover. Numerous courtyards are being revitalised with Mediterranean, Levantine cuisine, be it Joseph or Nightkitchen. It is Israelis who are bringing cosmopolitanism to life with fresh oriental cuisine. From snacks to museum gastronomy to high-class. Shani Leiderman’s restaurant Beba in Gropius Bau, for example, offers attractive cuisine, not just for exhibition visitors, while NENI in Bikini Berlin offers a mix of Mediterranean, Persian and Austrian influences. The view over the city does the rest.

By the way, the view over the city: from next year, a visit to the TV tower will be a literal culinary highlight. Tim Raue will open the restaurant Sphere as the responsible kitchen director with typical dishes such as pork knuckle made according to his grandmother’s recipe or Berlin schnitzel. For those for whom the wait is too long, two snack creations à la Tim Raue are now being served in Berlin’s highest bar, at a height of 203 metres: boulette with beer, currywurst with sparkling wine.

Further proof that Berlin cuisine is blossoming again. Restaurant Trio presents Berlin cuisine with style and a modern twist, while Berlin’s oldest restaurant Zur letzten Instanz has undergone a generational change. The young, cosmopolitan chef André Sperling combines tradition with zeitgeist, Berlin cuisine with sustainability.

Photo: visumate

Future orientated and sustainable

Sustainable enjoyment today also means: if meat, then only the finest. With the new awareness and demands on food, the animal plays an important role as a food supplier. This is not just about animal husbandry, but also about the butcher’s trade and the perfect cooking and grilling methods. At the butcher’s shop Kumpel und Keule, for example, transparency, artisanal production, the origin of the meat and flavour are at the heart of their work. The Brooklyn, an original New York steak temple and luxury restaurant, only serves meat of the highest quality. American classics, special cuts, are prepared on red-hot charcoal in the X-Oven at Midtown Grill on Potsdamer Platz. At Grill Royal, German fillet of beef, cuts of Black Angus or roast beef from Wagyu cattle are grilled. Meanwhile, fans of Italian cuisine are drawn to restaurant To The Bone. Fiorentina bistecca and costata are served here. A speciality made from young oxen of the Chianina cattle breed.

Several branches have been operating under the name Beef Grill Club by Hasir for some time now. Here too, entrecôte from Wagyu beef, Chateaubriand, U.S. porterhouse steak and other classics are grilled in premium quality in the open kitchen. Incidentally, the founder of this business was one of the first to offer Döner Kebab in Kreuzberg. Mehmet Aygün moved to Berlin over 40 years ago at the age of 16 and started his business there with the simple Hasir restaurant in Adalbertstraße, which now includes numerous shops and Beef Grill Clubs. Today, it is impossible to imagine everyday life in Berlin without the kebab. Deniz Buchholz and Daniel Herbert offer the sustainable, refined version. Under the motto Kebap with Attitude, the two understand transparency in preparation, regionality and originality.

NENI Restaurant, 25hours, Hotel Bikini Berlin. Foto: Stephan Lemke.com

Culinary events

In the past, the local Italian restaurant, like Sicilia in Charlottenburg, was the go-to spot. Today, Berlin’s dining scene has evolved to feature modern international cuisine that offers relaxation, specialties, and warm service. Some restaurants have roots in GDR times, such as Jäger & Lustig, while others were founded by expats, like Café Frieda. The former serves rustic dishes, while the latter focuses on good, regional products in a contemporary way, and Samina Raza and Ben Zviel describe their restaurant as a classic all-day hangout.

Estelle Dining attracts visitors from beyond the neighbourhood with its unpretentious charm and diverse offerings. Chef Dominik Matokanovic, head chef at Tante Fichte, excels in classic cooking techniques and innovative compositions, making it a must-visit for fans of Croatian cuisine, especially for Ćevapčići. The Osterberger restaurant provides a stylishly casual atmosphere for slowing down, with operators Stefan and Thorsten Osterberger promising bistro cuisine with a fun twist.

Régis Lamazère brings his hospitality heritage to his brasserie, with a weekly changing menu and a three-course meal that exudes French flair. Yann Mastantuono, at Restaurant Mastan, pays homage to his hometown of Marseille with a monthly bouillabaisse menu. For over 20 years, the restaurant de Maufel in Charlottenburg has been a reliable choice for enjoyment, charming service, and the Luxembourg way of life, thanks to chef Valentino Palumbo’s excellent quality and relaxed atmosphere.

Markthalle Neun, Streetfood Thursday. Photo: visitBerlin, Dagmar Schwelle

The noodle hype

The noodle craze in Berlin began innocently with a pop-up called Chungking Noodles, where Ash Lee served the spiciest noodles the city had ever tasted. Today, Chungking Noodles has a permanent location in Kreuzberg, and Wen Cheng in Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg matches its level of spiciness. At Wen Cheng, the noodles are freshly pulled, while Sword Master Noodles in Prenzlauer Berg cuts them with large knives, as the name suggests. Shaniu’s House of Noodles and Lon Men’s Noodle House, both in Charlottenburg, also offer delicious dumplings. Chengduweidao in Mitte might just shift the spiciness ranking again with its extremely spicy sauces.

Restaurant Ankerklause. Photo: visitBerlin, Pierre Adenis

New Indian wave

Berlin no longer needs to envy London’s Indian restaurant scene. The city now boasts excellent Indian dining options. Manish Bahukhandi from India Club is pioneering North Indian fine dining, with bread, meat, and vegetables cooked in clay tandoori ovens. Around the same time, the more casual Bahadur opened in Wilmersdorf, offering authentic cuisine. Chef Gaurav Sharma recently launched a second restaurant, GapShap. The team at House of Tandoor also specializes in North Indian cuisine using tandoor ovens. Mr. Chai Wala serves high-quality South Indian street food, including biryani – a rice dish with chicken, lamb, or vegetables – and dosa, a crispy pancake made from rice and black urid lentils with egg, potatoes, or various vegetables. Both locations offer breakfast menus on weekends.

Alt-Berliner-Biersalon at Kurfürstendamm. Photo: visitberlin, Philip Koschel

Eat, dance, party!

The trendy club scene owes its vibrant atmosphere to numerous newcomers. Scene favourite Cookie has transformed his former club into Crackers, alongside the vegetarian and starred restaurant Cookies Cream. Cantina Bar Tausend offers a unique blend of bar, music, and food, serving dishes from Lima and Berlin with an Asian twist. Felix Brandts opened Papillon, a restaurant that turns into a lively party venue once the kitchen closes. With his Butterfly Effect party series, Avenue and Bricks clubs, and Grace restaurant, Brandts has successfully led projects in both areas. The Amano Group’s parties have been a hit for years, with Mirit Schiff’s team enhancing the culinary and party experience in hotel restaurants. They are trendsetters with venues like Mani, dem Joseph, Habeit, Mario x Gambino, and Amigo Cohen.

Restaurant Pauly Saal. Photo: Pauly Saal

Berlin’s bar culture

According to Mixology Bar Awards, Green Door Bar in Berlin-Schöneberg has been named Bar of the Year 2025. It is also home to Maria Gorbatschova, Bartender of the Year, marking the first time a woman has received this title. Two Berlin bars have also made it into the top 100 of the 50 Best Bars ranking. Wax On in Neukölln’s Weserstraße, with its handcrafted wooden furniture and unique menu, has secured the 29th spot internationally. Be sure to try their signature drink Go Ape, made from rum, clarified banana juice, coffee distillate, and soda. Velvet Bar, though not in the top 50, is ranked 77th and is highly regarded. Victoria Bar, a long-established venue, continues to blend classics and trends into cocktail glasses with a cosmopolitan flair.

Berlin prison experience

In Berlin, the cultural venue The Knast, located in a former women’s prison, transformed nights with its absinthe and cocktail bar. For the summer season, it now invites you to enjoy its extraordinary ambience during the day. Bar manager Nuri Oh crafts innovative drinks with mixology expertise. At Lovis, bar chef Nils Lutterbach creates both classic and inventive concoctions. When Sophia Rudolph took over the kitchen at Lovis in late 2021, it garnered significant attention from food enthusiasts. The venue, a former women’s prison converted into Hotel Wilmina with 44 rooms, suites, a roof terrace, library, spa, and restaurant, is an architectural and culinary gem

Collage by visiterlin with photos of Tim Raue © Nils Hasenau I Arne Anker © Nils Hasenau I Micha Schäfer & Billy Wagner © Marko Seifert I Sebastian Frank ORené Riis I Michael Kempf ©Jens Boesenberg I Marco Müller © Ricarda Spiegel I Sarah Hallmann © Franz Grünenwald I Fabian Fischer & Steven Zeidler © Hiroshi Toyada / Sophia Hoffmann & Nina Petersen © Zoe Spawton Large I Nicholas Hahn © pewpew.productions I Marcel Woest & Ralf Zacherl © Schmidt Z & KO | Nikodemus Berger © Bonvivant Cocktail Bistro (left to right).

A paradise for people who appreciate good food, Berlin attracts visitors from near and far with its excellent international restaurants. Nine renowned top chefs and restaurant managers are revealing their favourite gastronomic addresses here:

• Marco Müller (Rutz) recommends Goldies as well as Trio and Bandol sur Mer in Mitte
• Tim Raue (Restaurant Tim Raue) recommends Do De Li, Madame Ngo and Papaya in Charlottenburg
• Micha Schäfer and Billy Wagner (Nobelhart & Schmutzig) recommend Annelies in Kreuzberg, Michelberger Restaurant in Friedrichshain, Café Akkurat in Kreuzberg and Pars in Charlottenburg
• Michael Kempf (Facil) recommends Frühstück 3000 in Schöneberg and Kreuzberg, Otsuka and tigertörtchen in Mitte
• Sarah Hallmann (Hallmann & Klee) recommends La Maison in Kreuzberg, Mausi in Neukölln and Schwarzes Café in Charlottenburg
• Fabian Fischer (Bricole) recommends Allan's Breakfast Club & Wine Bar and Zum Schusterjungen in Prenzlauer Berg, Canal Berlin in Mitte and Osteria Ribaltone in Schöneberg
• Nicholas Hahn (Cookies Cream) recommends the kebab shop Ugur in Wedding, Shaniu's House of Noodles in Wilmersdorf, Due Forni in Prenzlauer Berg and Coda in Neukölln
• Sophia Hoffmann and Nina Petersen (HAPPA) recommend the She Said bookstore café and Love Deluxe in Neukölln, Häppies in Prenzlauer Berg and doen doen in Friedrichshain
• Ralf Zacherl and Marcel Woest (Schmidt Z&KO) recommend The Lunch Club in Mitte, Markthalle Neun and Tante Fichte in Kreuzberg