GERMANY - Best of Europe 2014 - page 730

Cheap Eats: Bier's Curry und Spiesse, under the tracks at the Friedrichstrasse S-Bahn
stop,isagreat,greasy,cheap,andgenerousplaceforanold-fashionedGermanhotdog.This
is the local favorite near Unter den Linden for €2 Currywurst . Experiment with variations
(the Flieschspiess is excellent) and sauces—and don't hold the fried Zwiebeln (onions).
You'll munch standing at a counter, where the people-watching is great (daily 11:00-5:00 in
the morning; from inside the station, take the Friedrichstrasse exit and turn left).
Near the Pergamon Museum: Georgenstrasse, a block behind the Pergamon Museum
and under the S-Bahn tracks, is lined with fun eateries filling the arcade of the train
trestle—closetothesightseeingactionbutinbusinessmainlyforstudentsfromnearbyHum-
boldt University. Deponie3 is a trendy Berlin Kneipe usually filled with students. Garden
seating in the back is nice if you don't mind the noise of the S-Bahn passing directly above
you. The interior is a cozy, wooden wonderland of a bar with several inviting spaces. They
serve basic salads, traditional Berlin dishes, and hearty daily specials (€4-8 breakfasts, good
€8 brunch Sun 10:00-15:00, €5-11 lunches and dinners, open daily from 9:00, sometimes
live music, Georgenstrasse 5, tel. [phone]). For Italian food, a branch of Die Zwölf
Apostel is nearby (daily until 24:00, food served until 22:00; described later, under “Near
Savignyplatz”).
In the Heart of Old Berlin's Nikolai Quarter: The Nikolaiviertel markstheoriginalme-
dieval settlement of Cölln, which would eventually become Berlin. The area was destroyed
duringthewarbutwasrebuiltforBerlin's750thbirthdayin1987.Thewholeareahasacute,
cobbled, and characteristic old town...Middle Ages meet Socialist Realism. Today, the dis-
trict is pretty soulless by day but a popular restaurant zone at night. Bräuhaus Georgbrau
is a thriving beer hall serving homemade suds on a picturesque courtyard overlooking the
SpreeRiver.Eatinthelivelyandwoodybutmod-feelinginterior,oroutdoorswithfunriver-
side seating—thriving with German tourists. It's a good place to try one of the few typical
Berlin dishes: Eisbein (boiled ham hock) with sauerkraut and mashed peas with bacon (€10
with a beer and schnapps). The statue of St. George once stood in the courtyard of Berlin's
old castle—until the Nazis deemed it too decadent and not “German” enough, and removed
it (€10-13 plates, three-foot-long sampler board with a dozen small glasses of beer, daily
10:00-24:00, 2 blocks south of Berlin Cathedral and across the river at Spreeufer 4, tel. 030/
242-4244).
In City Hall: ConsiderlunchingatoneofBerlin'smany Kantine .Locatedingovernment
offices and larger corporations, Kantine offer fast, filling, and cheap lunches, along with
a unique opportunity to see Germans at work (though the food can hardly be considered
gourmet). There are thousands of Kantine in Berlin, but the best is Die Kantine im Roten
Rathaus, in the basement of City Hall. For less than €4, you can get filling German dishes
like Leberkäse (German-stylebaloney)orstuffedcabbage(Mon-Fri11:00-15:00,closedSat-
Sun, Rathausstrasse 15).