Berlin

No longer a no-man's land in the divided city, Potsdamer Platz has reached new vitality, in part thanks to the popularity of Facil, inside the sleek Mandala Hotel. — Condé Nast Traveler

One of Germany's top restaurants, Facil is also one of the more relaxed of its class. — Fodor's

At tremendous expense, in the infrastructure of the Mandala Hotel, a crane lifted a vast tonnage of glass, steel, and garden supplies to the hotel's fifth-floor terrace. — Frommer's

Michael Kempf’s restaurant in the Mandala Hotel not only offers amazing food but also splendid views from the fifth floor despite its lush bamboo garden. — Rough Guide

Michael Kempf’s Michelin-starred fare is hugely innovative yet deliciously devoid of unnecessary flights of fancy. — Lonely Planet

'6 Inspirations - 12 Experiences' reads the subtitle of the 'inspiration' menu, each course showcasing the creative gifts of Marco Muller. — Michelin Guide

The impressive ground-floor bar has a whole wall showcasing wines from around the globe - not obscure New World vintages, but the best of the best. — Time Out

Marco Müller’s creations strike just the right balance between adventure and comfort, an approach that won him a Michelin star in 2008. — Lonely Planet

This rising star in Berlin’s gourmet scene has slowly worked towards its first, well-deserved Michelin star by offering consistently high-quality fish and hearty meat dishes. — DK Eyewitness

Michelin-starred cuisine on the second floor and more than a thousand international wines offered in the ground-floor bar make this a de rigueur stop for foodies. — Rough Guide

They live up to the hype and serve strongly New Nordic influenced dishes. — Travel + Leisure

The locavore obsession is taken seriously at this trendy spot that uses only the most local ingredients in the simple but sublime preparations that come from the open kitchen. — Fodor's

This 'food bar' offers its own special mix of trendy, urban chic and relaxed but professional service. — Michelin Guide

"Brutally local" is the cathphrase at what's currently Berlin's hottest reservation, opened in 2015 and already anointed with a Michelin star. Owner/sommelier Billy Wagner and chef Micha... — Frommer's

With a tasting menu of 10 hyper-seasonal courses—including, in early March, trout with smoked potato purée, earthy Jerusalem artichokes with black pudding sausage, and a rich confit of... — Condé Nast Traveler

Henne offers the moistest, crispiest milk-roasted bird to be found in Mitteleuropa, along with a décor that’s a celebration of Berlin as a working-class city. — Travel + Leisure

Only one thing on the menu - half a roast chicken - but Henne's birds are organically raised and milk-roasted. — Time Out

If you don’t like chicken, stay away from Henne in Kreuzberg, because chicken is almost the only thing they serve. — Frommer's

Die Henne (which means "the hen") has managed to stick around thanks in part to its most famous dish, which is still just about all they serve: crispy, buttermilk fried chicken. — Fodor's

This Old Berlin institution operates on the KISS (keep it simple, stupid!) principle: milk-fed chicken spun on the rotisserie for moist yet crispy perfection. — Lonely Planet

The canal-front restaurant spotlights regional dishes such as lamb with chanterelles, fresh tarragon, and apricots. — Travel + Leisure

Celebrities, including the mayor of Berlin, continue to frequent these airy, hyper-avant-garde dining rooms, enjoying dishes that are inspired by recipes from Bavaria to Bangkok. — Frommer's

At his canal-side bistro, newly minted Michelin chef Sebastian Frank performs culinary alchemy with Austrian classics, fearlessly combining textures, flavours and ingredients. — Lonely Planet

Try Horváth if you fancy some really imaginative cuisine full of interesting combinations, full-bodied flavours and intensity. — Michelin Guide

Unstuffy ambience and subtly sophisticated design pair perfectly with Raue's brilliant Asian-inspired cuisine that looks like art on a plate and launches a taste explosion in your mouth. — Lonely Planet

Time Raue's cuisine is minimal and pared down, using a small number of high quality ingredients to perfect effect. — Michelin Guide

Located in the Hotel Adlon Kempinski are star chef Tim Raue’s twin restaurants. — Travel + Leisure

Local Kreuzberg lad done extremely well, Tim Raue has been extremely busy of late. — Time Out

Freshly cut flowers, rustic wood tables, and an artsy crowd pepper this Mitte standout where ingredients are natural and sourced, as you might have guessed, locally. The menu changes... — Afar Magazine

If you think the stark and basic interior) is a bit ho-hum, perhaps the inspired, fresh and colourful takes on German fare will make you a fan of Lokal after all. — Lonely Planet

With its rustic stone floors and simple wooden furnishings, this understated dining room feels like a trip to Scandinavia. — Condé Nast Traveler

This popular restaurant, located on the corner of one of Berlin's prettiest streets, serves locally sourced dishes like Brandenburg wild boar, lake trout, or venison on stylish long wooden tables. — Fodor's

Das Lokal flies the flag for Portland-style locavore cuisine, using only the most sustainable of ingredients for its changing menu of German staples. — Time Out

With its hyper-modern twist on the French fine-dining tradition, Bandol Sur Mer is fresh, playful and classy. — Travel + Leisure

Berliners line up for its exquisite entrecôte, innovative seafood and an extensive selection of excellent French and German wines. — Time Out

This teensy bistro in a former döneria (doner kebab shop) on Torstrasse’s evolving restaurant row is worthy of a culinary Oscar. — Lonely Planet

This tiny, 20-seat eatery serves French classics. — Fodor's

A former kebab kiosk refurbished into a tiny but casually upmarket and hugely popular French restaurant. — Rough Guide

Everyone of importance, including German chancellors, dines at Borchardt. — DK Eyewitness

In the late 19th century, the original Borchardt opened next door at no.48. It became the place to be for politicians and society folk, but was destroyed in World War II. — Time Out

A Berlin institution, this high-ceilinged brasserie is as famous for its succulent wiener schnitzel as it is for its guest roster of international power players. — Lonely Planet

Spacious marble interior and close fitted, finely dressed tables with superior garden seating in summer months contribute to decadent, grandiose atmosphere with requisite price tag. — BlackBook

One of the city's most highly-regarded restaurants, Borchardt was originally founded by A.F.W. Borchardt in 1853. — Travel + Leisure

Go Russian at this Moscow- style venue, with borshch, Russian music and vodka. — DK Eyewitness

Menu items read like what the characters in a Dostoevsky novel might have ordered: borscht, blinis, chicken Kiev, pork skewers with pomegranate and walnut sauce, Taig Taschen. — Frommer's

Comrades! Collectively endeavour to avail yourself of the traditional specialties of the Russian people! — Insight Guides

The menu looks like an old family photo album with black-and-white pictures on the left and Russian favourites – borscht to blini to beef stroganoff – on the right. — Lonely Planet

Russian-inspired treats such as deviled eggs topped with salmon roe, blini with sour cream and dill, and pierogi, are the draw at Pasternak. — Fodor's

Not only is Thomas Kammeier's cuisine highly rated, up on the 14th floor you will find your gaze drawn from your plate out over the rooftops of Berlin. — Michelin Guide

The Michelin Star award-winning Hugos is located on the 14th floor of the InterContinental Berlin and offers diners panoramic city views to complement their meals. — Travel + Leisure

The Michelin-starred Hugo’s is Berlin’s most affable gourmet restaurant, with impeccable service and stunning views of the city. — DK Eyewitness

Thomas Kammeier's French-Mediterranean cuisine... have been dazzling diners since he took over the kitchen in the late 1990s. — Concierge

In a gorgeously appointed room at the top of the Hotel InterContinental, superstar chef Thomas Kammeier creates Michelin-starred “New German-Mediterranean” food that you can sample. — Rough Guide

If you like great steaks, you can choose your cut at this flashy steakhouse. — DK Eyewitness

A-listers, power politicians, pouty models and ‘trust-afarians’ can be seen slurping oysters and tucking into their prime cuts. — Lonely Planet

The place to eat on the River Spree, known for its grilled meats. — Michelin Guide

This luxe steakhouse has become the go-to for the Hollywood set and international fashionistas thanks to a super cool aesthetic. — Condé Nast Traveler

With its entrance on the promenade by the Spree below the Weidendammer Brücke, this comfortably cavernous restaurant is more reminiscent of London or Paris than Berlin. — Time Out

Berlin nightlife "mogul" Cookie is a fixture on the Mitte scene and Cookies Cream, the vegetarian fine-dining establishment above the club Cookies, is his crowning achievement. — Fodor's

Kudos if you can locate this chic herbivore haven right away. Hint: it's upstairs past a giant chandelier in the service alley of the Westin Grand Hotel. — Lonely Planet

Meander through the delivery area between Westin Grand and Komische Oper to a blank door with flickering light bulbs. — Time Out

For a taste of Berlin's infamous underground nightlife, check out the cozy, high-hipster ambience of Cookies Cream, whose veggie-fabulous menu is worth the mild hazing to get there. — Condé Nast Traveler

Surely the coolest vegetarian restaurant in the world; the restaurant is also a club. Menu changes weekly. — Travel + Leisure

Located on the courtyard of an old brick brewery building, Katz Orange is a foodie favorite that serves vegan and organic meat dishes using responsibly sourced ingredients. — Frommer's

This cozy restaurant, hidden in a courtyard off a quiet, residential street, is both elegant enough for a special occasion and homey enough to become a favorite local haunt. — Fodor's

Wits its gourmet organic farm-to-table menu, feel-good country styling and swift and smiling servers, the 'Orange Cat' hits a gastro grand slam. — Lonely Planet

This restaurant set in a listed building built in 1893 is friendly and lively. — Michelin Guide

Chef Tim Raue has wowed the city (and the Michelin guide, nabbing two stars) with his eponymous, Asian-inspired restaurant. — Condé Nast Traveler

Tim Raue is Berlin's local boy made good, a Kreuzberg gang member turned celebrity chef who owns five restaurants at last count. — Frommer's

Local top toque Tim Raue's newest gastro destination embraces the soulful goodness of German home-cooking. — Lonely Planet

Toeing the border of Berlin's uber-gentrified Mitte and the relatively more muted Prenzlauer Berg, La Soupe Poulaire was always destined for greatness. — Wallpaper

Berlin can't resist a glamorous ruin, and Bötzow Brauerei, the old brewery complex that houses this new restaurant, is the mother of them all. — Fodor's

A visit to this busy but homey Kollwitzplatz restaurant will leave you pleasantly surprised—and thoroughly stuffed. — Fodor's

Bill Clinton was once a guest at this restaurant, which attracts clients from all over Berlin. The menu features an original combination of German and French dishes. — DK Eyewitness

This country-French jewel made headlines when feeding Bill Clinton back in 2000 but thankfully it hasn’t coasted on its fame since. — Lonely Planet

Dishes are hearty and seasonal—think herb-crusted noisette of lamb with mashed potatoes and creamed chanterelles. — Travel + Leisure

A mature Alsatian restaurant that pioneered the Kollwitzplatz scene in the 1990s. The food is refined but filling, the service formal but friendly, and the furnishings are comfortably worn in. — Time Out

This high-profile establishment is the only restaurant in Berlin with two Michelin stars. — DK Eyewitness

Holder of two Michelin stars since 2008, Christian Lohse's mastery of the technical aspects of his art is now firmly established. — Michelin Guide

Christian Lohse's cooking, which specializes in fish and seafood, somehow manages to exceed the setting's refinement. — Concierge

Even those shunning hotel restaurants on principle must concede that Christian Lohse has earned his two Michelin stars by jazzing up superb fish, meat and seafood into a carnival of flavours. — Lonely Planet

Housed in the luxe Regent Hotel, Fischers Fritz is a redoubt of old-fashioned plush, wood paneling, and hushed voices. — Condé Nast Traveler

The plump all-beef patties are top-notch and best paired with fries and home-made dips such as peanut and mango curry. — Lonely Planet

Cult burger joint in a converted old Prussian public toilets, by the elevated underground station at Schlesisches Tor, serving fresh and delicious burgers. — Rough Guide

Berliners claim their beloved Burgermeister, under the arches of the U-Bahn station at Schlesisches Tor, makes the best burgers in Berlin. — Frommer's

It's now one of Berlin's most popular burger joints, perfect for late-night bites on the way to or from Kreuzberg's countless haunts. — BlackBook

The menu is old-fashioned, mainly limited to good, hearty fare in the best of the Grandmother Berlin tradition of staples. — Frommer's

Despite the restaurant's notoriety, service in the small dining rooms is friendly if not always efficient, and the kitchen turns out solid, tasty Berliner favorites. — Concierge

Oozing folksy Old Berlin charm, this rustic eatery has been an enduring hit since 1621 and has fed everyone from Napoleon to Beethoven to Angela Merkel. — Lonely Planet

The restaurant is cozy, and while the service is always friendly it can sometimes feel a bit erratic. — Fodor's

Berlin’s oldest Kneipe, with a wonderfully old-fashioned interior, including a classic tiled oven, and a great beer garden. — Rough Guide

Few things are more essentially Berlin than gobbling up one of these with a big side order of pommes frites with a dollop of mayonnaise and a beer. — Concierge

The Currywurst is justly famous at this venerable sausage stand, which has been under the same family management since 1930. — Time Out

Pommes and Wurst served from a pre-fab cabin beneath the S-Bahn lines since 1930; surviving fascism, communism and World War II. — Rough Guide

Brave the inevitable queue for great Currywurst from one of the city’s cult sausage kitchens, now in shiny new glass digs but in the same historic spot since 1930. — Lonely Planet

Under the tracks of the elevated U2 subway line is Berlin's most beloved sausage stand. — Fodor's