photo: Birgit & Bier.
Despite many different efforts and many alternative concepts, it’s the Berlin club scene that is probably suffering the most from Berlin’s cultural landscape during the pandemic as the majority of the places have been locked down now for over a year. While their future is in the balance and a re-opening for indoor partying is not really inside, at least a political movement has managed that they are recognized as places of culture which makes a big difference for them when it comes to taxes and funding.
But the Berlin nightlife scene has always been inventive, so pretty much like last year after the first lockdown where the few clubs that have the luxury of an outdoor area came up with alternative usage concepts such as beer gardens to be able to partially re-open over the summer, the same thing is happening right now with the first clubs already open again for guests.
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by Frank | Jun 1, 2021 | Clubs, Pandemic, Party
As far as sustainability goes, we’re super lucky to be living in Berlin. I’m reminded of this every time I speak to friends and family back home. Often marketed as trendy, time-consuming, and expensive, a lot of people assume you have to completely overhaul your lifestyle to be more sustainable…but that’s simply not true. Being more sustainable is about figuring out what you use the most, and then finding a way to get those same products in a way that doesn’t have such a negative impact on our planet.
There are some fantastic unpackaged stores to choose from in Berlin that not only enable us to support local businesses and encourage innovation but also give us the power to refuse — to send a clear message that we don’t want our products wrapped in plastic. And because we live in Berlin, we can achieve this without too much extra effort on our part, and without breaking the bank.
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by Guest Author | Apr 10, 2021 | Charlottenburg, Kreuzberg, Neukölln, Prenzlauer Berg, Schöneberg, Shops
Completely unrelated to the ongoing pandemic, the beloved Neukölln club Griessmuehle had to close down a year ago for reasons you can read up about here. It was a blow to the nightlife scene of Berlin as it stood for the worrying recent city developments of Berlin and the ongoing club closings we’ve witnessed now for a decade and more. The city is full of night clubs but oddly the popular district of Neukölln doesn’t really have that many, so it was a major loss for the party kids of the neighborhood.
Luckily, the club makers of Griessmuehle could move their outstanding programming to Alte Münze last year and also found a new location in Schöneweide at the Revier Südost. But with the permission for outdoor raves coming relatively late last summer, there was not much raving to happening.
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by Frank | Mar 15, 2021 | Clubs, Party
La Case Paulette. photo: Vitaly Soroka.
Celebrating and empowering Black communities should not just be limited to Black History month, but this is a good time for us to reflect on how we as individuals can help dismantle institutionalized racism in the spaces we occupy.
To keep the conversations surrounding the Black Lives Matter movement from 2020 alive, it’s important to continue to do our part in uplifting BIPOC communities going forward. One way you can do so from your own home is by supporting Black-owned businesses and donating to community organizations. Needless to say, any contribution is particularly valuable during these times due to the negative financial impact of the ongoing pandemic.
To get you started, here is our curated list of Black-owned shops, restaurants, and organizations for you to get to know. Make a donation, share their pages on your social networks, enjoy a delicious takeaway meal or find your next favorite clothing item from our guide below.
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by Aisha | Feb 26, 2021 | Kreuzberg, People, Prenzlauer Berg, Restaurants, Schöneberg, Shops, Top Guides
Berliners love to recycle. We love a factory-converted-club or just getting that Pfandbon from all the bottles from last weekend. Well, this summer Berlin is recycling another event space rife with the memories of parties past. Built over 200 years ago and once called the “Sanssouci of the East,” the ZENNER House was one of the go-to spots for party animals of the 1800s. The Villa was home to celebrations such as the Stralauer Fischung one of the city’s wildest festivals, which was banned in 1873. The ZENNER is scheduled to open a 1,500 seat Biergarten on the banks of the Spree in Treptower Park this May under the management of Sebastian Heil and Tony Ettelt, previous operators of two already well-renowned Berlin venues: Salon Zur Wilde Renate and Else.
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by Adri | Feb 19, 2021 | Bars
Having lived in Schöneberg for the past eight years, I consider myself an expert on my Kiez. I always claim that it’s the best place to live in Berlin, not just because of the omnipresent Gasometer or the best döner ever (Ruyäm Gemüse Kebab, but that’s a story for another time) but also because we have awesome open-air markets. Everyone is always raging about Mauerpark or the flea market at Boxi on Sundays but let me tell you a little secret, Schöneberg has the best markets in all of Berlin. The Schöneberg markets might be a little less trendy than their East Berlin neighbors but they also boast some of the best prices in the city–sounds kinda similar to the housing market, right? And with Corona being an airborne disease, open-air markets are a better option for your weekly groceries than supermarkets. Here are my three favorites:
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by Adri | Feb 2, 2021 | Market, Schöneberg
With most places closed during these months, there is really very little we can do these days, not even going shopping. It’s been an interesting time for us not really being able to give you the guides we are used to compiling. But there is one last type of place that has not yet closed during the lockdown: Book shops! We already have a guide about book shops, but we noticed some places have closed and some are new, so it’s time for a new one!
With the rise of the digital and our attention span shrinking by the minute, it’s actually a miracle that so many cool book shops still exist and have not been killed by online mega shops. We’re glad that there are so many people out there still appreciating physical books and we hope it stays like that. Berlin has a lot to offer in terms of book shops, from big to small, from mixed to super-specialized. We picked some of our favorite book shops that offer a variety of different books. We hope they give you a place to head out to when you wanna leave your house for a change. Happy reading!
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by Frank | Jan 26, 2021 | Charlottenburg, Friedrichshain, Kreuzberg, Mitte, Neukölln, Shops
BBR / photo: Thomas Bruns.
Those of you who have been in Berlin for more than a minute might remember that we actually had an equivalent to New York’s famous MoMA not too long ago but it somehow vanished behind a construction fence in what feels like ages ago. I’m talking about the Neue Nationalgalerie on Potsdamer Straße down the street from the Philharmonic and the Kulturforum.
The famous museum had been Berlin’s main exhibition space for Modern Art for almost 50 years until it had to close back in 2014 because of the growing pains of the building. The building from the late 60s is one of Berlin’s architectural icons, designed by former Bauhaus director Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. It’s actually the last building he designed in Europe.
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by Frank | Jan 12, 2021 | Art, Galleries, Tiergarten
photo: Benedict Berlin.
There’s nothing better than waking up, walking out the door and sitting down for a delicious breakfast, usually with a mimosa in hand, in one of Berlin’s many cafes. But with lockdown 2.0 extended at least until January 10th, it’ll be a while until we can meet up for breakfast again. To cure your cravings for eggs benny, pancakes, bacon and hot coffee we’ve compiled this list of breakfast spots that are offering take away during the pandemic.
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by Adri | Dec 4, 2020 | Cafés
photo: KitKatClub.
According to a Facebook and Instagram post, the legendary Berlin fetish club KitKat will be offering rapid corona tests starting this Friday the 4th of December for only 25 euros. Rapid corona tests are basically impossible to get in Berlin and COVID tests usually cost around 150 euros. In line with the club’s hedonistic reputation, the post asked guests to “come naked and wild,” but quickly amended that admitting that although it would be funny, a line of naked people around the block would probably lead to legal action against the club because of suspected illegal parties. The post indicated that KitKat thought rapid tests would be extremely important for the reopening of nightlife despite a vaccine on the horizon. All the tests will be administered by medical professionals.
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by Adri | Dec 1, 2020 | Clubs
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