I am back to report on the rest of the restaurants from my jaunt through Berlin a couple of weeks ago.
The night I arrived, I was a little jet-lagged so I deferred to my new friends and colleagues with respect to what they wanted to have for dinner which was "Restaurant China City" near their hotel. It was definitely not high-end Chinese, but they had a HUGE menu with all the offerings that you would expect and it was very casual and inexpensive! They also had the biggest ice cream sundae that I have ever seen for dessert which my friend finished right down to the last lick! If you want to kick-back with no pressure, this place fits the bill. Beware that you may encounter a few difficulties with the Chinese servers who speak German and presumably Chinese, but no English though I guess you can't fault someone who already speaks 2 languages!
"Moreno Carusi" was a hidden gem serving up good Italian food with good service and it was tucked away in such close proximity to my hotel that I went twice during my stay. It is small with seating capacity probably less than 100 people so I would recommend a reservation if possible- it was totally full both nights I was there. As a starter, the Bufala Caprese (Mozzarella and Tomato) was wonderfully fresh- the cheese practically melts in your mouth. I also give high marks to the Pappardelle Ragu (with meat sauce) and the Canneloni as main courses. A bottle of the white Gavi de Gavi was very enjoyable and easy to drink. Desserts were also shared and enjoyed by everyone at our table- the creme brulee was very good and so was the tirimisu.
I LOVED the bustling atmosphere of "Il Calice"and we were a lively group so it was a perfect fit. Even late at night this fooderie was hopping! They have a very extensive wine list and we had a great bottle of red, but sadly I don't know which one it was- sorry! I was very excited to see oysters on the menu which is what I had to start and they were fab. For the main course, I along with some others had the risotto with shrimp (the biggest singular shrimp I have ever seen laid across the top of the risotto). Maybe we were just hungry, but plates that started with risotto were licked clean. We had a few vegetarians (no meat AND no fish) among our group and I must say that the restaurant was pretty accommodating considering they did not really have many (or any?) straight-forward vegetarian dishes- after some needed translations, they did make a pasta dish with red sauce with an assortment of veggies which seemed to be well received at our table as well. I would highly recommend giving it a try, especially if you are a wine lover.
Last, and in this case least, was Restaurant Maxwell. Those of you have read Foodie Favorites before know that I normally don't include places in my postings that I did not like but I have to make an exception here for a couple of reasons...As we walked up to the restaurant, it is set back from the road, almost through an alley and when it suddenly appears, it is a breathtaking sight. The building dates back to 1893 and was once the sight of the Josty brewery. (picture at left) The building and courtyard are beautiful and apparently they serve dinner outside when the weather permits. I for one was excited by the initial ambiance and atmosphere which were totally different from anywhere we had been thus far. To say it went downhill from there would be an understatement. The service was beyond terrible- to give just a few examples (and there were many)- the wine wasn't served for about 3o minutes from when we ordered (and the wine that was recommended was not great), we waited well over an hour and a half between our appetizers and main course to be served and until the entree plates finally reached the table, we were told every 1o minutes that it would be out in 5 minutes, there was "apparently" no manager on duty on a Saturday night and the restaurant did nothing for us considering the long delays and overall poor treatment. (plus, I had the tomato cannelloni which I didn't really care for, though others had it and seemed to enjoy)
I decided to still include the restaurant however because of the beautiful setting, the fact that the restaurant apparently comes highly recommended (The Ritz Carlton sent us there) and has a loyal fan following AND there was one dessert that the chairman of our company somehow knew would be FABULOUS and ordered 1 for everyone at the table (after joking of course that we wanted to receive it the same night...maybe he wasn't joking?). If you do decide to give it a try, you may want to make sure they are fully staffed the night you are going and that there are no special events because from our experience the kitchen can't handle it AND you MUST have the Walnut Ice cream Brittle Lolly with Apple Wan Tan and Cranberries. You'll be glad you did!
Happy trails,
Foodie
Restaurant China City
Leipziger StraBe 46
Berlin
Phone: +49 30 20 45 38 02
Website: www.china-city.eu
Moreno Carusi
Leipziger Platz 15
Berlin
Phone: +49 30 224 881 56
Website: www.morenocarusi.com
Il Calice
Walter-Benjamin Platz 4
Berlin-Charlottenburg
Phone: +49 30 324 2308
website: www.enoiteca-il-calice.de
Maxwell
BergstraBe 22
Berlin
Phone: +49 30 280 71 21
Website: www.mxwl.de
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