The Bounty of Berlin: Where Art, Culture, and Food Reign Supreme
Germany’s world class capital Berlin is one where a visitor could easily spend weeks without experiencing all it has to offer. However, if you only have a few days to explore this city replete with history front and center, arts and culture to satisfy every taste, and dining to make a formidable foodie pleasurably swoon, you will leave knowing it’s only a matter of time before you return.
The Bed
Indubitably, Berlin’s most enviable address is Hotel Adlon Kempinski Berlin. Located 100-feet from Pariser Platz, Brandenburg Gate, and the U.S. Embassy, it’s also walkable to a multitude of other important places of interest. Plus, a U-Bahn stop 30-feet away puts all of Berlin easily at your fingertips.
Originally built in 1907 by Lorenz Adlon with Kaiser Wilhelm II’s support, it was the focal point of high society. Though withstanding both World Wars and bearing witness to Germany’s remarkable history, the Adlon burned down in 1945. Reopening in 1997 to critical acclaim, no expense was spared and proudly stands in elegant homage to its vibrant past while providing guests with impeccable service and every imaginable amenity. One could easily argue if that a hotel possessed family, then the Adlon is Berlin’s rightly favored son.
A total of 386 rooms and suites range from 350-square feet to the 1,850-square foot presidential suite. Regal hallways have travertine and granite tiles, gold ceilings, marble tables, and period furnishings.
Staying in a Pariser Platz Junior Suite, it contained a spacious 800-square feet. The large foyer had gleaming hardwood floors providing luxurious entry to a large living room with seating for four and a flatscreen television accented by exquisite Classicist, multi-hued wood furnishings. The comfortable working desk would have enabled great output, but happily it was impossible to concentrate since the enormous picture window faced Brandenburg Gate and the social activity at Pariser Platz. Another corner sitting area had a small library of books and luxury magazines.
The massive bedroom had another sitting area, king-size bed with enveloping bedding, another flatscreen TV, and a stocked mini bar. A separate morning station had both a Nespresso machine and kettle, and yet another inspiring Brandenburg-facing seating area.
The black granite and cherry wood dual-vanity bathroom was enhanced by a gold ceiling. It boasted a seated make-up table and light-up mirror, large soaking bathtub, separate walk-in shower with both rain and Euro shower heads, and Salvatore Ferragamo amenities.
The Lobby Bar was a lively spot for afternoon tea or cocktails with contemporary music daily. For cigar lovers, the lobby’s Elephant Bar possesses a club-like feel and full selection of spirits and liqueurs to enjoy with a Montecristo or Cohiba.
Adlon’s large Fitness Center has state-of-the-art TechnoGym equipment and free weights. If you’d rather float, swim or sweat, there’s an inviting indoor heated pool, jacuzzi, steam, and sauna. The shopping arcade includes a Krigler Parfumerie and Juweliere Leicht for those facing an urgent need for the perfect Rolex or an exquisite custom piece of jaw dropping jewelry.
The Meals
No small wonder Michelin Guide has named Berlin Germany’s gourmet capital. If food floats your boat, you’ll be in nourishment Nirvana.
Breakfast at Adlon is a destination unto itself where one could pass hours enjoying among other delights, truffle brie and marinated, roasted pumpkin, then swear off eating altogether – until the next meal. There’s every imaginable item you’d expect at an elegant buffet, but also local specialties and the all-important champagne and caviar bar with all trimmings.
In Berlin’s Charlottenburg, Prism Restaurant is where fine European dining marries Levantine-inspired cuisine in an understated atmosphere by talented chef/owner Gal Ben-Moshe. Sheep milk panna cotta under an umbrella of smoky, slightly sweet eggplant puree bolstered by a delectable two-bite goat cheese beignet had me wanting more. Then beef tartar was served in a crispy charcoal shell.
After a refreshing salad with almonds and a drop of buttermilk, Hokkaido scallops with yellow dates was followed by marvelous stone Bass with lightly fried mussels in Kaffir lime sauce. The suckling lamb with Nduja made me want to move to Calabria while the rib eye engaged in tastebud kisses. Pumpkin sorbet with shaved truffles is what dreams are made of, and the meal ended with an olive parfait and mandarin sorbet.
For an inspired evening with beautiful presentation on Limoges porcelain, Michelin-starred Lorenz Adlon Esszimmer is where wunderkind Chef Reto Brändli creates Louvre-worthy edible art served in one of two elegant rooms. One has leather bound books and frescoed ceilings, while the other overlooks Brandenburg Gate, “guarded” by a reproductive copper bust of Wilhelm II.
Since decision making was impossible, I had the wine-paired tasting menu. Over three hours I enjoyed perfectly matched wines and delectables nearly too beautiful to eat, such as spiny lobster tartar, beef tartar with white caviar, and egg yolk topped with Kaluga caviar. The organic duck liver terrine with beet root compote and Felchlin chocolate was heavenly, while the Portuguese deep-sea prawns with Thai mango and salted coconut ice cream was a masterful concerto. The John Dory with kombu seaweed, Breton turbot with green apple gel, and lacquered duck were all transcendent.
For some authentic Berlin comfort cuisine, Clärchens Ballhaus’ Luna d’Oro fit the bill perfectly. In the original 20th-century dancehall – there is still dancing, but now it’s upstairs – beef tartar shaped like a hedgehog and decorated with cucumber spines was reminiscent of the days when beef was scarce and locals used other meat items, especially pork. Sausages with mustard and horseradish reminded me of why I like Germany and the meatballs atop potato purée tasted just like granny used to make them, if your granny hailed from Dresden.
The Finds
Whether it’s your first or repeat visit to Berlin, you’ll want to spend some time at Tiergarten, the 510-acre park with its lakes, hiking paths, and monuments including the Victory Column, the Roma Memorial, and Bellevue Palace – home to the German President. Nearby, the Reichstag – perhaps Germany’s most recognizable structure with its recognizable massive dome designed by Norman Foster – is home to its parliament. The building serves as a beacon to freedom that was built atop the location where Nazis once rose to power. A 10-minute walk away is the dramatic European Jewish Memorial designed by American architect Peter Eisenman. Containing over 2,700 coffin-like concrete slabs, it commemorates the Holocaust’s six million Jewish victims.
In Berlin’s Kreuzberg is the famous Checkpoint Charlie, now perhaps more surreal as its currently flanked by KFC on the left and McDonalds on the right. Here the Kalter Kreig Multimedia Blackbox Exhibition has media stations, film clips, and photographs from the Cold War.
When the wall came down in 1989, nearly a mile remained in Friedrichshain. International artists painted over 100 murals on this cement canvas becoming the world’s longest open-air gallery known as the East-Side Gallery.
Berlin’s Jewish Museum designed by Daniel Libeskind is certainly one of the world’s most emotionally charged architectural structures ever built. It has uneven pathways, geometrically sliced windows, oddly shaped rooms, destabilizing angled historical statements overhead, curved chain link exhibitions, abstract stainless-steel walls, and intermittent plexiglass floors. In this environment, the history, contributions, tribulations, and suffering of Jews in Germany and the diaspora provide discomforting, yet important sensations often paralleling the current existential political and emotional experience in the world post-October 7th.
A pleasant stroll from the Adlon is Museum Island where you could easily spend a week. There’s the New Museum where Nefertiti is resting comfortably, Pergamon Museum for classical antiquities, the Old National Gallery with 19th century paintings and sculptures, and the German History Museum that until November 1, 2026, has an enlightening exhibition on ‘Turning points in German history from 1849 to 1989,’ reflective of how differently the course of history could have been had other choices been made. As Berlin is home to over 170 museums, sometimes a coin flip is mandated.
Museum Island’s backdrop is the imposing Berlin Cathedral built by architect Julius Raschdorff in Italian high Renaissance style between 1894 and 1905 during Wilhelm II’s reign. Its restoration was finally completed in 2002 following the 1944 firebomb damage. It includes three parts: the main church, the marriage and baptism chapel, and memorial church. The latter includes the Hohenzollern family crypt constructed of metal, wood, and stone. It contains 94 members and 500 years of Brandenburg-Prussian funerary culture and will reopen in August 2025. For one of the city’s best views, climb the 267-steps to the top of the Dom.
If seeking the old or unusual, Berlin’s largest Sunday flea market is Mauerpark in Berlin’s Preslauer Berg. However, if you need a Saturday fix, head to Strasse des 17 Juni 100, right behind Tiergarten’s Victory Memorial, where porcelain, crystal, and various other attic and basement treasures abound. For newer items, there’s Kunst Markt am Zeughaus with original art, handmade jewelry, and clothing in an alleyway near Berlin Cathedral. Also, Hackescher Markt right outside the S-Bahn station in nearby Mitte, has up-and-coming designer shops, newer labels, cool cafés, and hip restaurants.
For a calming urban escape, Adlon Spa by Resence is a modern, peaceful haven of towering marble walls and treatment rooms designed to instill calm. Here an excellent massage in an elegant, Zen-inspired atmosphere nearly caused me to forget my name.
The Lessons Learned
Whether you visit Berlin to bear witness to history, enjoy top-notch hospitality, remarkable gastronomy by culinary leaders, or delight in opera, concerts, or museums, by far the best address in Berlin is the Hotel Adlon Kempinski. Indeed, the most difficult daily dilemma will be what time to depart this wonderful hotel, that much like Berlin, has it all.
Julie L. Kessler is a journalist, attorney, and the author of the award-winning memoir: “Fifty-Fifty, The Clarity of Hindsight.” Her work has appeared in several major publications around the world, including The LA Times, The SF Examiner, The Asia Times, U.S. News & World Report, The Jerusalem Post, The Vancouver Courier, The Daily Journal and The Honolulu Star-Advertiser, among many others. She can be reached at Julie@VagabondLawyer.com.
