Due work I’m going to spend a week this summer in Berlin and I have multiple questions.

First of all: How cashless is the city? Where I live (Valencia, Spain) I can count with the fingers of one hand the places that doesn’t accept ApplePay (or a contactless card).

I’m staying near the Alexanderplatz station. Any recommendations for dining there? I’m not going to eat at the hotel restaurant every nigh.

The weekdays I’m mostly being going from the hotel to conference centre and then returning to the hotel without no time to enjoy the city. So, for the weekend my idea is to visit one or two must see tourist places (like the Brandenburg gate), but also explore the city instead of following your average tourist route. Any suggestions? Like flea markets, parks, places that nerds would enjoy, real local food, etc.

Thanks.

  • chobeat@lemmy.ml
    22·
    5 days ago

    I live in Alexanderplatz and I work in food. The area is mostly tourist traps (bad ones at that, we are in Germany, not in Italy). If you want something very casual, Bahn Mi Stable is the closest decent thing from Alexanderplatz. If you want a proper sit-down restaurant try Trio (German), Soopoolim (Korean), or Pizzeria Standard on Torstr.

    Ignore completely the reviews on Google Maps or tripadvisor, they are totally unreliable.

    If you want touristic stuff, the city center is quite boring but you have a lot: museum island, branderburgertor, Gendarmenmarkt, Checkpoint charlie and all the surrounding areas. If you want something more interesting, the Soviet Memorial in Treptowerpark, Victoria Park, the various memorials in Hellensdorf. Also avoid at all costs the DDR museum, lamest waste of money you can think of. Other museums in the center are ok.

      • chobeat@lemmy.ml
        41·
        4 days ago

        It’s very poorly written anti-DDR propaganda. You must obviously expect to be fed propaganda in a museum like that, that’s the purpose, but it’s very… passive-aggressive. The tone is not very rigorous and after a few years it got pathetic because the things they use to make fun of the DDR, today would be considered middle-class privileges.

    • olof@lemmy.ml
      3·
      5 days ago

      +1 for Banh Mi Stable. I agree on most places not being worth it. I’d add Mädchenitaliener (Italian) to the list. Its small and cosy, but usually full. They have a fig pasta which I like. If you want a place with a pretty glamorous flair, check out Coccodrillo too.

  • silly goose meekah@lemmy.world
    11·
    5 days ago

    Most places that accept card also accept contactless, but there are plenty of smaller shops still not accepting anything but cash. Common offenders are street food places, spätis (little shops selling mostly drinks/alcohol and tobacco/nicotine), bakeries, ice cream shops and the likes. Bars sometimes take card, but it’s always a gamble if you don’t know. Ask before ordering, if you don’t see a sign. I think all supermarkets offer card payment.

    The only food recommendation I want to give is my favorite Döner place. I’ve shown a bunch of my friends and most say it’s the best Döner they ever had and that I’ve ruined other Döners for them by showing them that one lol. Downsides are it’s a bit expensive (8€ Döner), it’s a bit of a ride from Alexanderplatz (~45min), and they only take cash. I think it’s all well worth it. edit: Somehow forgot to mention: the place is called Golt’z Kebap.

    Absolute must see for any kind of nerd is the Technikmuseum, and the Video Game museum is also pretty neat. They have a bunch of old arcades that you can play on, and one of them has a vector based CRT screen, something I’ve never seen, being somewhat young. There’s also a mechanical keyboard shop that I’ve been meaning to visit, maybe that could be a destination if you’re into that (Geekboards). My favorite Parks are Wuhlheide, Treptower Park and Park am Gleisdreieck, in that order.

    Hope you have a nice stay! Let me know if you want to grab a beer or smoke a joint with a fellow lemming

    • ILikeTraaaains@lemmy.worldOP
      4·
      5 days ago

      Mmmm, I’ll try to go with enough cash and contact my bank regarding fees when getting cash there.

      A lot of people have already recommended to try Döner, it seems very different to the one we have here. The Döner seems too far away, but I’ll take it into account just in case.

      Just checked the Technikmuseum, added to the plan for sure.

      I’m a bit into mechanical keyboards, I’ll try to check the store.

      Thank you.

  • olof@lemmy.ml
    5·
    5 days ago

    Not a restaurant, but head over to Cafe Buchhandlung and Zosch - two bars in the area which still have the old Berlin vibes