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Charlottenburg's nightlife centers around Kantstrasse, where some of Berlin's best performing arts venues are located. You'll find comfortable lounges popular with tourists and older crowds—it's much more relaxed than the more frenzied nightlife farther east.
A-Trane in West Berlin has hosted countless greats throughout the years, including Herbie Hancock and Wynton Marsalis. Numerous free events make it a good place to see jazz on a budget.
Fashionable locals flock to this swanky cocktail bar in the Hotel Zoo—both to its ground-floor, speakeasy-style space and in warmer weather, to the rooftop terrace. The drinks list leans toward the light and fruity, with signature cocktails that artfully fuse South American and Asian flavors. Dress to impress, especially on Gracy Thursdays, when DJs spin house music.
To get to Quasimodo, the most established and popular jazz venue in the city, you'll need to descend a small staircase to the basement of the Theater des Westens. Despite its college-town pub feel, the club has hosted many Berlin and international greats. Seats are few, but there's plenty of standing room in the front.
This cocktail bar, which bills itself as the oldest in Berlin (it opened in 1975), may have the right to be a bit snooty: there is only room for around 30 people, and if they're full you'll be waiting outside in the cold. But inside, the bar is classic and cozy, with built-in shelves for spirits, and every patron has a front-row seat to the bartenders' show. The drinks, too, are worth the wait—just don't let the bartender catch you showing ignorance about alcohol or, God forbid, treating your cocktail as anything less than a work of art.
