12 Best Restaurants in Mitte, Berlin

One of Berlin's original third-wave coffee joints, this tiny café in the heart of Mitte’s gallery district serves up superlative hand-brewed coffees (always served black) and espresso drinks with trendy add-ons like oat milk, alongside a small but tasty selection of baked goods and sandwiches. There's limited indoor seating and laptops are banned, so this is a better place to sit outside when the weather's nice or to get your coffee to go.

Known for having one of the best breakfasts in Berlin (think avocado toast and chia pudding with blueberry compote), the filtered coffee at Distrikt is far from an afterthought, with beans chosen from some of Europe's top roasteries. Tea lovers aren't left out with a fine selection from Kreuzberg's Companion Coffee & Tea, served up with a scrumptious choice of cakes.

This cozy Mitte spot has two different spaces: the bustling and sometimes drafty front room with high tables where walk-ins are seated, and a darker, more romantic back room for those who remember to reserve ahead—as you should. The short but well-thought-out menu includes small and large antipasti plates of grilled vegetables, olives, cheeses, and meats, as well as unusual pastas like a tagliatelle with crawfish in a lemon-mint sauce, or one with pine nuts and balsamic-roasted figs. Chestnut-filled ravioli with pears is a favorite in winter. The lunch menu, with an appetizer and a pasta dish for only €8.50, is a great deal, especially for the area.

By day, this is a quiet café reminiscent of a classic Viennese coffeehouse (the name means "Old Europe"), with shabby but trendy decor, and fashionable Mitte-ites chatting and paging through newspapers and magazines. At night, it turns into a comfortable but bustling neighborhood pub serving classic Berlin dishes, just crowded enough to look like a scene but never too packed.

The menu changes daily at this celebrity meeting place—the location near Gendarmenmarkt makes it a popular power lunch spot for politicians and influential people, though the food and service are not what you'd expect from the high prices. The setting is wonderful, though, with high ceilings, plush maroon benches, marble columns, and an Art Nouveau mosaic that was discovered during renovations. The cuisine is French-German and there are generally several fish dishes and oyster choices on the menu, as well as carnivore classics like veal schnitzel or beef fillet. The courtyard garden is lively in warm weather

Tucked into a courtyard behind the bflat jazz club, this elegant restaurant benefits from fresh ingredients, expert cooking, and an enticing exotic tea list. It has a lovely location; the outdoor space is adorned with paper lamps and canopies. You'll find the usual suspects, like fresh summer rolls and skewered meats with peanut sauce, but there are also some excellent original dishes, like the pickled Vietnamese eggplant and the rice "burger" with smoked tofu and lotus root. Brunch is served on the weekends.

Under the arches of the S-bahn tracks connecting Friedrichstrasse with Hauptbahnhof, Habel am Reichstag seems unassuming from outside, but inside you'll find old Berlin elegance melded with industrial chic: leather banquettes, crystal chandeliers dangling from the arched brick ceilings, and rumbling trains overhead. The no-nonsense waiters serve local classics, like lamb, Wiener schnitzel, weisser Spargel (asparagus), and Knödel (dumplings) with mushrooms and ham. There's a huge wine selection.

This beautiful, wood-paneled restaurant is spacious but almost always crowded; it's located right in the middle of the action at bustling Hackesche Höfe, and a solid place to eat German food while doing some excellent people-watching. The clientele is a fun mix of tourists and locals, which gives the place a vibrant, lively atmosphere; when the weather is good there are tables outside in the courtyard, too.

This hip Vietnamese eatery is a convenient place to meet before hitting Mitte's galleries or bars, or for a light lunch after browsing the area's popular boutiques. There are only a handful of items and daily specials to choose from, but the delicious curries, pho (noodle soup), and noodle salads keep the regulars coming back.

\n Döner kebab aficionados love this bright, casual spot for the delicious food—the fact that it's in the middle of the city and open 24 hours a day is an added bonus. The friendly staff expertly carve paper-thin slices of perfectly cooked meat from the enormous, revolving spit; if you like things spicy, ask for the red sauce.

Berlin's oldest restaurant (established in 1621) is half-hidden in a maze of medieval streets, though it's welcomed some illustrious diners over the centuries: Napoléon is said to have sat by the tile stove, and Mikhail Gorbachev sipped a beer here in 1989. The small, well-priced menu focuses on some of Berlin's most traditional specialties, including Eisbein (pork knuckle), and takes its whimsical dish titles from classic legal jargon—the national courthouse is around the corner, and the restaurant's name is a rough equivalent of the term "at the 11th hour."