Going out
Bars and pubs in Berlin: three evenings, three worlds
A Berlin evening rarely starts in a club. It starts at a bar counter, and which one says a lot about the night ahead. Here are three places the publisher likes to visit himself: a corner pub from 1920, a cocktail bar styled on the 1920s and 1930s, and a corner bar where DJs play on two floors at weekends.
Well-kept beer Kuchel Eck on Ludwigkirchplatz, daily from noon
Cocktails Salut! Classic Bar on Goltzstraße, daily from 6 pm
Dancing Promenaden Eck in the Schillerkiez, evenings from 7 pm
The corner pub: a piece of Berlin that is shrinking
According to the hospitality association Dehoga, the number of drinking establishments in Berlin, which includes pubs, bars, clubs and dance venues, fell from 3,302 in 2021 to 2,363 in 2023. All the better when an old pub reopens or a few people take one over that would otherwise have disappeared. Two of the three places below have exactly that kind of story.
Signature · personally recommended by Daniel
01 Kuchel Eck · Wilmersdorf
about 8 minutes on foot from Hohenzollernplatz U-Bahn station
Directions in Google Maps · Official site
For me, a very well-kept place to go and have a well-kept beer.
Daniel
The pub at Ludwigkirchplatz 1 was opened in 1920 by the Kuchel family, according to the operator, and later run by the Drewes family. Since May 2026 it has been run by restaurateur Josef Laggner, whose group also includes Lutter & Wegner. On tap there is Engelhardt’s Charlottenburger Pilsener, König Pilsener and Augustiner, with Berlin and German food such as schnitzel, sauerbraten and currywurst. It opens daily at noon, the kitchen serves hot food until 9:30 pm, and tables are booked by phone. The square around the Ludwigkirche is one of the quietest corners of the western city centre; in Where to stay in Berlin we recommend it as quiet yet central.
Signature · personally recommended by Daniel
02 Salut! Classic Bar · Schöneberg
about 4 minutes on foot from Eisenacher Straße U-Bahn station
Directions in Google Maps · Official site
A great bar with delicious cocktails.
Daniel
At Goltzstraße 7 in the Winterfeldtkiez, Salut! Classic Bar has been mixing classic and modern cocktails since around 2007, in a room styled on the 1920s and 1930s. It opens daily at 6 pm and closes at 1 am Sunday to Wednesday, 1:30 am on Thursdays and 2:30 am on Fridays and Saturdays. According to the bar, you can book by phone from 5 pm, and groups of up to eight should call ahead. There are smoking areas and now also a non-smoking area. On the first Sunday of each month the bar runs an afternoon cocktail course. If you come on a Wednesday or Saturday, start the evening with a stroll through the Winterfeldtmarkt round the corner.
Signature · personally recommended by Daniel
03 Promenaden Eck · Neukölln
about 9 minutes on foot from Boddinstraße U-Bahn station
I really liked it: there is music, and there are two dance floors.
Daniel
A corner bar at Schillerpromenade 11 in the Schillerkiez, a few streets from Tempelhofer Feld. According to the Berliner Zeitung, four people have run it alongside their day jobs since December 2025. In the evenings DJs play, mostly Berlin-based, from house to techno; according to event listings there is one floor on weekdays and two at weekends. There are cocktails and ping-pong tables too. According to event platforms, entry is free or cheap, and doors open at 7 pm. If you want to reserve a corner, the bar says you must be at least 23. The right place if you want to dance without queueing at a club door. More in Clubs in Berlin.
Good to know
- No closing time: Berlin has no general closing time; the landlord decides how long the bar stays open.
- Smoking: In some Berlin bars people smoke indoors. If you do not like that, ask for a non-smoking area.
- Cash: Many pubs take cards, small corner pubs not always. Carrying some cash does no harm.
- Tipping: At the counter people usually round up; at a table about five to ten percent is common. More on local customs in Berlin for beginners.