THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. | SATURDAY/SUNDAY • OCTOBER 16-17, 2010 | D3
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ADVENTURE & TRAVEL
JOURNAL CONCIERGE: AN INSIDER’S GUIDE
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BERLIN
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THE NEW GERMAN
EXPRESSIONISM
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BERLIN IS ELECTRIC. Two decades after the fall of the Wall, its aftershocks
still reverberate through every avant-garde gallery and underground club.
While the ghosts of Hitler and Stalin linger in the city’s architectural bones,
Berlin’s young generation has chosen to transform the past into something liberating. Everywhere, particularly in the fashionable Mitte district, former fortresses to fascism now shelter art galleries, museums and bars.
There are more than 500 galleries in the city—including cool new “pop-up”
art spaces—and plenty of chic new boutique hotels, including the Amano, the
Casa Camper and the party-friendly Soho House that has decamped in the former East German Communist headquarters. In the past month alone, a halfdozen notable fashion boutiques opened in Berlin, among them Pastpresent, an
arty concept store selling vintage finds and Berlin buzz brands like Sleep is
Commercial and 24/7 Suits.
Berlin’s creative boom rivals even the smoky jazz club and flirty-flapper cabaret heyday of the early 1920s Weimar Republic. But while the city that embraced the rule-breaking Bauhaus movement may have found a new role as the
unofficial art capital of Europe, it’s nothing like Paris or New York: No one teeters around its cobblestone streets in high heels, no one asks what anyone else
does for a living or how much they make doing it.
Art collector or starving artist, you spend your days navigating Berlin by bicycle and your nights gliding in and out of parties without lines and insider-y
night spots (like the unmarked Tausend, hidden under an overpass). The Berlin
party scene is not for the faint of heart, often wrapping up at 5 a.m.
A laid-back feeling hangs over weekends in Berlin, which consist of sleeping late and poking around the flea markets. The weekday social calendar, a
shuffle of gallery openings and late-night DJ sessions, makes a visitor wonder if anyone in Berlin ever works. In fact, Berliners are on double duty:
Their devotion to sustaining the city’s creative life is matched by a determination to live it too.
—Monica Khemsurov
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 See more photos of an
insider’s Berlin at WSJ.com/
Travel.
Laurent Burst for The Wall Street Journal
The Heiress
Vanessa
Von Bismarck
Co-founder of fashion PR
company BCPM, descendent of German chancellor
Otto von Bismarck.
Gossip Central: 6 Borchardt. This French­German
bistro is Berlin’s version of Michael’s in New York.
The social crew dines here, and so do artists and
international actors. It’s what Berlin is becoming.
Französische Str. 47, borchardt­catering.de
The Sartorialist
Philipp Wolff
The Connoisseur
Olivier Berggruen
The Innkeeper
Nick Jones
Vice President of
Communications at
Hugo Boss.
Author of “Picasso and
the Theater”; art curator;
board member of Museum
Berggruen.
Founder, SoHo House clubs
and hotels, Berlin, New
York, Los Angeles; world
traveler.
Seconds­Hand Store: 8 Uhren Bischoff. Despite
the hundreds of tick­tocks you hear when walking
into this antique watch and clock repair shop, it’s as
if time has stopped there. They sell vintage Rolexes
and forgotten brands. Pestalozzi Str. 54, uhren­bis­
choff.de
Designer Couture: The Corner. It’s a three­level
mini­department store co­created by Joseph Voelk,
who’s setting the tone for German fashion. Voelk
was buying Proenza Schouler when no one in Ger­
many had heard of them. It’s the Berlin store that
gets what’s going on in Paris, Milan and New York.
Französische Str. 40, thecornerberlin.de
Luxe Lair: 4 Quartier 206. This department store
carries Berlin’s finest womenswear, and also has a
wonderful men’s shirt department. You can buy
China, jeans, books, even flowers there, or have a
tea and cake in the café. Friedrich Str. 71,
quartier206.com
Supper Club: The Shy Chef. This place is thrilling
because you’re actually dining in a circa 1888 pri­
vate residence. It’s high­end, pan­European cooking,
a five­course meal. Underground supper clubs are a
bit of a Berlin trend now. theshychef.wordpress.com
Hot Label: 5 C’est Tout. Few of Berlin’s young de­
signers have their own stores, but this newcomer
has two. It’s well made but not too formal—mostly
jersey and good flows to the cuts. Mulack Str. 26,
cesttout.de
Girly Things: Blush. This lingerie boutique in Mitte
carries high­end labels like La Perla and Eres. It’s
fun to go there with a girlfriend, even make a day
of it, playing dress up. Rosa Luxemburg Str. 22,
blush­berlin.com
Arts & Crafts: 2 KPM. This shop and showroom
is expensive but sells small things like egg cups and
figurines. The style is traditional and understated,
but that counts as “modern” these days. Wegely
Str. 1, en.kpm­berlin.com
One­Stop Shop: Andreas Murkudis. A concept
store focused on avant­garde designers and new
German lines, the place has a distinct collection of
casual wear and home accessories. Münzstrasse 21,
1 und 2 Hof, andreasmurkudis.net
Place to Get Lit: 7 Do You Read Me. This periodi­
cals shop is a must for finding obscure or rare pub­
lications. And the shop’s signature tote bags have
become a stylish accessory on nearly every Ber­
liner’s arm. Auguststrasse 28, doyoureadme.de
Tiny Treasure: 3 Showroom Céline und Heiner
Bastian. Bastian was very close to Joseph Beuys,
Cy Twombly and the filmmaker Wim Wenders and it
shows in the contemporary art gallery’s selections.
Am Kupfergraben 10
Artists­“Inn”­Residence: 9 Askanischer Hof. The
late photographer Helmut Newton always stayed at
this charming little hotel when he visited Berlin. It
only has 16 rooms, but each one is different. The
1920s décor is filled with chintz, old sofas and
books. Kurfürstendamm 53, askanischer­hof.de
Gallery That Could: Nice And Fit. This conceptual
art gallery is not one of those big, slick galleries. It’s
relaxed and it represents Whitney Biennial contend­
ers. Brunnen Str. 13, niceandfitgallery.com
Art Au Naturel: Villa Schöningen. The 165­year­
old building has been a contemporary museum
since 2007. There’s a lovely sculpture garden in the
back of the villa. Berliner Str. 86, villa­schoenin­
gen.de
Verboten No More: The Boros Collection. This
bunker’s 1942 construction was overseen by Hitler’s
architect Albert Speer. The former banana ware­
house now houses Christian Boros’s private art col­
lection. It includes artists like Anselm Reyle, Olafur
Eliasson and Damien Hirst and is open to the pub­
lic. Reinhardt Str. 20, sammlung­boros.de
Best Budget Hotel: The Circus Hotel. This arty
boutique hotel near Mitte caters to young artists on
budgets. The décor is spare, with platform floor
beds and colorful walls. Its sister hostel across the
street has a basement speakeasy with weekend ka­
raoke. Rosenthaler Str. 1, circus­berlin.net
Watering Hole: Paris Bar. This Charlottenburg bis­
tro is a post­war classic. Its red walls are covered in
old and new art, as well as paparazzi shots of ac­
tors and famous artists who’ve drank there. Kant­
strasse 152, parisbar.de
Model Sighting: 1 Chipps. This corner bistro and
bar opened to big buzz this spring from the man
behind the legendary Berlin club Cookies. It pulls in
a hot, young crowd that doesn’t mind the fact that
it’s in a weird district of Mitte, where office build­
ings and posh townhouses share space. Jäger Str.
35, chipps.eu
Best Dive: Badeschiff. This floating public swim­
ming pool, which hovers over the River Spree, was
created out of a ship hull. Deejays play at night, and
there’s a bar too. Eichen Str. 4, arena­berlin.de/ba­
deschiff.aspx
Ultimate Scene: Grill Royal. The it­restaurant of
Berlin right now. Broke or rich, if you’re cool, you’re
there—so long as you know how to dress and talk.
Friedrich Str. 105b, grillroyal.com