Where to eat
Beef Brothers ThE wallpaper of graffiti-covered train carriages and the almost heroically hirsute staff ensure the hipster box is firmly ticked at this bijou joint.
But ignore such fripperies and concentrate on the burgers: hands down the best in the city. The Don Vito is a towering creation crammed with mozzarella, tomatoes, rocket and pesto. There’s room for veggies, too. Mains from £3.80. koeln.beef-brothers.de Jaely’s This much-loved locals’ haunt in the heart of the Ehrenfeld neighbourhood is a superb option for brunch. Parquet floors, vintage watercolour prints in antique gold frames and slow-turning ceiling
around £1.50 for a 200ml glass, which the waiter will keep replacing until you put your beer mat on top of it.
The bill, in a noble act of trust, is calculated by the waiter marking your mat with a pen every time he serves you.
Pop goes the easel
MUSEUM Ludwig punches well above its weight with the big-hitters in its permanent collection (tickets £10, museumludwig.de). Works by Pop Art masters Roy Lichtenstein and Peter Blake are here — and it even has Andy Warhol’s Brillo Boxes. It’s the biggest collection of Pop Art outside the U.S.
Bunker down
ON THE site of a former synagogue in a quiet side street in Ehrenfeld sits an almost sinister-looking metal door. This is the entrance to a hochbunker, a surviving aboveground World War II shelter.
The thick, concrete walls now house the art gallery Bunker fans make for a cool vibe. The outdoor seats are great for peoplewatching on the Venloer drag, with an accompaniment of butter chicken wraps and courgette risotto. Mains from £7.30. venloerstr.de Dank Augusta LookinG like a miniature version of London’s long-lost Crystal Palace, Dank Augusta, in the heart of the city’s botanical gardens, is usually packed with families at the weekend.
sustainability is important here, with the salads and soups all served in huge glass jars in their own reusable picnic baskets.
Try the Garden Flora, with chicken, parmesan and cashews, and the carrot and coconut soup. Mains from £4.20. dankaugusta.de k101 (admission varies, but never exceeds £5, bunkerk101.de), which hosts an array of eclectic temporary shows.
Hit the sculpture trail
A SMALL forest of stone cacti, an immense ladder that seems to lead straight into the clouds and a giant fried egg simmering on a rock — surreal surprises at every turn are assured at the outdoor Skulpturen Park (free, skulpturenparkkoeln.de/en), which features an immense convex mirror by Anish Kapoor right by the main entrance.
Fine wine on the Rhine
EVENTUALLY — though it could take some time — you may find that you don’t want a bartender to fill up your stange again. This means only one thing: it’s time to move on to the hugely underrated wines from this region.
Bacchus (weinstubebacchus. de) is a secluded bolthole with wine barrels built into the walls. Try a bottle of the zesty, dry 2017 Weissburgunder for £22.
Hellers Brauhaus
ThE back-room restaurant to this legendary brauhaus is more like a greenhouse, festooned with huge hanging baskets. But the menu is defiantly carnivorous — the local dish Himmel un Aad (heaven and earth) is a particularly lusty mountain of fried black pudding with fried potatoes, stewed onions and apple sauce. Mains from £7.50. hellers.koeln