HOTSPOTS
At BCB, keep your ears and eyes peeled for parties. That’s how I find myself at Bijou Bar at Hotel Monbijou (monbijouhotel.com), just in time for a London takeover in Berlin. This dark wood paneled hideaway in the courtyard of the hotel offers a sophisticated menu thanks to the frequent updates by the mixologists in their London flagship bar at Mimi’s Soho. On the night I visit, Marian Beke from The Gibson Bar, Sebastiano Cristofaro from The Nightjar London, Francesco Pittala and Nicola Cordini from The Rockwell Bar and Francesco Braun were rocking the place, well till closing hour. After a revamp in 2017, Velvet Bar (velvet-bar-berlin. de) has been raking in the plaudits, including Bar of the Year Germany at the Mixologu Bar Awards 2019. The weekly changing menu proves its fealty to the seasons, guided by locally available ingredients and a stripped down, minimalist approach to cocktails. Visit in winter and you might find a Christmas Tree cocktail, based on an organic fir distillate from a neighbor’s tree, combined with Mauritian rum, bianco vermouth and oloroso sherry. A little further out, but worth the effort, is Provocateur Bar, located at Provocateur Hotel (provocateur-hotel.com) which just swept the Hotel Bar of the Year and Bar Team of the Year titles at the Mixology Bar Awards 2019. Resplendent in its 1920s glamour, the bar offers plush round banquet seats as well as ample bar counter seats for admiring the selection of spirits. From long drinks like the Catwalk (Ketel One, mint, eucalyptus, honey and soda) to hedonistic desires in Bizarre (Hendricks Orbium gin, sherry, rocket and elderflower), the stylistically illustrated menu brings each to life. So hip it hurts, the new Lamm Bar (lammbar.de) in Prenzlauer Berg sports the industrial distressed look favoured by millennials, with a modern menu to match. The conceit here is lämmchen or literally, “little lamb” as each cocktail is available in normal and small sizes. The Waldorfsalat cocktail is indeed a Waldorf salad inspired long drink, comprising a very appetising milk-washed vodka, celery, apple and walnut blend. Cleverly, the bar also contains its smokers to a separate room, ensuring that non-smokers can also breathe in peace on the other side. Yes, you heard that right – bars in Berlin still allow indoor smoking, so be prepared for smoke-filled spaces and clothes that reek after a night out. If you prefer to combine your drinking and dining at the same time, try Spindler (spindler-berlin.de), one of the ultra-trendy restaurants along the Landwehrkanal in Kreuzberg. Alongside other luminary diners like Tin and Horváth, you’ll find restaurateur Frank Spindler’s opus to seasonal, regional and brasserie style cuisine, complete with an excellent bar. Braised venison, cod on pearl couscous, slow roasted pork belly on smoked beer sauce and winter veggies were some of the seasonal items at our table, washed down with a Dirty Martini and Williams Gimlet.