Hackbarth Cafe, Mitte

Away from the touristy Hackescher Market area is the unassuming Hackbarth Cafe, nestled on the gallery filled Auguststr. The cafe is a more similar to a Parisian cafe than a Berlin cafe by its decor inside, very typical indeed of the bohemian cafes you would see there. The service was very friendly and it was a relaxing place to hang out... the alternative music been played was also a big plus. The food on offer is a mixture of sandwiches, pastries and the best cakes in mitte, freshly baked daily. They also do a great breakfast, although a little more expensive than elsewhere but their coffee and cake are as cheap as anywhere else. They also offer soja milk in all their coffees. 

Address: Auguststr. 10  U-bahn: Hackescher / Rosenthalerstr.

Coffee: 10/10  Cake: 10/10

Sankt Oberholz, Mitte

Welcome to mac heaven, and I don't mean the food variety. This is the cafe to come to if you want to work on your laptop, free WiFi and a great place to get some work done, or pretend to do some. However its always quite busy and hard to find somewhere to plug your computer in. Its a self service cafe but the variety of sandwiches and pastries is very good and inexpensive, unfortunately the coffee is just ok, it could be a lot stronger. However maybe they do that so you will have more than one. Downstairs is a bit cool and not the area where you would hang out all day, but upstairs is much more relaxing and there is a great view of the surrounding area of Torstr. and beyond. Nice place to work but probably not a great place to meet new people as it seems most people have their heads facing computer screens.

Address: Rosenthalerstr. 72a  U-bahn: Rosenthalerstr.

Coffee: 7/10  Cake: 9/10

Dachkammer, Friedrichshain

In the middle of Simon-Dach Str is the brilliant cafe, Dachkammer. It opens all day and in the evening it turns into a great cafe/bar. It looks like a normal cafe downstairs but upstairs is completely different, its like stepping into the 40's and sitting in your grannies living room. Its very comfy and its full of vintage furniture and weird bits and pieces in lots of little rooms. At present it seems to be non smoking. Staff aren't exactly the friendliest, at times they can be up too cool for this world. But you are coming here for the great ambiance and cool surroundings and the clientele seem very friendly. They also serve great breakfasts and in the summer sitting outside is a must, in the middle of one of the coolest streets in Friedrichshain. 

Address: Simon-Dachs Str. 39  U-bahn: Frankfurter Tor

Coffee: 8/10

Lass uns freunde bleiben, Prenzlauer Berg

As the name of the cafe describes 'let us stay friends'... the name pretty much sums up the feel of this cafe, its very laid back and if you want a place to go where you can totally unwind, relax with some friends and get away from the hustle and bustle, this is the place to be. The decor is a cool shabby mix of old furniture and steel and glass with big windows. Its hard to see from the outside the name, its printed small on the glass door (maybe they are trying to keep this a secret and who could blame them). There is also a separate smoking room, so this cafe has thought of everything to suit everyone. Service is very friendly, albeit a bit slow at times, but thats Berlin at times. There is also a good mix of reading material and they also offer Soya milk for your coffee if preferred. So 'Lass uns freunde bleiben'. Very cool. They don't seem to have a huge range of food or snacks but its still a very cool cafe to hang out in and they play dead good music and not minimal house for a change but real songs.

Address: Chorinerstr. 12 U-bahn: Senefelderplatz

Coffee: 9/10 Cake: 9/10

Impala Cafe, Schoeneberg

Impala Cafe/Roastery is a fantastic cafe if you want a huge range of coffees. Its not a big cafe but in the summer the vibe here is excellent and with such a huge range of coffees, (I think they have about 20 varieties and they are all Fair Trade) you will always have a different one to choose from. Food is more pastries, muffins and brownies but they do the most amazing brownie. Impala Cafe is positioned in the busy area of Nollendorf and its a great place to sit at any time of day and people watch, especially if you can grab that sought after window seat. While its not a cafe you would sit in all day its definitely one you would come to if you are a good coffee lover.

Address: Maassenstr. 5 U-bahn: Nollendorfplatz

(There is also a second branch in Pappelalle 1)

Coffee: 10/10 Cake: 8/10

Anita Wronski, Prenzlauer Berg

Right opposite Wasserturm is the well positioned Anita Wronski cafe. You have to sit outside in the sun to really appreciate their great position on a very busy corner on Knaackstr. With all of the other cafes on their doorstep it is a kind of cafe institution in the area. Their generous breakfasts are very tasty and this is a great place to people watch. There is always a lot of activity in the vicinity with a food market on the weekends. Get there early if the sun is shining as seats are hard to come by and once sitting its hard to budge. They also have menus in English. NIce smiling waiters too.

Address: Knaackstr. 26  U-bahn: Senefelder Platz or Eberswalderstr.

Coffee: 9/10   Cake: 8/10