2 min readIt’s always a sign that you’re in the right place when your favorite local in-the-know barfly suggests meeting for a drink at your hotel. The moment I step into the dusky jewel-toned bar at Hotel Château Royal Berlin, I know why my resident friends love it. It feels like exactly the kind of place one should meet in Berlin, a city that wears its faded grandeur, scars of war and storied spycraft, of division, of the avant-garde of Weimar and the tragedies of what followed, in a way no other city can.
Filled with original contemporary art, light that slants in through Art Deco–style garnet café curtains, linen banquettes in dusty dark green, touches of dark wood, grey marble, and a glistening red neon sign outside, the hotel—comprised of two heritage-listed buildings dating back to 1890 and 1910—balances the tension of dark and light; just the right amount of louche, sans cliché. Conveniently located in Berlin’s upscale Mitte neighborhood (formerly East Berlin and close to all the noteworthy sights), it’s a gem of a boutique hotel throughout its 93 rooms, each one a slightly different twist on the tone set when you walk in, from the stellar art to the contemporary spin on 1920s-era Berlin style. Even a small room here feels special—moody drama, but not overdone. The bathroom is walled in dark green tile with a blood red veined marble sink console, but the lines are clean. The restraint is possible because of the play between texture and color, resulting in something timeless. (And while there is no onsite gym or spa, guests receive complimentary access to the facilities at nearby wellness club Holmes Place Gendarmenmarkt.)
Back downstairs, the dining room is like a private club, muted but comfortable. For a quick lunch before hitting our favorite art galleries and shops nearby, we go with whipped butter with fresh sourdough to accompany fennel sausage that accomplishes an often elusive herbaceous lightness to balance out its richness, served with creamy polenta and a mirepoix for some crunch.
Step outside and this renewed city center rewards the wanderer: the galleries along Auguststrasse, the flea market spilling out near the Bode Museum on a weekend, the sudden stillness of the Neue Wache around the corner, where Kollwitz’s heart-wrenching Pietà waits in the oculus light. It is a neighborhood dense with the city’s contradictions—Cold War scars beside conceptual art spaces, Michelin-starred restaurants a block from a currywurst stand—and Château Royal, a perfect balance of retreat and launchpad, sits at the center of it with the easy confidence of somewhere that has always belonged.
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