![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/JKA__Weinbar_Der_Kleine_August_Credits_mariestaggat11-scaled.jpg\")
Der kleine August, photo credit: Marie Staggat<\/p>\nDer kleine August, photo credit: Marie Staggat<\/p>\n
Why have do many restaurants that opened in Berlin in recent months have \u2018brasserie\u2018 or \u2018bistro\u2018 in their name? Even places like Almi Bistro<\/a> and Jolie Bistrot<\/a> \u2013 both less than or just over a year old and both located in Prenzlauer Berg \u2013 aren\u2019t strictly speaking French, rather they serve a modern, ingredient-focused menu with an unmistakably French sense of ease. For these places, it\u2019s all about the flavours and the atmosphere, and they boast style of cooking that\u2019s refined while also remaining entirely quotidian. Food that\u2019s sometimes indulgent and escapist, absolutely contemporary and always grounded in the relaxed conviction that a cr\u00e8me br\u00fbl\u00e9e and a bowl of French onion soup can be heaven on Earth.<\/p>\n Lunch as a Way of Life<\/p>\n Oliver Chesler, a musician from New York, has run Volk<\/a> on Brunnenstra\u00dfe in Mitte with his partner, Margaux Arabian, since 2019. It\u2019s a seafood restaurant and a place where the effortless excellence of French cuisine reveals itself in a simple detail: their house-made French fries are prepared using just one specific variety of potato, imported directly from France.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we run out of those potatoes, then we don\u2019t serve French fries anymore,\u201d says Margaux Arabian. She grew up in her mother Ghislaine Arabian\u2019s two-Michelin-star restaurant in Paris and, as a result, developed an appreciation for these subtle distinctions from an early age. \u201cI feel like I\u2019ve fried every potato grown in Brandenburg and never found anything comparable.\u201d<\/p>\n What else is on the menu at Volk? Frog legs, lobster claws and around half a dozen varieties of oysters, naturally all imported directly from France as well.<\/p>\n The fact that a place like this is still able to be affordable may, in part, be thanks to these direct imports. But above all, it\u2019s down to Volk\u2019s attitude. Although it\u2019s chic in its own way, it\u2019s also one of those do-it-yourself kind of places that once made us fall in love with Berlin. The kitchen is in the building next door, and you have to walk through a second-hand shop on the way to the restrooms. I even know someone who bought a silk dress there before ordering dessert.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, on the corner of Mommsenstra\u00dfe in Charlottenburg, it feels as though you\u2019ve stepped directly into Paris. Even more so if you\u2019re sitting on the terrace in the quintessentially French seating at newly opened Th\u00e9odor.<\/p>\n Avec Plaisir<\/p>\n It\u2019s a good thing Pierre Girard is sitting at the table. He\u2019s the wine expert at Th\u00e9odor<\/a>, as well as at the wonderful wine bar Der Kleine August on Auguststra\u00dfe, which is the place that serves what is arguably the best French aperitif in the city: cheese, salami, tinned sardines, p\u00e2t\u00e9. When asked which French products matter most, Girard doesn\u2019t hesitate: \u201cBaguette et beurre \u2013 baguette and butter.\u201d<\/p>\n Margaux Arabian\u2019s potatoes at Volk, Pierre Girard\u2019s butter at Der Kleine August and Th\u00e9odor \u2013 perhaps, when we talk about French cuisine, it\u2019s not really about the flashy ingredients like the lobster from Brittany, Charolais beef or P\u00e9rigord truffles. Instead, it\u2019s about an ingrained appreciation for everyday quality and a particular way of life \u2013 about finding something divine in the simplest things.<\/p>\n It\u2019s about an ingrained appreciation for everyday quality and a particular way of life<\/p>\n Which brings us to S\u00e9bastien Gorius, a merchant of the French art of living, whose shops in Sch\u00f6neberg, La Cantine d\u2019Augusta, and Charlottenburg, Augusta Savignyplatz, are devoted to exactly that. So what do the French have that Germans don\u2019t?<\/p>\n \u201cAbout a thousand years,\u201d he says. \u201cSome of the cheeses we sell here have been made in essentially the same way since the 13th century.\u201dAnd what else? \u201cThere\u2019s this deeply rooted habit of celebrating food, even on an ordinary weekday. Here in Berlin, everything has to be quick: a baguette eaten during your lunch break, half standing up. In France, people will happily sit for an hour and a half, even two hours, and open a bottle of wine first.\u201d But wouldn\u2019t that work for Berlin? Both S\u00e9bastien Gorius and Pierre Girard agree that French cuisine in Berlin would have to remain affordable. Even in Paris, Girard points out, \u201csome Michelin-starred restaurants offer a three-course lunch menu for just \u20ac30.\u201d Both end the discussion with a recommendation for an everyday French meal. Pierre Girard suggests the lunch menu at Brasserie de Paris<\/a> on Kurf\u00fcrstendamm, while S\u00e9bastien Gorius recommends the hand-cut fries at the pleasantly rustic La Buvette<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u00c1 Manger! Our Favourite French Spots<\/p>\n Augusta Savignyplatz<\/p>\n This is a Francophile\u2019s dream deli where, in true French fashion, gourmet food begins with butter. It\u2019s also a wonderful spot for a glass of wine, as is its sister location in Sch\u00f6neberg.<\/p>\n Must-eat dish: Anything from the cheese counter.<\/p>\n Carmerstra\u00dfe 8, Charlottenburg, details<\/a><\/p>\n Brasserie Le Paris<\/p>\n Relaxed, unpretentious, and fairly priced, this gem of a spot tucked inside Cinema de Paris, it\u2019s one of the nicest lunch spots in western Berlin.<\/p>\n Must-eat dish: The pl\u00e2t du jour<\/p>\n Kurf\u00fcrstendamm 211, Charlottenburg, details<\/a><\/p>\n Bostich<\/p>\n Palm-tree lamps, oysters and buttery mashed potatoes, stepping inside this restaurant is like getting a little escape to the C\u00f4te d\u2019Azur without having to leave Berlin.<\/p>\n Must-eat dish: The shrimp rolls<\/p>\n Ludwigkirchstrasse 10, Charlottenburg, details<\/a><\/p>\n Der Kleine August<\/p>\n Deep wine expertise without a trace of wine snobbery, this is the French wine bar Berlin had been waiting for. <\/p>\n Must-eat dish: P\u00e2t\u00e9 pastry<\/p>\n Auguststra\u00dfe 23, Mitte, details<\/a><\/p>\n Entrec\u00f4te<\/p>\n A wonderfully timeless restaurant from the days when people simply called these kinds of restaurants steakhouses.<\/p>\n Must-eat dish: Hand-cut French fries to accompany the entrec\u00f4te<\/p>\n Sch\u00fctzenstra\u00dfe 5, Mitte, details<\/a><\/p>\n La Buvette<\/p>\n Friendly, approachable, effortlessly cool and firmly rooted in the neighbourhood, La Buvette brings a perfect little slice of Paris to Berlin. There\u2019s even a charming little wine bar just around the corner.<\/p>\n Must-eat dish: Steak frites<\/p>\n Gleimstra\u00dfe 41, Pankow, details<\/a><\/p>\n Lamaz\u00e8re<\/p>\n This is one of those places where Berlin\u2019s restaurant crowd gathers, which is a testament to owner R\u00e9gis Lamaz\u00e9re\u2019s enduring appeal.<\/p>\n Must-eat dish: rice pudding<\/p>\n Stuttgarter Platz 18, Charlottenburg, details<\/a><\/p>\n Manon Brasserie<\/p>\n This somewhat new brasserie opened by celebrated restaurateur The Duc Ngo is located inside Hotel am Steinplatz.<\/p>\n Must-eat dish: The cordon bleu made with cheese sourced from Augusta Savignyplatz<\/p>\n Steinplatz 4, Charlottenburg, details<\/a><\/p>\n Mastan<\/p>\n Quite possibly Berlin\u2019s most French restaurant, the chef, Yann Mastantuono, previously headed the kitchen for Alain Ducasse. <\/p>\n Must-eat dish: Pork neck with Basque blood sausage<\/p>\n Gneisenaustra\u00dfe 67, Kreuzberg, details<\/a><\/p>\n Monet Bistro<\/p>\n This is the kind of simple neighbourhood bistro you\u2019d find all over France, and one that\u2019s relatively affordable. <\/p>\n Must-eat dish: Chocolate mousse with blood orange and sea salt<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/20220923_VolkMitte_c_AlexanderMeyer-13-scaled.jpg\")
Restaurant Volk in Mitte, photo credit: Alexander Meyer<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/JKA_Theodor_Brasserie_Burgunderschnecken_12_21Ec_Marie_Stagg-1-scaled.jpeg\")
Brasserie Th\u00e9odor, photo credit: Marie Staggat<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/augusta-mariannerennella-c2-1-scaled.jpg\")
Photo Credit: Marianne Rennella<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/IMG_1446-1-scaled.jpeg\")
Brasserie Le Paris<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Bostich_07-scaled.jpeg\")
Photo Credit: Valentin Cheli<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/JKA__Weinbar_Der_Kleine_August_Credits_mariestaggat10-1-scaled.jpg\")
Der Kleine August<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/entrecote3ThomasFrede-1-1.jpg\")
Photo Credit: Thomas Frede<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/LaBuvetteWeinbar.jpg\")
Photo courtesy of La Buvette<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Lamazere3-1-scaled.jpg\")
Photo Credit: Brasserie Lamaz\u00e8re<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/C39A0675-1-scaled.jpg\")
Photo Credit: Clemens Niedenthal<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Caillette\u00a9-Florian-Kroll-Restaurant-MASTAN-14-scaled.jpg\")
Photo Credit: Florian Kroll<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/C39A6585-2-1-scaled.jpeg\")
Photo Credit: Clemens Niedenthal<\/p>\n