Entertainment in Berlin
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Moviemento
Berlin’s oldest cinema, this three-screen independent place (with a maximum capacity of just over 100) shows a good range of nonblockbuster mainstream foreign and German movies.
reviewed
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KitKatClub @ Sage
This 'kitty' is naughty, sexy, decadent, listens to techno and house and fancies leather and lace, vinyl and whips. Berlin's infamous erotic nightclub currently hides out at Sage Club with its multiple dance floors, shimmering pools and fire-breathing dragon. Check the website for dress code instructions.
reviewed
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Yorckschlösschen
This knick-knack-laden watering hole has plied an all-ages, all comers crowd of jazz and blues lovers with tunes and booze for over a century. There's live music on Wednesday and weekends, pub grub till 1am, a pool table out back and a garden in summer.
reviewed
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Tresor
The techno pioneer is back in the dark industrial maze of a former power station.
reviewed
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Floating Lounge
The best time for a cold one at this retro lounge on the Eastern Comfort Hostelboat is at sunset when the sun paints the Oberbaumbrücke (bridge) a fiery red. Very romantic, very Berlin. On Wednesday nights, the Floating Lounge hosts the Boat Party, which brings together an easy-going, all-ages, international crowd keen on practicing their English skills with a merry band of English-speaking expats and visitors. It’s a fun way to meet locals and visitors over a beer and bratwurst. The party attracts lots of regulars, but don’t be shy – people are eager to welcome newcomers. Admission is €1, which is added to your first drink. Also check MC Charles’ website, www.english-ev…
reviewed
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Kuschlowski
If you’re a veteran Berlin traveller and wistfully remember the days when Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg were the haunt of improvised, trashy-cool bars, pubs and cafés, you should feel quite Piccadilly in Kreuzkölln – the hot new Kiez (neighbourhood) between Neukölln and Kreuzberg. The bad-rap ‘ghetto’ south of the Landwehrkanal is being discovered by kool kids from across town hungry for a funky, unrenovated non-scene where prices are low and people relaxed. And new ventures open up all the time to feed their appetite. Here, a fresh wind has blown into an old bordello: a small and charismatic bar with a fireplace and Russian vodka.
reviewed
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Insomnia
For a night of hedonistic pleasure, travel to far-flung Tempelhof, south of Schöneberg, the home of Insomnia. This late-19th-century ballroom has been reincarnated as a classy playground of passion presided over by SM and fetish queen Dominique. Besides the dance floor and big-screen Andrew Blake porn, there are performances and various pleasure pits, including a whirlpool, a bondage room and gynaecological chair. Saturday’s Circus Bizarre is good for first-timers; Sundays are reserved for couples and their playmates. The special-themed sex parties during the week are for more advanced players; many require preregistration.
reviewed
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Berghain/Panoramabar
It’s the best club in the world, according to Britain’s well-regarded DJ Mag, and we have no problem seconding the hype. Only vinyl masters such as André Galluzzi and Ricardo Villalobos heat up this hedonistic bass junkie hellhole inside a labyrinthine ex-power plant. The upper floor (Panoramabar, aka ‘Pannebar’) is all about house; the gay-leaning big factory hall below (Berghain) pounds with minimal techno beats. Strict door and no cameras. In summer there’s a beer garden for daytime chilling.
reviewed
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Bar 25
With the 'Mediaspree' river development likely to become reality, some of Berlin’s most beloved riverside party spots are threatened. Summers just wouldn’t be the same without this surreal playground where you can arrive on Thursday and stumble home on Sunday without the party letting up. The setting is straight out of Twin Peaks : rustic log-cabin-style bar, candle-lit restaurant, a rope swing, an outdoor cinema, a spa with sauna and a trancey, thumpy club with disco ball.
reviewed
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Rechenzentrum
This club had its start in April 2008, so fingers are crossed it’ll survive. Far, far off the beaten track, in a GDR-era data processing centre (some of the chunky old computers are still there), you can feel the electro beat on Saturday night, then chill by the UFO in the riverside Funkpark on Sunday (summer only). Opening times vary, but it’s usually open Saturday and Sunday. A free bus shuttles between the club and Ostkreuz (corner Neue Bahnhofstrasse and Sonntagstrasse) between 11pm and 5am.
reviewed
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Badeschiff
In summer, a hedonistic Ibiza-vibe reigns at the artist-designed Badeschiff, with bods bronzing in the sand or cooling off in the water and a bar to fuel the fun. On scorching days, come before noon or risk a long wait. After-dark action includes parties, bands, movies and simply chilling. In winter, an ethereally glowing plastic membrane covers up the pool and a deliciously toasty chill zone with saunas and bar.
reviewed
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Künstliche Beatmung
You won’t need artificial respiration (the name of this bar), but the deliriously retro look may well take your breath away. The psychedelic wallpaper could cause ’60s flashbacks while the white-ribbed tunnel will make you feel like Jonah inside the whale. Thursday nights, when hobby DJs hit the decks, can be hit or miss but come Friday and Saturday seasoned pros heat up the crowd with minimal, electro and funk.
reviewed
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Wintergarten Varieté
Berlin’s most sumptuous cabaret venue boasts a starry-sky ceiling that’s as dazzling as the international line-up of magicians, acrobats, artistes and clowns. The crowd’s tourist- and conventioneer-heavy but most shows are actually fun and mesmerising. From September to April, highlights of the evening show are presented in 75-minute afternoon sessions for €22 on Wednesday (4pm) and Sunday (3pm).
reviewed
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Maxxim
The moneyed and beautiful (or surgically enhanced) with A-list aspirations cavort at this snazzy party pen that’s a veritable jet-set oasis in ghetto-glam Berlin. Once you’ve made it past the velvet rope, you too can be shaking that booty to ‘international club sounds’, sipping champagne cocktails at the sleek bar and – who knows? – maybe even meeting your very own Carrie or Mr Big.
reviewed
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Newton Bar
At this glamour vixen on Gendarmenmarkt you can swirl your whisky with the posh set with an entire wall of Helmut Newton’s high-heeled nudes stimulating the imagination. On your way to the upstairs humidor and smoking lounge (in winter only), you’ll even pass a signed photograph of the master himself. In fine weather, sit outside and see if you and your stogey can stop that cutie on the footpath.
reviewed
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White Trash Fast Food
Edgy and borderline insane, this ex-Irish pub with Chinese flourishes attracts a rock-and-roll crowd and often teems with US expats scarfing tasty burgers to stave off homesickness (and, possibly, hang-overs). DJs or live bands playing punk, rock or new wave in the bar-restaurant area can make conversation challenging. On some nights, raucous indie acts also take over the cavernous Diamond Lounge downstairs.
reviewed
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Eschschloraque
This trashy-chic bar is a rare bulwark against Mitte’s creeping yuppification. Find it past the trash cans at the end of the courtyard of Haus Schwarzenberg, one of the few unrenovated houses left around here. We love the surreal monster decor by the Dead Chickens art collective, the comfy sofas, the strong cocktails and the eccentric live music – if only the staff laid off the snootiness.
reviewed
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Reingold
This 1930s-style glamour lounge draws talkative sophisticates, grateful for the mellow lighting and low sound levels. Video projections, photography exhibits and a wall-sized portrait of Klaus and Erika Mann – a mosaic of pages from Klaus’ novel Mephisto – add an artsy touch, while tapas options provide sustenance. There are DJ nights at weekends and a terrace in summer.
reviewed
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Golgatha
The pilgrimage to this beer garden in the Viktoriapark is a beloved summer ritual. Kick back with a foamy lager in a deck chair downstairs or catch the day’s final rays on the rooftop terrace. After 10pm a DJ hits the decks. Many paths lead to Golgatha but it’s easiest to find by entering the park from Katzbachstrasse, corner of Monumentenstrasse, then take your first right.
reviewed
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Grüner Salon
Sultry sophistication rules in the Volksbühne’s intimate ‘Green Salon’, an elegant 1920s glamour vixen that lures natty, chatty sophisticates with mellow lighting and eardrum-friendly indie, jazz, chanson and tango concerts and club nights. On Tuesdays it’s the place in town to kick up your salsa heels. Come early for lessons. The entrance is on the right side of the theatre building.
reviewed
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Café Moskau
Still flaunting 1960s flair, this snazzy commie-era restaurant now hosts special club and concert nights as well as Sunday's GMF (www.gmf-berlin.de in German) gay parties with buff and bronzed boyz enjoying high-energy pop and house. Rumour has it that GMF may move in 2007, so check the website or the Zitty (www.zitty.de), Tip (www.tip-berlin.de) listings magazines.
reviewed
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Icon
This labyrinthine cellar of a former brewery is Berlin’s holy grail of drum and bass – Recycle on Saturday is an eardrum-rinsing local institution. Friday is generally given over to special events, with some very strong nu-skool breakbeat and downtempo nights. International DJ royalty such as Grooverider and Nightmares on Wax occasionally head the line-up here.
reviewed
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Haus der Kulturen der Welt
The eccentric building with a gravity- defying parabolic roof west of the chancellery is the Haus der Kulturen der Welt. Originally a congress hall, it's now a cultural space with dance performances, readings, films, exhibits and theatre from Latin America, Asia and Africa. Chime concerts ring out at noon and 6pm daily from the nearby 68-bell carillon.
reviewed
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Victoria Bar
Dedicated to quality imbibing, this discreet cocktail lounge attracts a crowd that’s like a two-inch heel – chic but sensible. Try the Ramos Gin Fizz, barkeep Stefan’s favourite libation. Budget boozers invade before 9.30pm and for the all-night Sunday happy hours, while academics can bone up on the merits of various key spirits at the monthly ‘School of Drunkenness’.
reviewed
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Yaam
With the "Mediaspree' river development likely to become reality, some of Berlin’s most beloved riverside party spots are threatened. The granddaddy of all summer parties is the home of reggae, samba, soca, rap and the birthplace of the band Seeed. The Beach Classic on Sunday has been dishing up food, drink, music, beach volleyball and other sports for years.
reviewed
