Berlin Bar — Restaurant in Melbourne

I really liked my evening at Berlin Bar in Melbourne. The concept of dividing the space into two sections, representing East and West Germany, is a very cool idea. The atmosphere is great—it's a bustling little bar.

The food and drinks were wonderful. I would recommend the cheese board and the fries. Everything was very tasty and made for great plates to share, whether with a small or large group of people.

However, one major aspect of the night was completely ruined: the service. The staff were incredibly slow and unresponsive to almost every request. Upon being seated, we were informed that table service was provided for the entire venue and that placing orders at the bar was not allowed. Yet, after being seated and given this information, my table was neglected by the waitstaff for at least half an hour.

When our order was finally taken, the food arrived about 20 minutes later (no real complaints here), but the drinks took another 20 minutes to arrive—a total wait time of 40 minutes for the first round. This was extremely disappointing and really dampened the mood for my table. Unfortunately, we were then ignored once again, and when we did manage to get the staff's attention, they happily took our order for more drinks and food. The food took another half an hour to arrive, while the drinks required multiple follow-ups with staff to check on their whereabouts. Again, we were left waiting for at least 40 minutes after placing our second drink order.

I am not quite sure why the service at my table was so poor, as other tables seemed to be well looked after. This was by far the most disappointing part of the night, especially since everything else we experienced was extremely good.

Would I recommend this place to someone else? Short answer: Yes. Long answer: It’s a very cool idea and space. The food, drinks and atmosphere are tasty and electric. The service is...

@berlinbarmelbourne 📍CBD

🐒 Space Monkeys: tequila, rum, infused mango, Cointreau, lime, agave, chilli ☕️ Vladimir Komarov: gin infused coffee & nutmeg, Campari, antica, white chocolate foam 🍯 Judith Resnik: maraschino, gin, peach soju, honey, yuzu ◾️Laika: gin infused peppercorn, vanilla, falernum, yuzu, egg white

Berlin Bar is a hidden cocktail bar, located in Melbournes CBD which opened back in 2009. The space is split into two. You will enter into capitalist West Berlin, a luxurious speakeasy style area with comfortable booths oozing opulence. Cross the wall into the Soviet side of East Berlin, where there is no extravagance. The room is dark and full of Communist propaganda.

The cocktail menu is well thought out and you can easily find something suited to your tastes by following the map (or asking their friendly staff). Completely creative, you will push yourself out of your comfort zone and probably order something you would have never tried before. 🍸

My favourite pick was the Space Monkeys, it was spicy, fresh and sour. Kinda like a mango chilli margarita. The Judith Resnik was fruity, fresh and sour, I love that the honey really comes through. The Vladimir Komarov was very unique and strong, with bitter, dark and sweet notes. The only one we didn’t love was the Laika, which we found a bit bland with no prominent flavours. 🍹

There is also a small snack menu available, which I might try on our next visit. Definitely one to check out next time you’re in the...

Everything about this bar was off-putting, except for the drinks which were pretty good. I didn’t need the little lecture about Berlin. If you’re a really high-end place you could get away with someone giving you a spiel about the concept, but this was a place with sticky tables cobbled together on the cheap. The concept could have been conveyed in the one sentence “would you like to sit on the East or West Berlin side?” The explaining continued with the drinks menu. Again, we can read. Nothing about the menu was unusual or difficult to grasp. The feeling that we were being over-serviced was becoming strikingly obvious at this point. Drinks were ordered and arrived. I don’t drink so I ordered a mocktail, which was served with a “oh so you must be the designated driver”. When I said no, I was pressed on why I wasn’t drinking. This is such a shitty thing to ask someone! I might be in rehab, muslim, pregnant, on antidepressants, on antibiotics, I might have watched a loved one drink themselves to death. Just what makes you think it’s okay to ask me this? I’m buying a drink so maybe leave it alone? Finally, two drinks which cost $18 each somehow came to $51 “with surcharge”. I don’t know what the $15 surcharge was for but when the server literally hovered over the eftpos while I tapped “no tip” and assured me that he wouldn’t be offended, I almost snapped. My dude, you’ve just taken an unexplained 41% of our bill and whacked it on top and that is what I call a...