Long March Canteen — Restaurant in Berlin

We came to this restaurant without any expectation because we were supposed to have dinner at another place nearby, which was unfortunately closed that day. So we were happy to find a decent raiting restaurant on Google as a substitute but we left Long March feeling really disappointed. After coming to the review area and realizing it's even on the Michelin guide, we were just really puzzled how did they even get it ^^ I rarely feel disappointed at a restaurant but this place really hit under the belt and it's even worse because it's priced quite high and you'd assume that's because they can live up to their price...? But haha no jokes one you 🤡 and here's couple of reasons why:

The service was bad. It took forever for us to be seated without even having a line. The staff who was supposed to lead us to our seats even proceeded to greet and chatted with his friends outside of the restaurants first while knowing we were already ready to be led to our seat. Moreover, it seemed like there's only one other staff who's responsible for ordering and she was never at our table while the indoor area of our table was literally the only one that had customers. And other staffs at the bar was not working and was just staring at me eagerly looking for the ordering staff without jumping in or giving the ordering staff a reminder that someone at the only table indoor was waiting for 20 minutes to order already.

The "dim sum" they claimed they exceled at making tasted like mediocre reheated frozen products that you can buy from GoAsia (any Asian would know). The steamed prawn dim sum fell apart right away when you tried to pick it up, meaning it's wayyy overcooked and the flavor is non-existent. The duck tasted very average with very dull sides while they having the audacity to price it at 19 euro as a tapas. If you've had any real Peking duck wrap from a place who semi-know what they're doing, you'd know what this restaurant serves is a joke and it really is truly a disgrace.

3.All the food is very salty which is not bad and in some case it can actually be very appetizing but it'd be nice to have some plain staple one the side to balance the heavy seasoning out but they don't even offer rice. We assume it's a smart business move from the restaurant because they know rice can be filling but it's cheap and they want people to spend money on their overpriced so called "dim sum" instead of some non-profitting rice.

In general, the food was very mediocre and the service was bad. It's puzzling how did they even come to their conclusion of the pricing. If you like good authentic tapas-like Asian fusion food, Transit is wayyyy tastier and the price is fair and the service is great.(I know this might look awfully like an ad for Transit but it really is not LOL Just a genuine tip from a Asian foodie living in Berlin) Long March's food is to be brutally honest very average, dull, mediocre and pricy but if you have too much money and nowhere better to spend. We'd recommend...

4.5 stars, really! Enjoyed this place quite a lot. Can't speak to the authenticity of the cuisine, but compared to many dim sum places I've visited in America, I was certainly impressed and very much enjoyed the food. The atmosphere was sophisticated, and complementary coat check was a nice feature. The interior was a little bit dark, but the rustic quality of the tables and overhead beams lent a bit of rawness that I really liked in contrast to the otherwise sleek decor. That bathrooms were kind of a strange design in the basement, but ultimately unimportant to my rating decisions.

While they offer comprehensive pre-fixe menus with a good variety of items, these are quite expensive, and if you're traveling on a budget, like us, you can order individual items for an average of about €10, and most are plated 4 items at a time. My partner and I ate here, and we ordered: baked quail, pork shou mai, "traditional" Shanghai rolls (only 2, rather than 4), baozi, two beers, a Lemonaid+ (served in the bottle), and for dessert, the "dark & spicy" (a dark chocolate ganache? with ginger & passion fruit-mango syrup), and their homemade sorbet, which was strawberry-basil that night. Altogether we spent around €70, and felt satisfied but not too full!

The baked quail was good, flavorful and pleasantly greasy, served with some sort of julienned onion (I think, maybe lemongrass?), and carrot, paired with a good, sour sauce, but maybe slightly overdone. The Shanghai rolls were my favorite item, fried, crispy, with tasty filling of chicken & vegetables. Pork shou mai came topped with salmon roe, but I found the dumpling wrapper to be a little rubbery, and the roe didn't add much to the dish. Baozi were very good, too, maybe tied with Shanghai rolls now that I think about it! Came with soy vinegar & spicy chili sauces. The dark & spicy chocolate was a bit dense, and I didn't expect it to be near-frozen, but the ginger and chocolate were well-balanced and the passion fruit-mango syrup gave it a lovely tangy counterpart. Strawberry basil sorbet was garnished with mint, and all in all, a wonderful palate cleanser to end the meal. Astra beer on tap.

My one complaint would be about the service. At the start, our waiter was very attentive and communicative, but toward the end of our meal, we found ourselves waiting longer for someone to clear empty plates, bring us our next dishes, etc. My partner had to ask twice for a refill on his beer, and it took about 20 minutes to receive it. When we finished our dessert, we waited another 10 minutes before asking another waiter for our check.

I want to thank the restaurant for specifying which buns are made with yeast on their menu. I have a severe yeast allergy, and being able to see clearly which items contained yeast relieved much stress and uncertainty. Thank you, Long March Canteen! Next time I'm in Berlin, I would...

the food was alright. it s fusion, being Asian the dumplings tasted good, but they definitely weren t what I was hoping for. the meat dumplings are very dense and heavy. some people will be happy with that. almost like steamed meat pies. Food was definitely not disappointing. the waitress' service was good, a bit clumsy may be, but honest and always friendly... the problem was two in our group ordered the set menu which clashed with the open and disorderly dinner the rest of us had. On top of that their food took a long time even though it was similar to the dishes the rest of us ordered. we ended up having to watch them eat and then wait and eat and then wait and so on. Had they told us this was going to be sooo dissonant we would have planned it otherwise. The dinner experience suffered immensely. The real problem however was the restaurant manager. it lead to the most uncomfortable dining experience I have had in a restaurant. When we paid our bills we had to go to the cash register. So one by one we paid our bills. One of our friends in a group of 9, had not given a tip at the register as he paid via debit card. When our friend stood with him and our waitress at the cash register leaving no tip the waitress said politely 'thank you' but she was interrupted by the manager who told her that there was no reason to thank him... he did not consider the fact that we had left tip on the table as well as some having paid tip upfront at the register. I have never experienced something like this in my life. The whole group was very upset about what had happened and based on this experience I really cannot recommend long march canteen... being shamed for not tipping on top of actually being wrong, because there was cash on the table and rather than getting an apology the manager just being stubbornly resentful. if that s the philosophy of this place there is no reason to go there give them money for...