Schlosshotel Berlin — Restaurant in Berlin

Sadly, I must confirm that the negative reviews for 2024 are all accurate. We stayed here in the past with great satisfaction, the last time being 2019. It WAS legendary for comfort and service but NO MORE. Things have changed dramatically. -- The check-in was a joke with a character from White Lotus Season 1 behind the desk. First, he couldn't find the reservation for 3 nights, then when he did, he couldn't confirm that the stay was pre-paid (it was), and finally he had to run our credit card for incidentals 5 times due to his "system." All the time joking about the inconveniences.|If you book on-line and don't select a "Deluxe Room," they will stick you in the "Annex" (we originally had room 56; stay away from this one) with all outdated furnishings and bath facilities (read bathtub shower with shower curtain).-- We unpacked and immediately noticed that it was warm. We then turned down the air conditioning to the lowest temperature which the hotel allowed (20C). When we returned from dinner later that evening, the room was like a sauna. We called the front desk, they investigated and confirmed that the a/c system was not working. Mercifully, they gave us an upgrade in the main house. We gratefully acknowledge the upgrade, but it did not make up for all the other shortcomings at the property.|The breakfast HAD BEEN legendary in the past with white table clothes and every delicacy imaginable. NO MORE. On the first morning, when we went down for breakfast one of the timid waiters informed us that our breakfast was not included in our reservation. We asked him to check again and lo and behold, we returned to tell us that it WAS included. (We went through the same process the next day.) We immediately noticed that something was different. The meats and cheeses were sparse and of the cheapest quality. There was almost no selection, BUT the worst was yet to come: if you wanted freshly cooked eggs or an omelet, you had to pay extra!! There was a small basket of cold, hardboiled eggs next to the chaffing dishes which held bacon, tomatoes, mushrooms and potatoes, BUT no scrambled eggs. For those, we were told, you have to pay more. Afterwards, we started watching the reactions of the other guests (most rich Germans) who couldn't quite believe what they were hearing. One older couple just got up and walked out. The wait staff swanned in and out without removing any dirty dishes UNTIL the guests left the tables. We sat in the corner each morning and just piled our dirty dishes on the nearby console. Others were not so lucky and sat among a sea of dirty dishes and silverware until the ordeal was over. It was disgraceful for a so-called 5-star property.|On Saturday night, when we returned from dinner in Berlin Mitte at around 11pm, the main lobby was so hot that the front desk attendant was standing outside the entrance with his shirt unbuttoned trying to keep cool. None of the common spaces were airconditioned. -- We also noticed that there was some kind of private party going on in the back garden but went right up to our room. About 30 minutes later, we heard the loud bass of techno music coming through the double windows. That went on until after 1am. Not pleasant!|And finally, the check-out: we were told we incurred a charge at the bar (which we had never visited). The clerk apologized and said, "No problem, we'll take care of it." Of course, the charges appeared on our CC. We had to dispute it!|My guess is that the hotel is having serious financial difficulties, and the sudden death of its owner has probably not helped. You can and must do...

We visited the hotel between Christmas and New Year.

We had been looking forward to a relaxing stay where we could enjoy good food and the hotel’s facilities after a busy December. Unfortunately, we were disappointed with the level of service.

The hotel itself is beautiful and full of charm, but sadly, that charm fades when the service does not meet expectations.

Already during our first visit to the champagne lounge, we noticed that no one asked if we wanted something to drink—we had to seek out a waiter ourselves. However, we didn’t take this too seriously at first.

After a late lunch, we decided to use the spa area. While the experience was fine, there were no towels available, which was disappointing.

The biggest letdown came during dinner. We were presented with the same menu we had received at lunch, with the addition of three orally presented dishes. We initially thought it was a mistake, as we had seen the restaurant’s menu online in advance and had expected to be served that.

As our waiter seemed new to the job, we went to the reception to clarify the situation. The response was curt: “I have nothing to do with the kitchen.” However, the receptionist later escorted us to a more experienced waiter who confirmed that the regular menu was not available. We were very disappointed by this lack of communication.

Sunday morning breakfast was hectic, but the buffet was fine.

Later in the day, around 5:00 PM, I ordered a bottle of wine to take with me to dinner. Shortly after, the waiter informed me that the champagne lounge would be closing early that evening. I was allowed to stay but was told no new guests would be admitted. I offered to move to the lobby, where it was a bit warmer.

About 30 minutes later, the waiter returned to inform me that all service would cease due to staff illness. This meant no more food or drinks would be served. At the same time, we discovered that the hotel bar, which we had assumed was in the lobby, was located in a separate room that had been closed since our arrival.

The evening ended with us ordering pizza and beer for delivery, as we didn’t want to leave the hotel. We asked the reception for a new bottle of wine, but they were unable to assist us.

Later, we encountered six Swedish guests who had received confirmation of a restaurant reservation at 3:00 PM the same day, only to arrive and find closed doors with no phone call or information provided.

On Monday morning—the day of our check-out—breakfast was excellent, and the waiter even remembered our room number. This experience stood in stark contrast to the rest of the stay and demonstrated what the service level at the hotel should have been.

Unfortunately, at check-out, we were met by a very unwelcoming receptionist. When I mentioned that it was unfortunate the restaurant had been closed, her only response was: “Yes, that’s unfortunate.” There was no apology or attempt to address our disappointment. When we said goodbye, we received no response—she was more focused on her hair than on ensuring a pleasant end to our stay.

As someone with many years of experience in the hotel and gastronomy industry, both in Denmark and Germany, I must conclude that this hotel only delivers service at a 2-star level.

Had we been informed about the changes along the way and offered alternatives, it would have made a significant difference. Some staff members were truly sweet and accommodating, but the hotel needs to take much greater responsibility for ensuring a cohesive experience for...

Dear Mr Claret,

In response to the comments made, we are obliged to make public the true events which took place in the Schlosshotelim Grunewald last November. First we would like to highlight that the Schlosshotel was and continues to be one of the most prestigious hotels in Berlin.This has been asserted by various media and other opinion forums, in one of which you also related your story.

You stayed at the Schlosshotelim Grunewald on the nights of the 2nd, 3rd and 4thNovember 2012 inclusive. On the second day of your stay, you went to the hotel Reception in order to complain of an intolerable heat in your assigned room. This complaint, by the way, has only been made by yourself. In response to your request, you were moved at no additional cost to one of our best suites (the Library Suite). All of your belongings were moved to the room WITH YOUR PERMISSION. The room’s safe was left as it was until you were able to accompany a member of staff to move its contents in your presence. Despite you giving us permission to move them in your absence, we chose to wait until you were present to avoid any misunderstanding.

Upon opening the safe with a master key as you did not remember your PIN, you claimed there were $5,000 missing, without being able to prove the said circumstance to anybody. The member of staff on duty at the time called the police to report the incident and open a case. You were informed that on Monday 5th November, we would contact our insurance company and that you would be given a copy of the police report and that our lawyers would deal with the case. Not satisfied with this procedure, you behaved rudely to the Reception staff in the hotel, insulting them and shouting at them in front of other paying guests, claiming that the hotel stole things and threatening the Reception staff that you would call the local press and publicise the situation on social networks, as you have done. Watching your behaviour, even the other hotel guests understood that the situation was unsustainable. You checked out of the hotel on 5th November and shortly afterwards contacted the hotel indicating that you would like to resolve the matter without lawyers and once again communicating that you would publish criticisms in different forums. You left the hotel without paying the bill for your stay. Additionally, upon checking the state of your room, we found that a Tivoli radio was missing, valued at 189€, and that one of the lampshades, costing 60€, was completely destroyed. When the hotel tried to charge the bill at a total of 899.50€, your credit card had been cancelled. Thus, to this day, we have been unable to recover any of the money owed.

We believe that the content of your remarks maligns our professionalism and for this reason we must make public our opinion on the events which took place during your stay at the Schlosshotel.

Yours sincerely,

Sara Torralvo General Manager Schlosshotel...