Van Loon Restaurant Boat and Shipping Company — Restaurant in Berlin

I recently dined at this restaurant located on a ship by the spree, and while the view was undeniably breathtaking, my overall experience left much to be desired.

Pros:

Spectacular View: The restaurant’s location on a ship along the river provided a mesmerizing backdrop for our meal. It truly offered a unique and picturesque dining setting.

Cons:

Mediocre Food: Unfortunately, the beauty of the view couldn’t compensate for the lackluster quality of the food. It seemed as though a significant portion of the €26 bill was dedicated to the scenic location rather than the culinary experience. Limited Variety: The menu offered minimal variety, which was disappointing. It felt like we had very few options to choose from, and this limited selection was not made up for in taste. Excessive Salinity: One of the most significant issues we encountered was the excessive use of salt in the dishes. The over-salted food not only made it unpleasant to eat but also left us feeling parched. Low-Quality Ingredients: It was evident that the restaurant did not prioritize high-quality ingredients. The dishes lacked freshness and the flavors were subpar.

In summary, while the restaurant may excel in providing a stunning riverside setting, the food experience was a letdown. The limited variety, overly salty dishes, and the use of subpar ingredients left a lot to be desired. I hope the management takes these concerns into account and makes improvements to enhance the overall...

DEUTSCH Diese Woche haben wir uns aufs Schiff getraut – und zwar auf die van Loon die im Urbanhafen fest vor Anker liegt. Es war super warm und die Palette an eisgekühlten Brausen, Bieren, Weinen und einer Hand voll leckerer Eigenkreationen wie der Pink Lucy, haben das Ihre getan uns herunter zu kühlen.

Die Vorspeisenplatte war von hervorragender Qualität, alles war knackfrisch und auf den Punkt abgeschmeckt – außer die Guacamole, die braucht noch etwas Optimierung um aus der „Langweiler-Ecke“ herauszukommen.

Der Service war aufmerksam und freundlich und trotz nahezu ausgebuchter Location bekamen wir das Bestellte stets in-time auf den Tisch.

Als Hauptspeise teilte ich mir eine große Portion Spare Ribs und ein Entrecôte mit einem lieben Freund. Das Fleisch war jeweils von guter Qualität, es löste sich leicht von den Knochen der Ribs und war dabei angenehm zart - bloß leider beides etwas langweilig, denn hier fehlten jegliche Röstaromen.

Das ist natürlich besonders schade, wenn grundsätzlich durch Smoker/Grill die Möglichkeit bestanden hätte diese zu realisieren – hier geht geschmacklich noch deutlich mehr! Die Salate waren – ob Beilage oder auch größer – stets sehr, sehr süß abgeschmeckt – hier würde ich vorschlagen verschiedene Dressings extra zu reichen – so bleiben die Zutaten knackig und der Gast hat das Thema Süße selber in der Hand.

Die Crème brûlée – war der passende Abschluss, mit tollen Konsistenz – nicht zu süß und von genügender Menge – lecker!

Ein Besuch an Board der van Loon lohnt sich allemal, besonders wenn Ihr Fisch liebt.

Es würde mich freuen, wenn Ihr meinem Google Maps Profil folgt und Ihr Euch auch meine weiteren Rezessionen anschaut – bei Gefallen gerne einen Daumen hoch vergeben! …und vergesst nicht beim foodadvisorblog vorbei zu schauen!

ENGLISH This week we ventured out onto the ship - the van Loon, anchored in Urbanhafen. It was super warm and the range of iced fizzy drinks, beers, wines and a handful of delicious own creations like the Pink Lucy, did their bit to cool us down.

The starter platter was of excellent quality, everything was crisp and tasted to perfection - except the guacamole, which needs a bit of tweaking to get it out of the 'boring corner'.

The service was attentive and friendly and despite the location being almost fully booked, we always got what we ordered to the table in time. For the main course, I shared a large portion of spare ribs and an entrecôte with a dear friend. The meat was of good quality, easily separated from the bones of the ribs and was pleasantly tender - but unfortunately both were a bit boring, because they lacked any roasted aromas.

Of course, this is a pity if the smoker/grill would have made it possible to achieve this - there is still more to be done here in terms of taste! The salads were - whether as a side dish or larger - always very, very sweetly flavoured - here I would suggest serving different dressings separately - this way the ingredients remain crunchy and the guest is in control of the sweetness.

The crème brûlée - was a fitting end, with great consistency - not too sweet and of sufficient quantity - delicious!

A visit on board the van Loon is always worthwhile, especially if you love fish.

I would be happy if you follow my Google Maps profile and also have a look at my other reviews - if you like them, please give them a thumbs up! ...and don't forget to check out...

We went for a team dinner here and we really enjoyed the location and being able to sit outside to enjoy the nice weather. The food was overall good, however there is room for improvement. First of all, the Dutch kibbeling is not authentic at all. It is more like the British fried fish / Fish & chips. As a Dutch person looking forward to get kibbeling, that was rather disappointing. Also, we asked the waiter if the fries were fried in different oil than the battered fish because we had someone in our group with gluten allergy. The waiter confirmed it was fried separately to prevent contamination, however my colleague got very unwell after the dinner and had a coeliac flare-up. The fries were definitely not fried separately. The portion size for the salmon and hash browns was rather small, my colleague was still hungry afterwards. Lastly, why are there blue berries and other type of berries in the condiments? Nevertheless, the salad bowls and fried fish platter as well as the drinks...