Lindenbräu: the Sony Centre’s German restaurant

Here’s the thing about Potsdamer Platz: It’s big, impressive, a major tourist destination, and a terrible place to hang out. It’s just not built for casual lounging, especially in the winter when winds whip through the Sony Centre and make the entire experience somewhat frigid. So when people ask me where they should go out for dinner, I tend to encourage them towards other areas of town.

But a few nights ago I wound up at Potsdamer Platz with a tourist who was after German food. Beer, meat and potatoes, and he wanted them NOW and not in the half an hour it would take us to go somewhere else. So we tried the Lindenbräu in the Sony Centre.

The restaurant is pretty standard in terms of design – plain tables, plate glass windows – and lacks the old-fashioned Gemütlichkeit (cosiness, comfort) one normally finds in traditional German restaurants. Its big design feature though, is the working brewery equipment which soars upwards through the middle of the three-floored establishment. It’s very shiny.

They serve a Weißbier which is brewed in that metal contraption and you’d be forgiven for getting somewhat confused by the menu. They serve it mixed with just about every fruit juice known to man, or with hard liquors. I tried the Caipirinha-Weiße and I must say… stick with either the beer or the cocktail. The two of them combined created a rather boring, slightly limey liquid which was certainly drinkable but not worth writing home about. Just order the beer, and they will serve it in one litre glasses as well (Maß, pronounced a little like mars).

The food was nicely German. My Allgäuer Schnitzel came with enough fried potatoes to keep me going for several hours, although the meat itself was a little tougher than I would have liked. My companions over-indulged in the Brauhausteller, a meat plate of roast, sausages, meatloaf, sauerkraut and bread dumplings. It was impressively large and went down a treat.

Meals range from 10 – 17€, while the (almost more important) beer is 3.70€ for a half litre (6.50€ for the Maß). They sell beer glasses as well, so there’s no need to try and sneak off with one shoved uncomfortably down the front of your trousers. The restaurant is busy and loud, well accustomed to tourists (the menu is offered in eight languages, just ask for yours) and centrally located. I’m not blown away by it, but it’s decent food at reasonable prices in a prime tourist destination. If you’re in the area and hungry, definitely give it a shot.

More information on PlanetEye: Lindenbräu