Stay at the cooles t hotel in Berlin ... in the Berlin Wall
This property showcases great design, fabulous food and its wine guide is also a cultural anthropologist. Everything about Locke at East Side Gallery is in vogue.
Quite by accident we find ourselves at the heart of Berlin cool, having dinner in the recently opened ANIMA restaurant and bar, which is run by two of the city’s leading DJs. The playlist is of course exceptionally slay, even extra, perhaps Gucci (cool in Boomer parlance).
And so is the fit-out. The restaurant occupies the riverfront live-work space of the new Locke at East Side Gallery, an apartment hotel tucked into the last remnants of the Berlin Wall.
Everything about Locke at East Side Gallery is in vogue.
There’s a “listening bar” with a wall of vinyl, inspired by Japan’s Kissaten or jazz kissa bars of the 1960s and ’70s (shout out to young bar star Ella from Melbourne who mixes a superior mezcal margarita).
In the cafe, Nate from the US whips up the perfect oat-milk latte.
The cold war-chic interiors are by New York-based Grzywinski+Pons, featuring exposed concrete walls and recycled brick banquettes softened with blond timbers, boucle armchairs in pastel pink, and pistachio-green rugs.
The staff uniforms are by local fashion brand Fade Out in collaboration with Berlin Wall artist Mirta Domacinovic. And let’s not forget Nikolina, the hotel’s resident “wine guide” who is also a cultural anthropologist.
With 176 sleek studio apartments, Locke at East Side Gallery is tucked between the remnant wall, now an outdoor art gallery, and the River Spree.
Our lovely cab driver is unfamiliar with the hotel as it’s brand new and the entrance – midway along the wall gallery – is narrow.
Walking into the light-filled lobby-cum-restaurant-cum-workspace overlooking the river, I’m painfully aware of my lack of slay-ness. But the young crew could not be more charming (perhaps my husband and I remind them of their parents), as are the guests, many from London (and yay, I spy two more middle-aged couples).
Once parked at the bar, our slay-ness gets a boost because we are well versed in the ’70s, vinyl, large speakers and margaritas.
Robin, one of the restaurant proprietors, manages to squeeze us in for dinner, which is very kind because ANIMA is booked out every night. (Robin and his partner Thibault have a strong following in Berlin, so book a table before you arrive.)
As might be expected, Locke lies at the gateway to some of the city’s grooviest inner-city districts.
On day one we set out on a long walk east through grungy streets, along sidewalks dappled with windswept autumn leaves, dodging the city’s myriad cyclists before stopping for breakfast at English-language bookstore Shakespeare & Sons (in the heart of Friedrichshain). The floorboards creak, Dylan is playing softly in the background, and patrons are reading worthy tomes or tapping away on laptops.
The coffee is good (there’s a long queue) and the menu lists a dizzying array of bagels. Try the salt and pepper version with Barbie-pink horseradish and beet cream cheese.
Our impromptu exploration has us striding along wide streets, happening upon a couple of vintage stores and atmospheric bookshops as we head towards the impressive Karl-Marx-Allee.
This vast boulevard, 2km long and 89m wide, is lined with monumental buildings in “socialist classicist” style; a sort of shock-and-awe post-war reconstruction that each year hosted East Germany’s May Day parade.
It’s so long we jump in an Uber (never more than a minute away in this city) to cruise by the huge Stalinist-era tiled apartment buildings.
Berlin’s cold-war history lurks in the shadows of so many buildings in this part of town. Given we are wedged into the wall at Locke, that past feels very close. From our balcony in room 517, we look down on to the river and a small island, a remnant of the Brommybrucke bridge blown up by the SS in 1945.
The milestone year of 1989 must feel like ancient history to Locke’s younger guests. Instead, this is a hotel displaying all the stylish, edgy energy of present-day Berlin, as well as the accoutrements today’s traveller expects.
The smart studios are compact but well designed, squeezing in facilities that are useful for longer stays and sought after by a generation accustomed to Airbnb digs. It’s great to have a kitchenette for in-room breakfasts and simple suppers (a large supermarket is less than 10 minutes’ walk).
There’s an oven, stove top, fridge, coffee plunger and little stash of tea bags, milk and coffee. An ironing board pops out of the wall. There’s even a desk, small corner sofa and table.
A wall of glass opens on to a balcony that runs the length of the room, and this seems to vastly expand the room’s dimensions.
The river views are mesmerising, especially at dawn and dusk; this view must be a treat in summer. Indoors, hard concrete walls are softened with natural textiles, timber panelling, vases of dried flowers and gentle pops of pastels.
Big pluses include superfast wi-fi, a power shower, full-sized toiletries by Kinsey Apothecary of London, and good insulation; there’s no sound from the river or the bar downstairs.
We head back to where Ella is mixing margaritas before dinner, a prelude to some excellent food. Chef Andrea Iannicella presents a small menu of shared plates (generously proportioned and well-priced), such as Sardinian-style mussels, crusty bread with burnt butter, an excellent beef tartare, and the best pork slider this side of Moscow, with an equally delicious mushroom alternative for vegetarians.
We have a sampling of natural wines from Slovakia, Czech Republic and Greece, with our enthusiastic “wine guide” moving from table to table to explain the drops. And if you need to work it all off the next morning, the hotel includes an excellent gym on the eighth floor.
In the know
Locke at East Side Gallery is at Muhlenstrasse 61-63, Friedrichshain, Berlin; rooms from €176 ($290). Anima serves dinner from Wednesday to Saturday.
Christine McCabe was a guest of Locke at East Side Gallery.
