The Bird

Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin –

Tucked away in the East Berlin neighborhood of Prenzlauer Berg, The Bird is a New York-style bar and steakhouse in which everything – menu, décor, staff, and clientele – contributes to a classic dive bar feel.

Once past the walls hung with license plates, photos, and quotations extolling the virtues of beer, patrons will most likely be handed a menu that scolds diners to please “eat the damn burger with your hands.”

The venue’s wry attempt at being curmudgeonly, however, is undermined by the attentive and chatty staff who engage customers in conversation and often referee debates over music, politics, and, of course, the best way to order a steak.

(medium rare appears to be the correct answer).

Visitors and regulars happily rub elbows here – indeed, most of the bartenders and wait staff are expats – and English is as likely to be heard as German.

The burgers themselves, served with hand-cut fries, are a local legend and come with a variety of unique and savory toppings. For the brave at heart, meanwhile, The Bird’s “napalm wings” provide the kind of eye-watering spiciness the New York-born proprietors felt was lacking in most German cuisine.

Sorry Germany. New Yorkers call it like they see it.