I've often walked by this place and was always enticed by the aesthetically pleasing allure, so I…read moredecided to give it a try. We only came for dessert and a drink. I ordered a wine, which was decent, but nothing great, and my husband ordered a beer. For dessert we ordered the Kaiserschmarren, and it was AMAZING! Literally, one of the best things I've ever eaten! Now, I would have no doubt given this place five stars had it not been for the deplorable service. When ordering our drinks, the waiter didn't ask the size of beer in which my husband wanted, so he just brought my husband the larger size. When my husband told him he wanted the smaller one the guy rolled his eyes and said ok. I understand the guy may have been annoyed by such a request, but it was both of their faults for not specifying which size, as well as you should never express your disdain for the customer. Not only that, the service was incredibly slow. There were only two other people there, in addition to us, so I would expect to not have to wait 15 minutes to order a drink and another 10-15 to receive it. The waiter never came to check up on us either. We had to go and get him when we wanted something. Despite the horrendous customer service, I would most definitely come back again for the Kaiserschmarren!

So, I was laying over one night between flights, staying at the Quality Inn on Hollanderstrausse in…read morethe Reinickendorf neighborhood just east of Tegel airport, and I wanted dinner in the area. All the restaurant reviews that showed up on my smartphone were in German, and didn't seem too close by. So, I took a long walk up Aroser, across Emmentaler, and back down Residenzestrasse to Hollander. Plenty of Asian quick-food shops but most were closing by 8pm. A couple other pubs didn't look too interesting or foodie. Back at the hotel, I strolled up Baseler Strausse (right beside it) and in one long block stumbled on Schäferstübchen, at the corner of Grindelwaldweg. It's dark and woodsy on the outside, like the cottage in Hansel and Gretel, and I wasn't sure it served meals, as patrons were watching a Euro Cup soccer match outside and I didn't see plates on the tables, but I went in and asked. The lady at the bar spoke a few words more English than I speak German (so, together we had 20 words in common) but asking for wienerschnitzel, chips (fries) and salad was enough to get a fabulous meal. Now, I know that's not in itself a remarkable meal, but it was prepared deliciously in the finest pub style, served promptly before I was half-done with a very nice Pils beer, and with great company in an authentically nice neighborhood atmosphere...for €11.30! Including beer!! (The mushroom sauce on the schnitzel was made with fresh mushrooms.) I will go out of my way to eat there again.