Where to Try Cheap German Food in Berlin

Last updated: August 8, 2024

Berlin may not be as budget-friendly as it once was, but there are still plenty of spots for tasty food at reasonable or on occasion even cheap prices. In the same way, you can’t walk into any old restaurant in Berlin and anticipate amazing food every time, you also have to work a little harder to find budget-friendly options.

While I’ve already written about my favorite budget eats in Berlin, I thought I’d try and take that a step further and share my favorite spots to try affordable German food in Berlin, geared towards visitors looking to try the local cuisine. I will let you know that most local Germans I know don’t eat German food too frequently (with the exception of bread, beer, and perhaps the occasional Abendbrot), but I totally understand why you’d want to get your fix of German food while in Berlin, even more so if you can get a great deal.

Scheers Schnitzel

Scheers Schnitzel is a fantastic no-frills spot in Friedrichshain to try Schnitzel. Schnitzel is originally from Austria and was first adopted into German cuisine in the 17th century. Their Schnitzel plates range in price from around ~€8 to 10, including sides. For first-time visitors, I recommend trying the Schnitzel mit Kartoffelsalat, their Jägerschnitzel, or the Hamburger Schnitzel. The first is a typical take, pork schnitzel served with a standard German potato salad. It’s a good introduction to classic Schnitzel. The second comes with mushroom sauce, fries, and coleslaw — the addition of mushroom sauce is more unique to Germany as Austrians don’t typically serve their Schnitzel with sauce. The serving style of the Hamburger Schnitzel originates from Hamburg, Germany. It’s served with a fried egg, braised onions, fries, and coleslaw. This is my go-to since I like a fried egg with my Schnitzel.

You get a free choice of sauces, but be sure to ask for them when you order, I like their curry and chili sauces. Their Preiselbeeren (lingonberry jam) is also just 50¢ and worth the slight splurge if you like a little sweet with your savory. If you want to try just their potato salad you can order a side for €4, and there are a few other modifications you can make for a small cost like turkey meat rather than pork or the addition of cheese. Any of the Schnitzels can be replaced with a seitan patty, and the Schniposa is served with fries and salad if you want a guaranteed fully plant-based meal, although I think their potato salad is also vegan.*

Everything I’ve tried here has been quite good and the portions are hearty. They’re honestly hard to beat in terms of quality-to-cost ratio. They’re located on Warschauer Straße, making them a convenient spot to grab a bite to eat before taking a stroll along the East Side Gallery, or after an afternoon of weekend thrifting at Boxi and RAW Gelände.

*For more vegan German food in Berlin read more here.

Domke Nino Fleischerei

Not too far from Scheers lies Domke Nino, a butcher shop that serves up an array of mostly German and Eastern European dishes at a pretty reasonable rate. You’ll find very meaty dishes here like:

Bratwurst (grilled sausage) served with Sauerkraut (fermented cabbage) and potatoes for ~€6.50
Gulasch/Goulash (meaty stew) with noodles for ~€8.00
Kasslerbraten (smoked ham) served with potatoes for ~€8.00
Eisbein (corned ham hock) with Sauerkraut and potatoes for ~€8.50
Rinderroulade (cooked beef roll) or Kohlroulade (cooked cabbage roll) served with potatoes and red cabbage for ~€8 to €10
Schnitzel (tenderized and breaded pork) with red cabbage and potatoes for ~€7.50
Blutwurst (blood sausage) with sauerkraut and potatoes for ~€6.50

The meat served is naturally pretty high quality as well, since it’s sourced at this 30-year-old Friedrichshain butchery. Overall, it’s such a nice casual spot for homestyle food and worth a visit. Keep in mind the seating is a little more limited, with a few tables both in and outside.

Heisser Hobel at Markthalle Neun

Heard of Käsespatzle? If you haven’t tried it and you’re a fan of mac and cheese, it’s a must-try. Käsespatzle consists of egg noodles mixed with cheese and cream, frequently topped with some variation of onion, and sometimes additionally bacon or parsley. It originates from the German regions of Swabia, Baden, and Allgäu, as well as Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. Heisser Hobel serves up potentially the best Käsespatzle I’ve tried in Berlin. They mix, shape, and boil their noodles in-house then top the dish with fried onions, chives, and freshly cracked black pepper. Plus, the cream and cheese are sourced from organic dairy farmers in Bavaria making the whole dish so unbelievably fresh, high quality, and delicious. The street food portion is €6.50, while the full portion is €10.00.

Heisser Hobel is located inside Kreuzberg’s Markthalle Neun, a vibrant food hall* popular for their international cuisine. Visit on Thursday evenings for Street Food Thursday, Friday afternoons, or Saturday afternoons to find the most amount of stalls open. You can also check opening times here.

*For more food and market halls in Berlin read more here.

Puffer-Imbiss

Puffer Imbiss sells tasty Kartoffelpuffer (fried potato pancakes similar to latkes) and Eierkuchen (eggy pancakes). Kartoffelpuffer is speculated to have been adapted to German cuisine in the 1700s, a few decades after the potato first started being incorporated in German cuisine (to which I say: what the hell did they eat before then?!), whereas Eierkuchen can be described as Germany’s take on pancakes.

Both dishes are popular street food in Germany, frequently sold at Christmas markets, so it’s a real treat that you can also get them at this year-round food stall. The basic version of both is €3.50, but you can add toppings like apple sauce, herb cream, Nutella, jam, and vanilla sauce for an additional €0.50 to €1. The traditional way to eat Kartoffelpuffer is with a side of apple sauce and a sprinkle of sugar, but my favorite way to enjoy them is with herb cream (Krauterquark). The food is simple but totally tasty! You’ll find them not too far from Neukölln’s Hermannplatz U8 station.

Gaststätte zur S-Bahn Hoppe-Garten

This spot is admittedly totally out of the way for most tourists and Berliners, but if you happen to find yourself in Hennigsdorf, the small city that borders Berlin to the northwest, do make your way to Gaststätte zur S-Bahn Hoppe-Garten. This quaint family-run eatery came to be in 1991 when Bernfried and Brigitte Hoppe decided to save a meal car from a soon-to-be-demolished 1930s Berlin S-Bahn. They paid around 3,000 Deutschmark (or €1,500 today) to claim the wagon and have it delivered to their backyard. The train has worn a few hats over the decades, and today it’s a delightful restaurant and beer garden serving delicious German cuisine, all prepared by the same friendly couple. The only other patrons when we visited appeared to be friends of Bernfried who also cheerily pointed out details about the train that we might’ve missed.

Although it’s a smidge less maintained these days, it’s a very cool preserved bit of Berlin history. The business is slower than it was in the 90s as they now get fewer customers and the married owners prepare to retire. Even though they plan for the restaurant to only last another summer or so, they want to keep the car and ensure this slice of history doesn’t get scrapped. The inside of the train is a little too warm to eat in in the summer, but you can still explore it while waiting for your food. They have heaters so I think I’ll try to visit again this winter.

It’s not too much effort to get there from Berlin, simply ride the S25 to the end station at Hennigsdorf then walk the last 22 minutes or take the 136 bus for four stops. There’s also a direct bus from Spandau. Just be sure to double-check on Google Maps that they’re currently open since they close periodically.

I have to emphasize again that the food was so good! I highly recommend the Kartoffelpuffer and Hamburger Schnitzel, which cost respectively €4.50 and €13.80. They’re one of the more expensive places on this list, but the prices are fair for the atmosphere and taste, and certainly thriftier than sit-down places you find in more central parts of the city.

Peter Schlemihl

Peter Schlemihl is a wonderful restaurant! If you’re looking for a cozy sit-down dinner spot with a lovely ambiance, hearty portions, comforting mains, quality ingredients, and decent enough pricing give them a try. Their specialty is Käsespatzle which you can try with either Bergkäse (Alpine mountain cheese) or Gorgonzola (Italian blue cheese) for just under €13. If you’re feeling adventurous, give their Himmel & Erde (Heaven & Earth) plate a try. This traditional German dish is especially popular in the German states of Rhineland, Lower Saxony, and Westphalia. It consists of stewed apples and mashed potatoes and is also commonly served with Blutwurst (blood sausage), like how it is here. Their version costs €14.50. I’ll be sticking to their tasty Spätzle, but if you’re curious I’m sure they do a mean blood sausage. In warmer months you can follow up dinner with a beer at nearby Golgatha Beer Garden.

Currywurst

Berlin is the birthplace of Currywurst. In 1949, Herta Heuwer first coined the dish after combining ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and curry powder that she obtained from British soldiers stationed in Berlin. She added a few other spices and combined the sauce with Bratwurst (grilled pork sausage) before setting up a stand in the western Charlottenburg district. Her dish became popular with construction workers in the area who would fuel up on Currywurst before continuing their work of rebuilding Berlin after World War II. At its height, her stand sold 10,000 Currywurst servings per week.

Although her stand is no longer present, this dish is still very much present in Berlin’s food culture. It’s a simple dish, but it can definitely hit the spot. Most places in Berlin do a decent enough job at recreating the dish, but my favorite spots are probably between Curry & Chili and Curry Baude, both located in Gesundbrunnen.

For my full list of Berlin’s best Currywurst, click here.

Bakeries

Bakeries in Berlin are a great idea if you’re looking for a cost-friendly and authentic German breakfast. Even if you hit up a fancier spot you’re still not going to spend an arm and a leg. There are so many to be found in Berlin, but if you’re in the Hermannplatz area I recommend Café Bäckerei Süss. They’re one of the most cost-friendly bakeries I know of, with sandwiches for just under €3, plenty of pastries and cakes for less than €2, plus Turkish breads for €2-3. Rolls will set you back less than 50¢.

At Prenzlauer Berg’s Siebert Bakery, you’ll find plenty of German pastries for an affordable price including the famous jelly-filled powdered donuts called Berliners, Pfannkuchen, Krapfen, Kreppel, or Bismarck depending on the region of Germany you’re in. In Berlin, they’re ironically called Pfannkuchen. They were first connected to Berlin in the 1800s, based on a legend about an unfit Berlin baker in the Prussian Army who made these donuts. At this bakery, you’ll likely also find other German sweet treats like Käsekuchen (German cheesecake), Mohnkuchen (poppy seed cake), and Pudding Brezel (pudding pretzel). They’re also the oldest bakery in Berlin, which is another cool reason to visit.

Find more Berlin bakery recommendations here.

Döner

Döner is a street food developed by Turkish immigrant Kadir Nurman in Berlin in 1972. Today it’s even more popular than Currywurst, with over 1,000 establishments selling Döner in Berlin alone. Nurman took inspiration from traditional Turkish kebab to adapt and create this dish that consists of pita bread filled with sliced meat shaved from a vertical rotisserie, fresh vegetables, spices, and sauce. Standard Döner is typically made of beef, lamb, veal, or chicken. I prefer chicken Döner!

Some people believe that the best Döner is whichever one is closest to you and while that sentiment certainly holds some value, my favorite Döner has got to be either Rüyam 2 or K’Ups, both located in Prenzlauer Berg. I like to get my Döner with chili, yogurt, and garlic sauces, plus feta. Most Döner shops will also offer halloumi, vegetable, or falafel variations. Döner has been jumping in cost quite a bit in recent years, so €5 to €7.50 is what you should expect to pay. Not every Döner is going to be a 10/10, but they hit the spot after a night out, and the really good ones are a near-spiritual experience.

Spätis

Spätis (pronounced shpeh-tee) are small kiosks that typically stay open most of the day and into the night to sell drinks, snacks, and really whatever they feel like. People visit to stop in for a midday treat, to grab a refreshment to enjoy on the go or take to a local park (public drinking is generally legal here BTW), or to keep the party going after a night out. Some Spätis even set out chairs and tables so you can enjoy your drinks there. Most Spätis offer beer, wine, sodas, juice, tea, energy drinks, some spirits, and even coffee. Beer and soda typically cost anywhere from €1 to €4.

These Spätis are a great way to taste the local culture, you’ll find plenty of drinks from Berlin and Germany. For boozy Berlin-based drinks keep an eye out for Original Berlin Cidre (OBC), Berliner Radler, Berliner Pilsner, Schultheiss, Berliner Kindl, and BRLO. For non-alcohol Berlin-based drinks try Proviant drinks and Rixdorfer Fassbrausse. Fritz-kola, Mio Mio Mate, and Club Mate also make good colas and mates from Germany.

For my in-depth Späti guide read: Local Drinks to Try at Spätis in Berlin next.

Biergärten

Beer Gardens are wonderful places to pass time in the sun with a Stein of something German in hand. Although they won’t have the cheapest beer and food in the city, you won’t be bothered if you want to spend a few hours just chilling with friends and leisurely nursing your drink. I’ve shared my favorite Berlin beer gardens previously, but Café am Neuen See, Holzmarkt, and Vagabund are quite nice. Café am Neun See is especially picturesque, it’s located inside the city’s biggest park and it has great pretzels. Holzmarkt is nice for more alternative vibes and Vagabund is also a craft brewery.

Vagabund Brauerei

Etc.

Plenty of train stations sell low-cost baked goods. Grocery stores are also great places to find regional cuisine and many groceries like Lidl and REWE bake their pastries in-house. Put enough items together for dinner and you’ll have Abendbrot, a light evening meal commonly made up of bread, cold cuts of meat and cheese, and spreads. It’ll sometimes also involve some fresh produce, pickles, sausage, or boiled egg (if you’re feeling fancy). It honestly consists of whatever you can scrounge up and it’s not too fancy, but it is German.

Where to Try Affordable German Food in Berlin