In a 60s industrial complex not far from the Jewish Museum, a creative cosmos is emerging. Long a home for art galleries, the buildings have recently welcomed the Pool showroom for men’s fashion and, in July 2021, a new cafe called Akkurat. The place is a side project from Rocco Kopecny and Andreas Roth who run a namesake agency producing advertising and music videos. In addition to coffee from fairtrade Kreuzberg roastery Nano Kaffee, you can get delicious cheese and onion sandwiches, croissants and brioche that are either made in-house or sourced from La Maison bakery. As for the interior, the cafe’s gallery-like rooms and sleek yet welcoming design make this a perfect place for hanging out and winding down. The large window front makes the space look like a film set when the sun is shining, while the 2m-wide painting by Monja Gentschow makes you dream of summer days past.

The heart of the cafe is the counter, upon which sit two matte black grinders for the beans and a large coffee machine. The setup might look familiar to one or two coffee nerds: up until October 2020 it was used at the Tørnqvist cafe in Hamburg’s Schanzenviertel. Manager Core grew up in Kreuzberg and was previously the restaurant manager at Beuster Bar in Neukölln before stepping out on the city’s coffee scene. He has big plans for Akkurat, including an expanded terrace and regular pop-up events. The cafe is an ideal environment for taking a break from your home office: just grab your laptop and let the atmosphere inspire and motivate. That said, you might want to leave your work at home since this place really is too beautiful to be staring at a screen…

Text & Photos: Jonas Michel

Akkurat Café, Besselstr.13, 10969 Berlin–Kreuzberg; map
Mon–Fri 8h30–18h

@akkurat.cafe

Berlin is a home-away-from-home for many Australians. On a daily basis, it’s possible to overhear Aussie accents all over – not least at the cafes that celebrate the country’s third wave coffee culture. But the fastest way to be transported down under? Bite into a freshly-toasted slice of crispy walnut and pear banana bread at Zacharias Kaffeebar. Add a good lather of butter and you’ll be daydreaming of the Antipodes in no time. Serving pastries and baked goods, warm or toasted, is commonplace in Australia – something Zacharias founders Johannes and Mario learned back in 2017 while working at the same cafe in Melbourne. Fast forward to 2021 and the pair have their very own shop in Prenzlauer Berg’s Kollwitzkiez, taking the maiden name of Johannes’ grandmother. Inside, Maria Martinez of Kim Wang Architects has drawn from classic Italian and modern Australian design to recreate the feeling of the fast-paced service at Italian coffee counters mixed with the warm, high-quality approach of Melbourne neighborhood cafes.

Coffee options include the Rungeto blend, which is grown on volcanic soil in Kenya. It can be enjoyed over ice or as a steaming pour-over, with the heat bringing out the sourness of the blackcurrant and rhubarb notes. For something more adventurous, try the smokey, whiskey-like Soarez blend or ask about the off-menu mocha and affogato specials. Drinking coffee on an empty stomach is never a good idea, so we recommend sampling the many delightful pastries supplied by Neukölln bakery Jean De Pierre. The vegan charcoal croissant has the consistency of cotton candy and will melt in your mouth just as quickly, while for a trip to Naples there’s the freshly-baked ricotta and orange-filled sfogliatella napoletana pastry. As for the banana bread, here it’s zero-waste, composed of sweet, ripe bananas no longer fit for sale. Guilt-free indulgence at its finest.

Text: Claire Mouchemore / Photos: Zacharias Kaffeebar

Zacharias Kaffeebar, Kollwitzstr.44 10405 Berlin–Prenzlauer Berg; map
Tue–Fri 8–16h, Sat–Sun 9–17h 

@zacharias.kaffeebar