Year after year, every one of us got birthday – besides the fact that we have grown older again, or rather were allowed to grow older – this is a day we want to spend with family and good friends. Due to the current situation, however, this unfortunately did not work out as desired.

Therefore, we limited ourselves to the “inner circle” and I went out for dinner with my wife and child only. After we had thought about our plan, it was quickly clear what it was going to be. It had been a while since we had a good Schnitzel and since asparagus is also very popular at the moment, we looked for a suitable location.

Even though it always means a risk, we decided to go to a restaurant that we did not know before. As so often, we asked for some opinions beforehand – via Google Maps, of course. During the search for “Berlin & Schnitzel” some known restaurants popped up, but also some new ones for us.

We found the Ottenthal Restaurant & Wine Shop particularly interesting – with almost 600 reviews and a vote of 4.6, you can’t really go wrong anymore. So, we called there without further ado and reserved a table. Already on the phone we were confirmed in our decision by the friendly and sympathetic nature of our counterpart.

After a 15 minutes subway ride and a good 600 meters walk, we reached the Ottenthal and were welcomed there in a very friendly way. The restaurant has a long, bright and lovingly designed dining room. Those who want, can also sit outside in front of the restaurant, but as we got what I consider to be the “best table” right at the window, our decision was clear.

The service was remarkably courteous – thus, the first impression of the telephone continued. After a short “study” of the menu, it was clear what we wanted to order besides Wiener Schnitzel. I ordered an Alsterwasser (with Salzburger Stiegel) and my wife and daughter decided to have an apple spritzer.

We thought it was great that the apple spritzer in Ottenthal is prepared with cloudy and very tasty apple juice as standard – you could taste the difference in quality right away. Moreover, this restaurant is very child-friendly – we quickly got a high chair, a glass with coloured pencils and enough paper to “keep our little mouse busy”.

Still during our order, we were handed a few slices of two excellent baguette sorts, together with a glass of homemade “Erdapfel-Kas”. The mixture didn’t really contain cheese, but cream cheese or curd cheese, finely seasoned with herbs and spices – a great and unique “starter from the house”.

Afterwards I had chosen a carpaccio of young bull and buffalo fillet as starter, which was served with marinated seasonal mushrooms, rocket and “shavings” of Grana (Italian hard cheese). I especially liked the meat, which was well tempered – from my point of view carpaccio is often served much too cold.

Furthermore, the rocket was well portioned, very young, crisp and it got a very fine, slightly nutty aroma. The marinated mushrooms – Schwammerln – had been lightly sautéed and in combination with the Grana, this starter was a real poem.

Our little daughter got a portion of fried potatoes – they did not look very special, but that was deceptive. In terms of taste they were a great success. They were crispy, cooked to the point and fried with a handful of spring onions. Moreover, they were only slightly spiced, so that you could actually taste the fine aroma of the excellent potatoes.

The Wiener Schnitzel in Ottenthal comes from the organic veal loin and you can taste it. I am always pleased to see how little by little meat that meets animal welfare standards is being put on the table everywhere.

For my Schnitzel I had chosen a potato and “Vogerl” salad – a combination of marinated lamb’s lettuce and the classic Austrian potato salad – very tasty! The temperature was right here too, so nothing stood in the way of perfect enjoyment.

The Schnitze`s themselves were classic “elephant ears”, i.e. very large and very thin – yet crispy and you could taste the balanced interplay of breading and meat – a real treat. My wife had chosen potatoes, white asparagus and sauce Hollandaise for her Schnitzel.

Even the potatoes were fantastic, they had a strong taste of their own – the ideal “fat salad potato” – whereby I assume that both – our daughter’s fried potatoes and those of my salad were exactly these delicious potatoes. The asparagus was cooked to the point, not watery, but with a strong aroma and a firm bite, and the sauce Hollandaise was light and mild.

There is no other way to say it, we were completely satisfied – starting with the location, the good service and the great food & drinks. We felt comfortable and what more could you ask for, it just fit. There was a little space left, which is why we let ourselves be moved to a small dessert.

We decided on a scoop of homemade elderberry sorbet – the right decision. It was not too sweet, offered so much space for the unique elderberry aroma and was very refreshing. Only in terms of consistency there is still a little room for the sorbet to rise.

Afterwards I had a cappuccino to round it all off. This was also remarkably good – with the perfect froth and a little vanilla “Kipferl”, just the right thing to finish off. That you can also come to Ottenthal for coffee and cake was clear when I got the sweet greeting from the kitchen.

By the way, the “workshop” of the Ottenthal offers sweet and savoury things for celebrations and events. The range here extends from Baumkuchen, snacks and finger food to the classic “Schweinebraten” and much more. This is another way to support our restaurateurs in these difficult times.

As the menu of the Ottenthal had so much more to offer – for example a classic boiled beef (mmmh, delicious) – it was clear that this was not our last visit there. I can only warmly recommend this restaurant in the heart of Berlin. If you visit it, I would be happy to hear your opinion about the Ottenthal – best via Facebook.

By the way, it is important to point out that the parking situation is rather “stressing”. So, if you want to visit the Ottenthal – best park in the car park around the corner. This will ensure a much more relaxed enjoyment, because here the people from the public order office and the police already step on each other’s toes when writing out parking tickets.