Our guide to some of the best German cuisine in the Hauptstadt…

Berlin’s food culture is as diverse as its population—to the point where its traditional cuisine often gets overlooked. Heading out on a mission to find German food in the capital can uncover some pleasant surprises, since the city offers abundant opportunities to test your notions of what constitutes traditional German cuisine.

Sauerkraut? Pickled herring? Wurst? Check, check, check. But you’ll also find Spätzle and Maultaschen, the delicious southern German take on pasta, tasty Klöße (dumplings), smoked trout, bolete (meatballs) and plenty of pork hocks, all backed up by a dizzying array of cakes and locally produced wines and beers. Guten appetit (and Prost!)

Kurpfalz-Weinstuben

This atmospheric Palatinate wine bar is slightly hidden amongst a huddle of Spätkaufen (late night kiosks) and commercial stores in Charlottenburg. Despite its locale—and Berlin’s ever-evolving culinary landscape—the weinstuben has sustained its authentic and distinct flavor for over 75 years. The menu represents Palatine cuisine with items such as Saumagen (pig’s stomach), a particular favorite of the Palatine diet along with bratwurst, grieweworscht (a blood pudding sausage), and läwwerknedel (liver dumplings). Even more impressive are the 20,000 bottles of wine in the basement.

Kurfplaz-Weinstuben, Wilmersdorfer Straße 93, 10629 Berlin, 030 8836664, www.kurpfalz-weinstuben.de

Zur Letzten Instanz

Zur Letzten Instanz dates back to the sixteenth century, and as such is one of Berlin’s oldest pubs. Appositely located in the Nikoleiviertel (Berlin’s ersatz Old Town), it has done its best to retain an Old World charm, with simple wooden tables and chairs, old photographs and paintings on the wall and a menu that pays hearty tribute to Germany’s traditional cuisine.

Dining here can be a serious gustatorial endeavour with mains that cater to the German appetite for large portions, featuring house specials like “Berlin in a clay pot”, the equivalent of …