Ditsch Pretzels

Ditsch stands are everywhere in Germany. This is a great place to get Laugen Bretzeln. The pretzels here are always fresh, soft, and delicious. And even better, they only cost 60 cents. It’s my favorite place to get pretzels cause I’m always sure they’ll be good. Stale pretzels or over salted pretzels can be very disappointing.

Wunderlampe

This was one of our favorite Döner stands because we made friends with Aladin. He’s seriously one of the nicest guys ever; every time we went there he gave us free stuff and had nice conversations with us. Not only is he awesome, but the Chicken Döner’s great too. The mini-Döner is the size of a regular Döner at other stands and the regular Döner is huge, so big that you can’t even close it until you eat some from the center. We haven’t dared tried the Big Döner yet, but I’m sure it won’t disappoint. Very delicious and definitely one of the best Döner places in the city too. Just get off at the Eisenacher Strasse U7 Stop, exit on the Eisenacher Strasse side.

Mustafas Gemüse Kebap

Mustafas Gemüse Kebap, right next to Currywurst 36 at the Mehringdamm U-Bahn station, is a notable Döner stand. This one’s special because it’s a Chicken Döner with grilled vegetables and potatoes in it instead of the usual lettuce and tomatoes. It is then topped with feta cheese and lime. Although it costs a little bit more, you’re definitely getting more than your average Döner. Some say its the best. I only ever eat Döner at two places, and this one of them.

The Famous Currywurst Stand: Curry36

Currywurst is Berlin's most famous snack. What is it? It’s basically a cut-up sausage covered in a special kind of ketchup, topped with curry powder. It makes for a great quick snack. Curry36 is the most popular and the best currywurst stand in Berlin and is right outside the Mehringdamm U-Bahn stop. It’s open really late (until at least 3am daily) so it’s a perfect snack point at any time of day. There's always a long line, but it's well worth the wait.

Beckers Fritten

Looking for fresh French fries? Just get off at the Oranienburger strasse stop and you'll find it right next to Amrit. We found a great Dutch french-fries stand for you. It costs 2 euros for a small and 3 euros for a large order of FRESH fries. Word of warning, we don’t quite understand why, but they are served in a paper wrapped into a cone, which makes it very hard to eat. You’ll see what we mean when you try. For an extra 40-65 cents, you can choose from a variety of sauces, including knoblauch mayo, Indian curry, jalapeño cheese, applesauce and many more. Be as daring as you would like.

Dada Falafel

Outside of Habibi Falafel, this is the other falafel stand in the running for best Falafel in the city. Also perfectly soft and seasoned, this place makes your high quality falafel. Since both places are delicious, it comes down to a matter of location; go to whichever is closer to you when the cravings hit. To get here, just get off at the Oranienburger Strasse stop and the address is Linienstraße 132.

The Gyros Stand

This stand sells Greek Gyros instead of Döner; there's also wurst. But the real reason to go to this place is cause the guy who runs it is awesome. He loves practicing German with you (he likes Americans), and he'll get really excited and tell you to visit his website and in general, he's just a cute little man. Just get off at Gneisenaustrasse on the U7 and it's on Bergmannstrasse.

Dolce Pizza

Dolce Pizza is absolutely delicious. This take-out pizza joint at Nollendorfplatz is popular amongst all Berliners. There's always a crowd of people in front standing around or sitting on the benches in front since there isn't much space inside. It's one of the best pizza places in the city, known for their oven-baked pizzas served on fresh Italian focaccia bread with fresh toppings.


My favorites are the Ruccola Pizza and the Spicy Salami. It's so good, in fact, that we once saw a girl eat an entire 5 slices by herself (and the slices are huge!). Everyone must try this place at least once while in Berlin. O yes, and last piece of information: it's only €2 per slice, perfect for us pleite (broke) college students.

1/2-meter Bratwurst Stand

Finding wurst (sausage) stands in Berlin takes no effort at all. But if you're really hungry and in the "wurst mood," you can get off at Schloßstrasse on the U9 and try the 1/2m long Bratwurst. You'll find it right next to Starbucks. It's the only place in Berlin where you'll get a full-sized roll long enough for the wurst instead of the usual tiny rolls. So go get some sausage! (no sexual innuendo implied)

Habibi Falafel

With two different locations (9 Akazienstrasse and 24 Goltzstrasse), this little Falafel place is considered by many as the Best Falafel in Berlin. The other Falafel place in the running for this title is Dada Falafel. The Falafel balls are perfectly seasoned, fresh, and soft. You can order the Falafel Sandwich with your choice of different sauces (I always get the Sesam sauce) for only €2.50. To get here, get off at Nollendorf Platz (for the Goltzstrasse location) or Eisenacher Strasse (for the Akazienstrasse location). Enjoy!

McDonalds: upscale in Europe?

Believe it or not, this is what McDonalds at the Berlin Hauptbahnhof looks like inside. Yep, they are definitely slightly classier establishments here. While I never really ate at McD's in the US, I have grown to appreciate it here in Europe as an ubiquitous place to get cheap food. Also, we found that American fast food chains are unfortunately some of the only places you can find burgers with normal-tasting beef patties.

They also have this McCafe thing going on at a lot of locations. It's basically their version of Starbucks, with a coffee menu, smoothies, pastries, lighter sandwiches, and other such coffee-joint food.