The best places in the city to enjoy an al fresco beer…or five 

It was decreed by Albert V of Bavaria that only during the period from the feast of St. Michael to the festival of St George could beer be brewed. This led to breweries storing beer underground, usually along river banks, beneath the cool shade of chestnut trees.

Inevitably, some genius (or committed drinker) realized that the combination of cold beer in the pleasant shade made for the perfect summer spot: thus, the beer garden was born.

Although our modern interpretations of the historic Biergarten often differ from the traditional guidelines—such ‘rules’ included that shade must come from trees not umbrellas, and that no fast food would be served, only solid meals—we still enjoy them on sweltering summer days with as much veracity as our beer-swilling ancestors before us.

Berlin has its own proud tradition of brewing and is subsequently host to a decent range of beer gardens, ranging from the classic to the contemporary, where cocktails are served alongside cool draft beers, and beach chairs and wifi are freely available. Here’s our pick of the best…

Bierhof Rüdersdorf

Most Berliners associate Berghain with sweaty ravers and endless techno sessions. But located next to the main building is the lesser-known Bierhof Rüdersdorf, which comprises a restaurant, a smattering of pleasant foliage and ample seating for exhausted clubbers and freshly-arrived punters alike. This being a former power station, there’s an industrial charm about the area of course, but there’s also a wooden terrace where you can enjoy a beer—Bürgerbräu Rotkehlchen is on tap—and tacos for sustenance, a sun deck where you can relax in deck chairs, and a couple of oversized porch swings.

Rüdersdorfer Straße 70, 10243 Berlin, U Weberwiese

Brauhaus Spandau

Spandau’s main brewery, lying just over the river from the citadel, is open all year round and serves hearty dishes along with delicious home brews. It’s even worth visiting during the winter to sit amongst the impressively shiny copper plated brewing gauges and vats, but the best time of year of course is summer, when the music and drinking spill out into its spacious beer garden. Repeated visits are highly recommended as the brewery features a monthly special alongside the standard helles and dunkles beers (their Havelbräu is a popular mainstay).

Neuendorfer Straße 1, 13585 Berlin, U Altstadt Spandau

Biergarten Jockel

Located on the lovely Landwehr Canal, this beer garden used to be known as Burg am See and was a fairly quirky multi-cultural insitution run by a Turkish owner. Now known as Biergarten Jockel, it still offers a classic beer garden experience alongside a pleasant indoor café, a large family-friendly playground and an event hall for up to 150 guests. With salads, burgers, flammkuchen and pizza available all day long, Pilsner Urquell on tap and many bottled beers on offer, it’s easy to get lost here for a few hours.

Ratiborstr. 14c, 10999 Berlin, U Schlesiches Tor

Cafe am Neuen See

Berlin’s equivalent of the famous Central Park boathouse restaurant, Cafe am Neuen See is one of the most popular waterside beer gardens in the city. Located in the heart of the Tiergarten, the main cafe-restaurant is open year round, but its the expansive outdoor area, with its wooden shacks serving freshly tapped beer and Bavarian and regional specialties alongside homemade pretzels and Leberkäse, and crispy stone-baked pizza and sourdough bread from the in-house Borchardt bakery, that’s the place to be in summer. 
A sandbox offers plenty of space for children to play, chestnut trees and picnic tables look out over the eponymous lake, and you can even hire a rowboat for a few euros. The zoo is right next door if you want to make a day of it but note that the beer garden does not take reservations.

Lichtensteinallee 2, 10787 Berlin, U Tiergarten

Eschenbräu

At Eschenbräu there is a beer for every season: and dozens in between. Whether it is one of their year-round beers (a pilsner, a dunkel, and a hefeweizen) or one of their nine seasonal brews, there are beers to suit every mood and taste preference. The brewery-cum-beer garden is located in the cellar of an apartment complex in Wedding, but the action spills out into an adjacent courtyard during summer months, from where guests are serviced from a small kiosk serving beer and snacks such as pretzels and flammkuchen. The brewery now distills eight types of Eschenbrenner whiskeys as well as making its own fresh apple juice from Saxony orchard fruit.

Triftstr. 67, 13353 Berlin, U Wedding

Fischerhütte am Schlachtensee

The ivy covered Fischerhütte inn that lies on the banks of the unspoiled Schlachtensee is rumoured to have been built (in 1759) to house all the fish once caught in the lake. Today, the historic building is now home to a restaurant serving up classic Alpine and Berliner cuisine: Wiener Schnitzel, Kaiserrschmarrn, Sauerbraten, Apfelstrüdel. While the main restaurant is fairly high-end (with prices to match), the umbrella-covered terrace offers great views across the lake and a cheaper menu that includes grilled chicken, salads and pasta dishes. There’s also a top-notch wine shop, private beach and children’s playground to explore.

Fischerhuttenstr. 136, 14163 Berlin, U Krumme Lanke

Golgatha

In many ways, Golgatha is about as far as you can get from a traditional Bavarian beer garden. Nestled in Kreuzberg’s popular Viktoriapark, it draws in a broad mix of families and local hipsters, who come to sip frothy ales but also long drinks while reclining in beach chairs and watching the football on big screens. The menu features sturdy classics such as Hungarian Kolbasz, steaks and sausages, as well as fish and vegetarian options. Busy as you’d expect it to be on warm days, it  really gets going around 7pm when the crowds flock to the ground-level garden as well as the adjacent rooftop terrace.

Viktoriapark, 10965 Berlin, U Yorckstrasse

Prater

Berlin’s oldest, and arguably most popular beer garden, opened in 1837, and has seen its Prenzlauer Berg neighbourhood undergo various transformations and resurgence before and after the reunification of the city. Incredible to think that almost two hundred years later, t’s still a staple of this now trendy district, still welcoming one and all into its vast back yard, where simple, picnic-style seating (for up to 600) awaits, amply shaded by chestnut trees. Though the menu in the main restaurant is a combination of home-made Berliner cuisine and seasonal specialities, most visitors to the garden seek sustenance in the surrounding kiosks, which serve simple snacks such sausages and pasta salad. Prater also occasionally hosts events like open air theater.

Kastanienallee 7-9,  10435 Berlin, U Eberswalder Strasse

Kaisergarten am Grunewaldturm

Anyone who has walked or cycled through the Grunewald will at some point have wondered if they are maybe close to a nice spot for a bite and a beer. One of the best such places is located right at the unique red-brick Grunewaldturm, in the shape of a main  indoor restaurant and a large, smart beer garden with pretty vistas that stretch right out across the sparkling Havel. The restaurant’s menu is these days quite sophisticated, with items such as baked sheep’s cheese with Mediterranean vegetables and fried fish with potato salad alongside the usual sausages and schnitzel, and there’s an obligatory wooden shack outside serving beers, coffees and cakes. For even better views, climb the historic red-brick tower (55 meters high; entrance fees apply).

Havelchaussee 61, 14193 Berlin

Schleusenkrug

Named after the nearby sluice for passing boats, the historic Schleusenkrug started life as a small kiosk along the river. Nestled on the edge of the Tiergarten park under a canopy of trees, it has the train tracks (it’s a short walk from the zoo) and a lower terrace that overlooks a small branch of the Spree on the other. A summertime institution for locals and tourists alike, the garden has a traditional but relaxed vibe even when it’s busy (which it usually is, especially at weekends). There’s barbecues in summer and a snack stall selling pretzels and more, though hungry diners can also head inside to admire the swish 50s-style interior and chow down on classics like Swiss cheese and sausage salad, spinach dumplings, Wiener Schnitzel and more.

Müller-Breslau-Str., 10623 Berlin, U Tiergarten

SUUUD

Formerly known as Brauhaus Südstern, this new enterprise has kept the classic mix of brewery and beer garden but modernised it. The main entrance terrace still lies in Kreuzberg’s Bergmannkiez and the beer garden still abuts the Hasenheide park (technically in Neukölln) but the beers now span classic Pilsners and Helles, fruity Pale Ales, and full-bodied dark beers, with the food menu extending to tasty homemade tarte flambée and health-conscious bowls alongside a more classic Wiener Schnitzel. As before, the  venue also offers a mix of entertainment, from live music and comedy nights, and continues to run brewing courses and tours.

Hasenheide 69, 10967 Berlin,  U Südstern / Hermannplatz