Max and Moritz sits in Berlin’s Kreuzberg district, named after two infamous pranksters from an 1865 children’s story.
Finding it was our first challenge. We wandered Kreuzberg’s streets for 30 minutes, following wrong directions from a friend. By the time we spotted the wooden sign, our feet ached. But stepping inside changed everything. The place hit different from Kreuzberg’s usual trendy spots – warm wooden floors stretched beneath tall ceilings, and a grand bar anchored the room filled with happy diners.
The restaurant captures the spirit of old Berlin.
Our wait began at the bar, where each menu page featured original illustrations from the Max and Moritz tale. They sat us in the dining room’s center, perfect for watching plates of traditional German food pass by. But the kitchen was overwhelmed.
The service tested our patience. Thirty minutes passed without a server. When one finally approached, another pulled her aside – the kitchen had stopped taking orders. At 10 PM. In Berlin.
We stayed anyway, stubborn and starving.
Food Rundown
Bread & Salads
They could’ve served us this bread while we were waiting for them to take our orders. I just don’t get it, but after taking a bite of the bread, I quickly forgot all the bad things. The bread was so fluffy and warm on the inside with a crunchy skin on the outside. They served it with sour cream and oohhhh so good.
We ordered 3 salads and I ordered a potato soup; those came to our table within minutes. The 3 salads were tomatoes, beets, and cucumber, and all 3, especially the beets, were soooo good I never had beets before, and after this salad, I loooooove them. All 3 salads were simple with just garlic and olive oil. They were fantastic Fresh fresh fresh.
Main Courses
My friend J ordered the Schweinefilet in Champignonrahm, pork filet served on a creamy mushroom sauce with dumpling noodles (they ran out so he got potato dumplings instead) and salad, my friend T got the wiener schnitzel, and I got the Königsberger Klopse, braised highly seasoned meatballs served with a light cream caper sauce, boiled potatoes, and side-salad. Yes, the same meatballs that walked by me. Funny thing, all our orders came with a side salad Oooohhhh so much salad. The side salads also had beets, cucumbers, and tomatoes hahahaha.
I took a bite of my friend’s wiener schnitzel even though I promised myself not to eat veal. *Shrugs, I didn’t find anything special about it; it tasted just like pork katsu, and I rather eat pork katsu over a bed of curry rice. Boy was I glad I got the HIGHLY seasoned meatballs. The meatballs were light and juicy, I mean what can go wrong with meat, cream sauce, and potatoes?! Nothing Like everything on the table, it was a simple dish but done so well. Only if we weren’t so dead tired, I think we would’ve stayed longer and finished our food.
