YOU ARE HERE: OYSTERS AND TILES
The Kempinski wine shop & restaurant in Leipziger Straße
Wine shop and restaurant of Berthold and Helena Kempinski in Berlin’s Leipziger Str. 25 - the Kempinskis second Berlin location after a smaller and much more modest place nearby, in Friedrichstraße corner Taubenstraße.
The opening of its Kaisersaal was attended by the man himself - Kaiser Wilhelm II graciously inspected the interior decorated with Cadinen tiles (that graciousness might or might not have had something to do with the fact that Cadinen - or Cadiner - tile manufacture together with the rest of the Cadinen estate were the emperor’s private property) and showed himself satisfied with the result.
And so, once again the Berlin Chiceria (German word for slightly snobbish, chic people) knew where to dine.
Despite the appearances, the food was rather affordable: initially, every dish cost 75 Pfennig, including a serving of a dozen oysters, some bread a glass of bubbly.
If you are planning a visit (set your time-machine to 1909/1910) and feel like splashing out, 2.50 mark will get you 100 gramme of caviar served in a colourfully illuminated block of ice.
Prost!
Oh, and in case you were asking yourself: why “M. Kempinski & Co” on the building, if the man’s name was Berthold?
Because like many, especially Jewish, entrepreneurs arriving in Berlin from without - in this case from Posen - the start capital came from one brother, while the actually running was done by another.
It was Moritz Kempinski’s name that was immortalised on the building.