The Bird

Head to The Bird up in Prenzlauer Berg (now opening a second branch in Kreuzberg) for a dip into that emotional, American relationship with beef. A dip, in the literal sense, as the menu hectors diners to ditch the ‘uptight’ knife and fork (rolls of kitchen towel are supplied on each table for those wishing to get elbow-deep). Get stuck at one of the large chunky tables for a long-haul meaty experience. Staff stick to the hard-bitten New Yorker stereotype and the restaurant gets rowdy: ‘angry hour’ runs from 6-8pm every day, with a two-for-one offer on Schneider Weisse draught beer and 25 cent spicy chicken wings. The Bird’s burgers (starting at €9.50) are mighty: 250g of freshly minced meat is smothered in molten cheese and caramelised onions, with a toasted English muffin perched jauntily atop the sloppy pile. Alongside this glistening beauty lies an enormous pile of hand-cut fries, one of the restaurant’s highlights. Options for burger variants include blue cheese, guacamole, bacon, and so on, but any addition here seems like overkill. Don’t plan on doing much after tackling one of these gut-busters; you should roll out virtually prostrate.