A Schnitzel restaurant in the heart of the tourist zone between Museum Island and the Hackescher Markt subway station.
Tourist traps abound, but this place is pretty good.
Non-trivially, there were lots of German people eating here.
The other restaurants were struggling to bring in customers.
One particularly desperate competitor had hired an actor to wear a chef's hat and chef's costume.
He would go up to pedestrians and smack his lips on his fingertips while showing you the menu so you could see how good his food was.
No one who saw that finger kissing act actually went into the rival restaurant.
Heimwerk in contrast, does not have to hire shills.
They were getting all sorts of business just from people choosing to walk in the door.
* * *
In general, I am not a huge German/Austrian schnitzel fan.
I like Italian parmigianas and Argentine milanesas that put more goodies on the cutlet.
Schnitzel is to pork or veal what sole meuniere is to fish.
Bread it. Saute it. You have a nice safe plain lunch.
Not wanting to be bored, I got the most elaborate schnitzel they had.
This was a Munich-style pork version with horseradish under the breading.
The Munich version is better than say the Austrian Tyrol version.
It is still schnitzel.
My own inclination towards negativity was helped along by a pea soup
That was made of fresh peas ... which is a good point ...
And had less pea taste than most of the pea soups I have had elsewhere.
My wife like the place more than I did.
She got scrambled eggs and a superb ginger tea made with a real ginger root and not a teabag.
She was ecstatic.
The average Yelp reader will agree more with her than with me.
Most people who eat meat like schnitzel.
Some like it a lot.
* * *
I suspect I would have liked this place more if I had been drinking beer.
German food is really made to go with beer.
My abstemious ways definitely led to the meal being incomplete.
* * *
I am giving Heimwerk four stars because that is how much I think most Yelp readers will enjoy the place.
The schnitzel are good for what they are ...
and the competing establishments look positively lethal.
If the locals are acting like this is a good place,
They are probably on to something. read more