Rummels Perle is a super cute bar! The interior is thoughtful and classy, with an artistic edge, and the layout is great too, with an area where a DJ can be, lots of seating in front of windows, and a tiny back room.
So why the three stars? Well, I came here for a birthday party so the place was pretty packed. And in spite of this, half the smokers were smoking inside. If there are only a few dozen people, that's one thing, but when a cramped bar has 100 or so people in it and every fifth person is smoking, it's hard to breathe. And while some people went outside to smoke, I am still amazed that this bar allows smoking inside, even when there is not a separate smoking section. I realize that as a non-smoker, it's almost inevitable to come home from a night out in Berlin without your clothes and hair reeking of smoke, but this was over the top.
And drinks? I bought a ginger ale and a Club Mate with vodka, and the total was €8,50. This isn't even a price with Pfand! I am imagining that a soda is probably a couple euros, so that means my Club Mate with vodka was probably around €6,50. And not even poured with a heavy hand, which means I MAYBE got 20 ml of vodka, but it looked like less than a real shot. Either way, I should have just gone for a cocktail - I would be paying essentially the same amount and actually get a tastable amount of alcohol.
I really wanted to like this place because it's incredibly charming inside. But when there are so many other places that cost less and regulate their smoking areas, it falls quite a bit lower on my list. read more