Cocolo Ramen, a tiny, cozy and cunningly designed Japanese restaurant, is completely addictive. Their delicious soups are a far cry from the 30-cent powder packages ubiquitous on college campuses. Rich, savory broths and chewy noodles are topped with artful arrangements of succulent pork belly, shrimp and pork dumplings, roast pork or smoked chicken. Or try the vegetarian miso option: they're all scrumptious, the best ramen in Berlin! The menu is as short as the open kitchen is small - five kinds of ramen soup and some appetizers, including perfectly seared gyoza and edamame served with a pleasing newspaper box for the shells. The staff are all Japanese, and homesick Japanese students happily slurp noodles at the warm wooden bar. In summer months the ramen bar shares tables in a zen-fully charming courtyard with their neighbor, the sushi restaurant Kuchi.

Our tip for a perfect late afternoon flowing into evening in Mitte: check out Me Collectors Room on Auguststraße, get your soup on at Cocolo, have a glass of wine at Hackbarth's, then finish the night with dancing at Clärchens Ballhaus. Stroll home in a happy haze to your Miniloft apartment.

Cocolo Ramen
Gipsstrasse 3, Mitte
open daily, from 18:00