Berlin Inn Restaurant & Bakery

Came here before a show at the Aladdin just around the corner. Delicious German fare (quite an extensive menu, reasonably priced) and adorable heritage décor. And the best part, their dessert menu isn’t on a sheet of paper. They bring out a platter of their fresh desserts and the debate begins. It is so clever, because I don’t think that after seeing their desserts anyone can express enough self control to pass. There is something for everyone, the gluten free-​er, the coffee lover, the chocoholic, the fruit-​ie, there is something for all tastes.

This place is excellent for food and service. The kitchen is very willing to adjust to food allergies. They usually have a plethora of dessert options to choose from, usually including a vegan option. The staff is knowledgable of wines, and has paired wine to our food seamlessly. The only part I don’t like is that the space is too small for the demand; however, it adds to a romantic atmosphere.

This place is great for a gluten free diet. The two waitresses are super friendly and helpful (and I hear they either are the owners or are soon to be). It’s a little on the spendy side but it’s quality german food. Way better than going to a German chain like Gustav’s.

The Berlin Inn Restaurant & Bakery is nothing short of a perfect dining experience. The setting, food and service is everything you’d expect in a foodie city such as Portland. The menu is varied and there are plenty of gluten free options (in a German restaurant!) should you require it. There can be a wait so reservations is a good idea.

As someone who was recently diagnosed as Gluten intolerant — I’m super excited to share that the Gluten Free options at Berlin inn are incredibly tasty (and the chef is neurotic about not contaminating the gluten free foods) — Also, Gluten free spaetzle. That is all.

My wife and I had the best experience here last night. The wait staff is amazing, dinner was unbelievable, and my wife described the gluten and lactose free PIE as the 5^th best experience of her life (I think I’m now #6).
Do not come here if you are looking for a fast food hamburger. This is a dining experience and you should not rush yourselves. We laughed, ate, and drank for nearly 2.5 hours.
We will definitely be back and I will be recommending this place to others. Make a reservation if you want to heat here!!!

I think this is a good restaurant but its out of it’s era. Its tiny, with only a bar and maybe 7 tables, and the food is cooked when ordered so it takes awhile. My boyfriend and I arrived at 4pm on a Saturday and settled into a window seat with some coffee and tea. I had very excitedly perused their online menu in the car and knew what I wanted. Except their online menu was out of date and they didn’t have it or anything comparable. After perusing the menu for a good 15 minutes or so we placed our orders for schnitzel and sausage and more importantly, the fondue.
The fondue arrived quickly and was warm and delicious. I was a bit disappointed because we ordered apples and bread with it. There were only 4 small apple pieces on the plate. 30 minutes later the fondue was gone and no food. We thought perhaps they served things in «courses» and wanted us to be done with our appetizer before serving the food. Except we noted the table of 4 next to us had long had their fondue tray taken away and were just chatting. As the waitress took away our fondue tray we chalked it up to the other table just coming in for Happy Hour and they weren’t ordering any food.
Nope. 20 minutes later (So about 65 minutes after we arrived) the table next to us got their food. The boyfriend and I began debating if the food really took that long. Apparently it does. We didn’t get ours until almost 5:30, an hour and a half after arriving. Now the food WAS tasty. The schnitzel was crisp and flavorful and the sausage was very high quality and yummy too. But for only 2 tables in the restaurant being occupied it seemed like a very long time to get our food. This place has been open 10 years, I would think they would have developed some ways to speed up the process.
As we were leaving, they were just presenting the dessert tray to the neighboring table. They do things in the old fashioned way of actually bringing a dessert tray with samplings around to every single person in the restaurant. It reminded me of something you would see in an old fashioned movie. I liked the idea, but I feel with the way our society is so fast paced these days, people complain a lot. It’s sad, because I think if you knowing you will wait for yummy home cooked food the place will be great, but they need to advertise the wait time. The waitress was already commenting on how they let go employees and are cancelling their brunch after December. Seems like they just haven’t really changed with the times.

This place is a favorite. I’ve been several times and its never been disappointing. Fondue is a hit and filling on its own and I’ve had several different dinner items over time as well. The potato pancakes are thick! Watch out!
I wouldn’t have thought of this place initially for brunch but I was missing out. I ordered their alpine dish and was delighted to find cute little flowers and sprigs from their garden were the adornments they chose for this plate. The sauce on the eggs was delicious and satisfied by craving for something benedict ish while still being something new and interesting instead of the same old brunch fare.
And if there’s a wait you can always hop across the street for a cider while you wait. :)

Mr. M and I were drawn to this area by Bushwhacker Cider, and when we got there Bushwhacker was amazingly crowded, so we thought we’d let things settle down (which they don’t…very popular place!) and go get some dinner at Berlin Inn. I had read about it, but I’ve never been a huge fan of German food. However, after our meal that night I changed my mind. I could eat schnitzel and spatzle until I can’t walk anymore and that’s practically what I did that night!
I had the Jäger schnitzel which had perfectly seasoned, breaded, and cooked pork cutlets with a generous serving of spatzle, which is my favorite comfort food now. My husband had the Beef Rouladen and I was lucky to get a taste as he was enjoying it so much. Our server was very friendly and answered our questions about the menu with a smile. The riesling we had with the meal was the perfect wine with the food. We were so stuffed we didn’t have any dessert, but as soon as our server showed us the dessert tray I wanted to take a picture and send it to a friend of mine. The desserts are works of art and I knew my friend would enjoy that bit of food porn.
We never did make it to Bushwhacker because we were in a food coma and the place was still standing room only when we left Berlin Inn, but on a return trip to Portland I’ll be sure to fit them both in.

The 1^st time we saw the restaurant, we wanted to stop there but they were closed for lunch. I gave them a star, this is my UPDATE.
The Berlin Inn on SE 12^th avenue looked like it had been there for awhile — but it was my first visit. I had no expectations. This meal was a lunch on Sunday, and the place was pretty full with a few open tables remaining. To start, I ordered a Strawberry Mango Lemonade — ‘A pint of our house-​made lemonade topped w/​freshly blended mango & strawberry purée with blueberries, fresh thyme and thyme flowers. It was, honestly, the best lemonade I have ever tasted in my life, and I have already had a very long life. (Photos on my profile).
Had to wait quite a while for the main course, but it was worth the wait. Everything was so good Hubby ordered Chicken Roulade, German potatoes, pickled asparagus and beans, a polenta), that the plates looked like they had been licked clean by the time he & I finished. I ordered the Strawberry Mango Salad. Wild arugula topped w/​chopped red onions, mangoes, strawberries & dried cranberries tossed in balsamic vinaigree; topped w/​candied hazelnuts. (We both shared). The portions served were the right sizes — I didn’t feel heavy and bloated when I finished the main course. Our waiter came to apologized to us, why our lunch was taking so long, because the Chicken Roulade wasn’t ready, so they have to make it.
So… there was room for desert. The desert tray had so many delightful choices — Hubby picked the apple strudel, which was warm for 7 minutes and served with a wonderful sauce and whipped cream on the side. It was amazingly good. Mine was the Peanut Butter Mousse Pie. A peanut chunk brownie bottom topped w/​a fluffy layer of chunky peanut butter mousse and glazed w/​dark chocolate ganache. It was excellent!
Wow. It took almost two hours, but what a great meal! Another thing: they’re pricey, but perfect to take someone for a 1^st time date — if you’ve got the time & money! Sit in the corner, it’s like a little cozy to get to know one another & you know what. .. .;)

My Papa said you know the kitchen is clean if the bathrooms are clean. Here, they are clean.
The staff is calming like a midwife or a yogi, recommending beers and desserts with the touch of a demure connoisseur.
We ordered a dish of meatballs and spaetzle with the same sweet red cabbage my grandma made me after I did a good job cutting her lawn. Everything was excellently executed and quickly served.
We had to pass on dessert because we were sauced from drinking at Bushwhacker (across the street) earlier in the evening.
In conclusion,
I will return for potato pancakes

Stepping into the Berlin Inn is like stepping back in time and across oceans. I came here with a group for brunch on Sunday and have to say I thought the service and food was great. Lisa did a great job keeping coffees filled and mimosas coming. Though I think the time it took to get our meals was a little long, it was worth the wait (I did take off a star because my food was not terribly hot).
I got the Wurst Skillet with the bratkartoffeln. Never had bacon sauerkraut? Fan-​freakin-​tastic!

My friends and I went there last night for New Years Eve. Got there at 530. Our food took over 40 minutes, did not come out together… But the worst part was BEFORE we even got our food, the hostess Erica told us we had to hurry up because she had the table reserved for somebody in 20 minutes. really??? We tried to order dessert as the food was arrived. just so we can make sure we had some… and again Erica the hostess without the mostest, said no because we had to be out of there.
we were not rude we were not loud… we were chatting up the server, was having a great time, but I guess there were more important people that needed our table.
it’s really too bad the food was good. we liked our server lisa, but none of us and there was 10 of us, will ever be back there again.
I guess we were just not important enough to be able to stay to finish our dinners and have dessert for new years eve.
I prefer small local food places but I will never eat there again. I am a really insulted as well are my friends and we will never be back.

I’ve finally discovered a real life transporter. When I stepped into this place, I felt like I was beamed right into a small town in Germany. There’s dark wood accents and random but sweet décor. There’s a long wine and beer list and the waitress (I’m guessing owner) was very nice.
Everyone in there was not annoying (is that weird to say? but we’ve been going to brunch at places recently where you’re forced to listen to your neighbors’ conversations and it makes you want to gouge your eyes out because it’s way too much information).
I noticed one of the classy moves from the wait staff was that if you had more than two people, they would bring out all your food at one time on a tray (like they’re gonna make your caeser salad table-​side style tray) so no one is waiting for others to get their food before they eat.
We started with coffee and a warm danish cinnamon roll. It was drizzled with caramel and topped with a mini mountain of whipped cream. Wow! It went perfected with our coffee. The pastry was flaky and it just oozed of cinnamony butteriness!
I got the chicken schnitzel & eggs with potato pancakes and A got the smoked salmon & dill eggs benedict. The schnitzel was crispy and tender. It was delish. The potato pancakes were soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside. How can you go wrong? A’s benedict was also yummy. The smoked salmon was large flakes of really quality smoky fish and it all just tied in.
I wish I had the stomach to try one of the desserts, but I’m sure I’ll be heading back. Especially if there are lines at Sanborn’s since it’s so close! I’ll have to try the fondue too!

This place is a gem. The Wiener Schnitzel was outstanding, as the coating didn’t slide off. The red cabbage was the best I’ve had; Salmon Chowder wasn’t too fishy. Dessert selection was extensive (maybe too many cake-​type choices); the rasberry/​chocalate was moist and flavorable. If you like beer, try the Salvator Double Bock. The Spatzel noodles were a bit bland. We tried a variety of breakfast dishes, all were exceptional: cinnamon rolls, chicken schnitzel, fondue, and both potato sides. Price related to portion was a tad high (and most dinner selections are simply overpriced), so go for lunch or weekend brunch. Lastly, the service is superb!

The best German food that I’ve had in p-​town. Brought wife and kid.
To start off we shared a fondue platter that has bread, sausage, apple chunks and Bavarian pretzel chunks for dipping. It was gone within minutes!
I had the sauerbraten (braised beef in mushroom gravy) served with braised red cabbage and spatzle. The beef round medallions are fork tender, and the sauce has a stripe of sour cream through it, yum.
My wife had Koenigsberger Klopse (pork and beef meatballs in a mushroom sour cream sauce) served with braised red cabbage and spatzle. Very good.
And my son had mac and cheese, but it’s made with spatzle and meunster cheese. Delish! We also ordered a bowl of potato-​asparagus soup for him, which was incredible! Everything was perfectly cooked and well seasoned.
This is grade A cuisine, moderately priced.

Berlin Inn is a perfect stop when you are completely famished and want good food. The perfect thing about it is even though you do get a lot of food, is that it is excellently prepared. Deserts are pretty darn good too. Oh yes, No lines for breakfast (added bonus).
Need to make it there for dinner.

My boyfriend and I were trying to decide on a good place to eat a nice dinner. He had mentioned the Rheinlander because a few of his coworkers loved the food. I wanted to see if it was the best German food for the money and Unilocal came to the rescue.
Dissuaded by the reviews of that popular restaurant and the threat of accordion renditions of the the chicken dance song, I checked out other options. The Berlin Inn came highly recommended by several other Unilocalers.
I convinced my guy to try it out because several reviews stated that it was more for your money and it was a bit closer to our place.
We found the little restaurant about a block from the Aladdin. Upon entering, we both immediately fell for the nice quiet atmosphere and friendly service. I love the grape lights that hang from the ceiling!
We started off with a nice appetizer of broccoli and cheese pastries on a bed of spinach, tomatoes and onions. They were also served with a roasted red pepper sauce. The pastry was so magnificent! It was crispy and flaky and absolutely perfect!
Our server was spot on with her suggestions. My guy ordered the Leberkase Melt with an extra Spicy Beer Sausage. He also got an amazing beer (a fabulous suggestion from our server) that was from the oldest brewery in the world (located in Germany of course). I got the veggie platter with fondue and it was killer! It came with apples, crusty bread, broccoli, and carrots.
Yes this place is expensive but you definitely get what you pay for. Neither of us were unsatisfied with our meal in any way. The service was fast and friendly. The atmosphere was charming and quiet. The food was a feast of flavor, texture and aroma. We will be back!

Mission accomplished! I have found the best fondue… in Portland! :) One day I’ll travel more outside of Oregon and Hawaii, but for now, this place rocks the number one spot! I’ve had Gustav’s fondue, and it’s decent. I love my cheese so I’m always happy with any fondue. But to be a critic, Gustav’s wasn’t nearly as flavorful, and a little too thick for most people’s preference (well that’s according to my three other eating buddies). But oh Berlin Inn, you’re good. The sausages, pretzels, apples you provide to dip in the cheesy goodness are all beautiful accompaniments to your fondue. The cheese itself is the key, it really makes your heart melt and your stomach happy. Any of their cheeses are truly delicious.
In true critiquing fashion I cannot ignore that I always get a little sad over the pricing, cause it’s kinda high for me. And none of their meals are really hearty. If you’re looking for a heavy meaty meal then I’d suggest Gustav’s; but the Berlin Inn, for what they do have, they do well. Beautifully golden flaky crust that sings the sweetest symphony you’ll ever hear as you take that first bite of schnitzel and your mouth just savors every flavor that consumes you. It may not be hearty, but you’ll have been content from it’s greatness I guarantee it.
The greatest tease ever is when their waitress brings out that platter of cake slices, each one looking like the most beautiful work of art… well…edible art that you could just devour in 0.3591 seconds out of sheer deliciousness. I never learn my listen though, I purposefully held back on my usual fondue attack JUST to have one slice of cake later. And it was definitely worth the wait :) Hazelnut chocolate cake with toffee shavings and strawberry. Definitely was worth it!
Did I mention their beer selection? OY. It’s German beer, you can’t really go wrong.

Welcome to the world of sauerkraut, wurst and schnitzel!
Despite being one-​fourth German, I confess that I know very little about Germans and their food.
Until I was exposed to throngs of German tourists on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico five years ago, the only Germans I had met were an opthamologist and his wife who were on my paper route that I had in junior high school.
The eye doctor’s wife was in her fifties and mean as a snake. She used to scream at me when I went there to collect because I hadn’t been putting her newspaper in the mailbox (the Post Office forbade us from doing that).
But this German lady kinda freaked me. On several occasions, when I walked through her yard to deliver her newspaper (back in that era the Tri-​City Herald was an afternoon paper) I would see that she had closed her living room and dining room curtains, but left them open a crack. As I walked by and glanced (not peeped!) at the crack, I could see her sort of moving around inside in her bra and slip/​underwear. What was she doing and why did she always leave the curtains open a bit? Zexy!
So the Berlin Inn… it could be your elderly Aunt Hedda’s living room. On the walls are cheap framed pictures (some with cracked glass) of German landmarks. Empty beer and wine bottles line shelves around the room. A little rundown.
My first experience with German food (which was today) was the chicken schnitzel, served with bratkartoloff. I definitely enjoyed this dish. The schnitzel was a breaded and lightly seasoned filet. The bratkartoloff were potato pieces fried with onion and bacon. Delicious! You can get potato pancakes instead of bratkartoloff, if you prefer.
The coffee was definitely not Stumptown, you can get my drift. My young waitress provided prompt and smiling service. When I first arrived they were playing classical piano, but when I left, they had switched to a more lively polka.
Dinner-​style entrees are not cheap, mostly over $ 20, but they look delicious and I would like to come back and check some of these out. I might pass on the rosemary rolls they offer though.
They devote the back page of the menu to several gluten-​free options as well as a number of vegetarian dishes. They did have vegan options, but they were meager (a couple salads and one spinach dish).
Berlin Inn is definitely a pleasing and unique dining option here in P-​town.