Welcome to The Negronist

There are also a few quaint bars in Berlin that remind me of my favorite neighborhood "Kiez" in Hamburg. Rauschgold joined this collection that evening. After a rainy but relaxed and casual post wedding party, we ended up at this entertaining, albeit completely smoke-filled location. Of course, a Mexican shot is a must in such an establishment. But since the bar seemed extremely well stocked, I decided to also try a Negroni, and I've certainly had worse (e.g., the night before). The drink had relatively decent ingredients and was well mixed. At least it clearly dispelled my initial fears...

In May, Kai Bar Brasserie opened in Mitte, in the former location of Cordobar and Cordo. Initially marketed as a Japanese-French bar, the menu seemed more like a mix of Asian and South American cuisine. At least the menu was heavily influenced by fish, and the restaurant offers good value for money. My mistake was in assuming that a Negroni would taste good even though it wasn't officially on the menu. This certainly explained the poor appearance, but definitely not the difficult and alcoholic taste. My companion decided to send the drink back. Since the wine list unfortunately offered no potential for me (too many natural wines), I then decided to stick with water with my meal.

The departure of a colleague from the management team led us to Beast—an exciting location right on Alexanderplatz with a very touristy crowd. The food was a very pleasant surprise, and the restaurant is definitely worth recommending, especially in terms of value for money. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the quality of the Negroni. I was pleasantly surprised by the ice cubes and zest, but the glass was far too large and didn't fit at all. The Negroni itself was drinkable, but completely average. Recommended for the meat, but not for anything else.

After a great birthday party at Moritzplatz in the afternoon, we were still looking for a nightcap. Since my girlfriend is a big fan of the Michelberger restaurant, we ended up at ORA, a bar run by the Michelberger team. Although the place is visually stunning, the drink was disappointing in many ways. Visually, everything that could go wrong did go wrong. And in terms of taste, the drink was extremely flat and consisted of “standard” ingredients.

Not drinking a Negroni on your own birthday would be a fatal mistake. After some back and forth, we ended up at Baret at the Humboldt Forum in beautiful weather with a nice breeze, enjoying the evening sun and the view of Berlin Cathedral. There was no Negroni on the menu, but luckily the waitress was able to help us out. We were surprised with a visually stunning Negroni with a slight lemon note. The zest also looked more like lemon than orange, but that didn't detract from the overall experience. Definitely a good alternative for a warm summer evening and definitely a sufficient highlight for a birthday.

After a beautiful drive along the coastline from Ramatuelle to Bandol, we arrived at our hotel, which not only offered an incredible view of the sunset from the balcony, but also had a bar (how convenient...), just in time for sunset. So we were able to enjoy what was by far the most beautiful sunset of our stay in France that evening. Unfortunately, the Negroni was more for the “checklist” than for enjoyment. The drink was one of a series of mediocre experiences with too much ice and too little love in the preparation over the last few days. Fortunately, the incredible view was at least a fitting consolation.