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EXPLAINED: A guide to the best international supermarkets in Berlin

Published: 25 May 2021 19:01 CEST
Updated: 31 May 2021 11:48 CEST

Archive photo shows fruit from Vietnam sold at the Dong Xuan Center. Photo: Stefan Weißenborn/dpa-tmn

It was in the middle of a Rewe, of all places, where I first experienced a wave of culture shock.

Since moving to Berlin I thought I had adapted well. I’d mastered the, at first, confusing public transport. I’d adjusted to the “Berliner Schnauze”. I’d even managed to fumble my way into a Meldebescheinigung (obligatory registration of residence).

And yet, standing here in the tea section of a German supermarket, scanning the shelves desperately for anything resembling breakfast tea, a wave of panic hit me.

I couldn’t have felt more un-German.

For most of us, what we eat and drink is a huge part of our identity. A quick Google search shows that food is one of the most frequently named topics in conversations about homesickness and expat adjustment.

Many expat sites suggest cooking home meals every now and again as a way to combat this feeling. But in German grocery shops, where spices are often limited to “Currypulver” and paprika, that’s often easier said than done.

Even if you’re a more well-adjusted Berliner than me, you may want to know where you can get some more interesting ingredients from. While Covid-19 is still suspending a lot of travel, you can still get your culture fix with a cookbook – if you know where to get the ingredients.

With this in mind, I’ve narrowed down a (non-exhaustive) list of the best international supermarkets in Berlin.

Hao Cai Lei Asia Supermarket

There are loads of great “Asia-Supermärkte” (which can mean any combination of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Indian and more) in Berlin. My personal favourite is Hao Cai Lei.

This small shop just down the road from the Hermannplatz U-Bahn station boasts an impressive collection of fresh and preserved ingredients.

There’s a comprehensive selection of Asian cooking basics, which aren’t limited to food either. They also sell steamers and other cooking utensils.

But what sets Hao Cei Lei apart from other shops is their unrivalled choice of tofu (for fellow veggies) and a well-curated selection of traditional and contemporary East-Asian spirits and wines.

They also sell 100-year old duck eggs and other quick (and quirky) snacks.

Note: On Google Maps, the shop comes up as “Hao-You-duo Asia Supermarket”

Karl-Marx-Strasse 15, 12043, Berlin

Centro Italia Supermercato

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There are now three of these Supermercatos in Berlin. I’ve only been to Greifswalderstraße. The other two are in Mariendorf and Charlottenburg.

It was a good sign that everyone in it, whether staff or customer, was speaking Italian.

The Centro Italia has a huge selection of dried pastas, and a fridge with freshly made ravioli, tortellini and gnocchi.

While they don’t have fresh fruit and veggies or meats, they have more or less everything that can be tinned, dried or put in a jar.

The best part of the shop, however, is their deli counter with a mouth-watering display of cheeses, hams and antipasti, as well as a little bakery section with fantastic rustic loafs.

Another bonus is that every branch has a big car park (not a given in Berlin).

Greifswalder Str. 80C, 10405 Berlin

Großbeerenstraße 169-171, 12277 Berlin

Sophie-Charlotten-Straße 9-10, 14059 Berlin

Zora Supermarket – Indian, Asian, African Grocery

Zora is another smaller grocery shop in Kottbusser Tor. It’s therefore a place for African and Indian cooking basics, rather than a specialist store.

However, the reason it’s on this list is their small but excellent fresh fruit and veg section.

On my visits, Zora has so far won out everytime on freshness, quality and choice. From bright green, unwrinkled okra, karela and green plantains, to ingredients that are harder to get elsewhere like cassava and green mango, Zora has you covered.

While I haven’t tried them, their fresh sweets look promising, with a choice of Jalebi, cham, gulab or laddu.

Zora is also irresistibly affordable.

Kottbusser Damm 93, 10967 Berlin

Broken English

Broken English has faced some challenges since Brexit came into force. However, in keeping with the British character, they deal with it through light grumbling and sarcasm on an entertaining Facebook page.

British products are displayed at Broken English in this archive photo from 2019. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Gregor Fischer

While it’s not the cheapest (Brexit probably plays a role in this), they have a great selection of UK products – from scone batter to Scottish shortbread and, significantly, English breakfast tea.

They even sell some fresh and frozen produce, like cheeses, hams and Linda McCartney’s veggie sausages (praise the Lord).

And for the Scots, there’s even Irn Bru (if you know, you know).

Arndtstraße 29, 10965 Berlin

Turkish Market

It’s basically impossible to pick a favourite Turkish grocery shop in Berlin. I live in Neukölln and tend to just go for my local (a whole thirty seconds away from my front door).

That said, the Turkish Market on Maybachufer does have a special place in my heart. It’s relatively large, and so has a big selection of more specialised ingredients.

It also has one of the biggest bakery sections I have seen so far.

Even better: there’s an entire aisle for herbs and spices, so it’s my go-to shop whenever I’m looking for lesser-known components in recipes.

Another advantage is that they’re right next to the Neuköllner Wochenmarkt, an open-air food market along the canal where you can buy fresh veg, or delicious food-to-go.

Maybachufer 1 13, 10999 Berlin

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Other great shops:

Chili & Paprika – a Mexican supermarket in Danziger Straße: one of the more affordable and comprehensive South American supermarkets in Berlin

L’epicerie – a gourmet French shop near Mauerpark: it’s definitely on the pricey side but offers some fantastic looking luxury patês and wines

Mitte Meer – a relatively affordable supermarket for all things Mediterranean, with three locations in Berlin

Dong Xuan Center – Germany’s biggest and most famous Vietnamese supermarket. As well as a grocery store, it boasts a big general goods market and a wonderful Vietnamese restaurant and bar.

US-Shop Berlin – Any Americans missing mac and cheese or pop tarts will be relieved to stumble upon this one-stop shop, conveniently centrally situated near Tempelhof.

Superiberico – This hidden gem on Markgrafenstrasse sells more than Iberico ham: it’s Germany’s largest selection of Spanish and Latin American groceries, including a comprehensive wine section!

Thai Park – Though this is actually a street food market and not a supermarket, we thought it was worth a mention. Alongside the mouth-watering authentic snacks on offer, there are also some stalls that sell fresh ingredients, especially fruit and veg that are harder to get elsewhere.

Member comments

Anonymous - 26 May 2021 at 09:49 CEST

Hey guys, there is also a great Irish/British shop at Gaudystraße 20, 10437 Berlin called Dalriata! If anyone is looking for Barry’s tea or clonakilty rashers, sausages and black pudding, would highly recommend! https://dalriata.de/en/
1. Rachel L at The Local - 26 May 2021 at 10:50 CEST
  
  Hi Elaine, great tip! Thanks for the link.
2. rachel.stern - 31 May 2021 at 11:48 CEST
  
  Thanks for the great tip, Elaine!
Anonymous - 27 May 2021 at 08:57 CEST

There’s also a well-stocked Asienmarkt right outside Seestraße U-Bahn station in Wedding. It’s worth checking out.
1. Rachel L at The Local - 31 May 2021 at 12:22 CEST
  
  Nice tip, will have to check it out. Thanks!

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10 essential tips for avoiding rental scams in Germany

When it comes to settling in Germany, one of the most stressful and difficult tasks you’re likely to face is finding a place to live.

With the country in the grip of an ever-worsening housing shortage, there aren’t enough rental properties to meet the high demand – especially in big cities like Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt – and the flats that are available can often stretch even the most healthy of budgets.

With renters desperate to find affordable homes, crafty scammers have seized the chance to place fake ads on the market, often in dream locations with lower-than-average rents.

While some of these scams may be easy to spot, others can be highly sophisticated, with fraudsters setting up professional-looking websites and even allowing hopeful tenants to view their properties in person.

Recently The Local reported on a Polish couple who lost around €7,000 through a rental scam in Berlin. The scammers had sublet a beautiful Altbau apartment in the popular district of Neukölln and created an advert for it via a fake letting agent website, then arranged for people to use a key box to view the property while the real tenants were away.

Despite checking the contract over with legal experts from their local tenants’ association, nobody saw anything out of the ordinary – that is, until they tried to access the apartment and found a family already living there.

So, how do you protect your hard-earned savings and steer clear of scammers while looking for a new home?

Here are 10 important ways to protect yourself from rental scams.

1. Be alert to suspicious signs

The key to avoiding scammers in Germany is to be fully clued up on the warning signs. Was the listing for the property uploaded in the middle of the night, is the advert thin on details or written in bad German or English, and does the offer feel too good to be true?

Though it would be nice to believe there are still cheap flats to be found, finding an attractive property at an overly reasonable price is usually a red flag.

Hamburg

Modern apartments in Hamburg. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Daniel Bockwoldt

If someone claiming to be a landlord contacts you out of the blue, that’s also your cue to run a mile. With so many people looking for housing, most letting agents and landlords will have more than people looking to rent their properties without needing to get in touch with people themselves. Anyone who does is more than likely to be a scammer.

2. Rule out landlords who say they live abroad

One of the major warning signs to look out for is a landlord who claims to be renting the property from abroad, or who says they are out of the country for other reasons, like a last-minute business trip.

That’s usually a scammer’s way of excusing the fact that they won’t be able to meet you personally or even show you the property before you rent it.

“When the country the landlord lives in appears then I would say there’s a really big chance this is a scam,” said Kuba Rudzinski, one of the victims of the Berlin-Neukölln rental fraud.

Even if the excuse seems plausible, your best bet is to ignore anyone who tries to sell you a story about living abroad and simply move on with your house hunt.

3. Do your research online

Before committing to anything, take time to do some thorough research to scope out the property, landlord and letting agent.

Running the pictures and text used in apartment listings through a search engine like Google will help you quickly identify stock photos and text stolen from other listings. For pictures, this is known as a reverse image search.

A laptop

Photo by 2H Media on Unsplash

It’s also worth checking that any websites you’re sent to are fully functional and not copies of other letting agent sites, and that any email addresses match the website domain.

4. Visit the property and ask around

Never agree to rent a property without seeing it in person first. Arrange a viewing and take the opportunity to ask questions about the property and the neighbourhood.

Kuba also recommends speaking with the neighbours in the building to check if the property is genuinely being rented.

“Go to the place before and ask the neighbours, is this flat really for rent? Because these people generally know,” he said. “You’ll need to convince yourself to do it of course, but just ask in the building, ask on the floor where the flat is.”

5. Don’t transfer the full deposit in advance

Advance payments for anything, whether it’s furniture, a deposit or getting a chance to view the property, should be considered a major red flag.

Under German law, you are usually only expected to pay the deposit by the start of the agreed rental contract – and certainly not several months in advance.

Euro notes lie next to some house keys on a table.

Euro notes lie next to some house keys on a table. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/dpa-tmn | Andrea Warnecke

You are also legally entitled to pay your three months’ deposit in three instalments on top of your first three months’ rent after moving in, so definitely be cautious of landlords that place pressure on you to transfer a large lump sum.

If you’re really concerned, look into alternatives for paying your deposit, such as Kautionversicherung (deposit insurance) or a Mietkautionssparbuch, where you open a bank account and pledge the amount to the landlord, rather than transferring the money directly.

6. Insist on meeting the landlord or letting agent in person

If a landlord or letting agent refuses to meet you in person or insists on conducting all communication online, they’re probably not who they say they are.

Insist on meeting face-to-face to verify their identity and ensure they have a legitimate connection to the property.

7. Avoid sending documents straight away

Not all rental scams are about getting money from you directly: many scammers are simply after your personal details for the purposes of identity theft.

Be wary of providing personal documents or sensitive information before you’ve verified the legitimacy of the rental agreement, especially when it comes to things like passport scans or other forms of ID.

8. Seek legal advice from experts

If you’re unsure about any aspect of the rental agreement or if something seems suspicious, seek advice from legal experts or tenants’ associations.

However, be aware that this isn’t always a cast-iron guarantee that a tenancy is legitmate. Over the past few years, fraudsters have become increasingly sophisticated, even down to producing water-tight rental contracts for would-be tenants.

An estate agent hands over keys to an apartment. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/dpa-tmn | Christin Klose

According to civil lawyer Emilia Tintelnot, becoming a member of a tenants’ association can be a good way to get affordable legal advice, and it can also be helpful to set up legal insurance to ensure you can access help when you need it without having to pay lawyers’ fees up front.

9. Be wary of stereotypes

Avoid making assumptions based on stereotypes or preconceived notions about someone’s gender or nationality, as this may cause you to overlook things you might otherwise see as warning signs.

In Kuba’s case, the fact that the fraudsters were German made them appear more legitimate in his eyes, as Polish people tend to see Germans as law-abiding and trustworthy.

Be aware that scammers can come from any cultural background and may use a variety of tactics to deceive unsuspecting renters.

10. Keep an extensive paper trail

Document all communication, agreements, and transactions related to the rental process, including phone numbers and any bank details provided.

According to the Berlin police, this type of evidence can be crucial for an investigation if you do suspect a scammer.

While evidence can differ across cases, “pictures, contact details used by the perpetrators, original documents, bank details with payment receipts” are particularly helpful for investigators, and could help the police stop the scammers for good.

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