Kapitän's Kajüte, Alt-Gatow 23, 14089 Berlin

It was late April when we decided that we needed to sit on the water and eat some white wine food. The city of Berlin provides great opportunities to do this with many lakes as well as the Havel and Spree rivers. After reviewing the online menu we all agreed that the Kapitän's Kajüte (Captain's Cabin) looked promising and it did not disappoint us.

Our table for six at 7 PM was in a large winter garden (sun room) to the rear of the property with a clear view of a bend in the Havel River. The beautiful evening outside seemed to raise our anticipation as we watched the boats go slowly by. The waitress arrived and I ordered a Grauer Burgunder (Pinot Gris) that was promptly delivered and had a pleasant crisp taste to it. To eat I started with Zitronengrassuppe (Lemongrass Soup), rich and creamy, with a thin slice of Spanish Chorizo sausage floating on the surface. The different flavors blended well with each other and the wine was getting better. Others ordered Spargelcremesuppe (Cream of White Asparagus Soup) with Havel perch fillet and expressed their pleasure with it as well. The Spargel season is an important culinary time of year in Germany with many restaurants offering the white asparagus in soup or simply boiled with Hollandaise Sauce. It matches up well with many of the excellent white wines produced in the country.

The main course was arriving now and I ordered a Caesar salad with plenty of fresh romaine lettuce, shaved Parmesan, anchovy, and a light lemony olive oil dressing. It was very tasty and large enough to satisfy my appetite for this evening. My wife ordered a whole grilled Dorade (Bream, whitefish) with green asparagus and gave me a thumbs up after leaving only bone, head, and tail on her plate. My daughter-in-law went with pickled salmon served two different ways...honey-mustard sauce and as rolled Tramerzzini (Italian whitebread sandwiches). A guest in our house ordered a combo of Meerbarbe (goatfish) and Gebratene Jakobsmuschel (roasted scallops). Last but not least and because Germany is also a free country, our son-in-law had the 250g US Hüftsteak (sirloin) with tomato salad and caper-lime butter. There wasn't much, if anything at all, left on a plate.

To finish things off some of us chose Creme Brülee or Hollunderparfait (Elderberry parfait). Others ordered an espresso. I believe everyone enjoyed their meal which is about as much as one can hope for. Even our grandson who had the Spargelcremesuppe plus a scoop of vanilla and strawberry ice cream was a happy camper. The total bill for the table before tip was 166 €. I felt this was a good price for a very enjoyable experience at Kapitän's Kajüte.