Jason N.
Yelp
Led here by our guidebook, we were sorry we had not ventured into Prenzlauer Berg before our last night in town. On the way from the S-Bahn station to this spot, we passed any number of cozy, bustling restaurants of several stripes (Thai, Italian, etc.) that looked as thought they would have been fun to try. At night, the warm light from the storefront windows exudes a burgeoning restaurant scene.
Oderquelle has several different small rooms that combine to make it a sizable restaurant without appearing so. It is throwback without kitsch. It is intimate and casual, romantic and unpretentious.
The waitresses seemed to have too many tables and thus service suffered. We noticed our neighbors send back their tuna steaks because they were overcooked and grey all the way through. We did not have any such problem, however. We thoroughly enjoyed the Swabian style soup, which had a clear broth speckled with diced raw shallots and two large dumplings stuffed with ground poultry. That was the highlight of the meal for me. Our pumpkin soup was pure pumpkin-- no detectable fillers-- and was good. The mustard seed encrusted pork with Brussels sprouts and potatoes sounded excellent and was satisfying enough but not particularly memorable. The atmosphere was pure old-school charm. If the waitress to patron ratio remains unchanged, however, be prepared to linger before, during and after your meal. If nothing else, heading to Oderquelle seems to assure that you will find a spot worth going to, whether winding up at this restaurant or some of its neighbors.
