Restaurant in Berlin, Germany
Michelin-noted candlelit dining, book ahead.
A Michelin Plate contemporary restaurant in Charlottenburg, Lovis sits at €€€ — a full tier below Berlin's starred competition — with a 4.5 Google rating across 243 reviews. The former women's prison setting delivers genuine intimacy that makes it one of the city's stronger special occasion choices for two. Book a week ahead for weekdays, two weeks for weekends.
If you're weighing Lovis against Rutz or FACIL for a special occasion dinner in Berlin, the price tier alone pushes Lovis into a different conversation. Both of those are €€€€ operations with Michelin star expectations to match. Lovis sits at €€€ and carries a Michelin Plate for 2024 and 2025 — recognition that the cooking is serious, without the full-star tariff. For a date night or a celebration where atmosphere matters as much as technique, Lovis is the more considered choice.
The address is Kantstraße 79 in Charlottenburg, tucked behind what the venue's own recognition notes is a discreet door , the kind of entrance that makes a dinner feel like a find rather than a booking. The building's history as a former women's prison sounds counterintuitive for romance, but the physicality of it works in the opposite direction: thick walls, compressed ceilings, the particular intimacy that old institutional architecture creates when candlelight is involved. This is not a restaurant designed around a big, open dining room. The spatial logic here is closer quarters, which is either exactly what you want for a two-person dinner or a reason to consider a different venue if you're bringing a larger group. For couples or pairs, the room's scale is a genuine asset.
Lovis operates in the contemporary category, which in Berlin's current dining environment means a kitchen that treats ingredient provenance as a starting point rather than a marketing footnote. At the €€€ price tier, the expectation is a menu where the sourcing justifies the spend , not just seasonal rotation for its own sake, but a genuine commitment to ingredients that arrive with clarity of origin. This is the kind of approach that separates a Michelin Plate recognition from a restaurant that simply executes competently. The plate-level recognition Lovis has received in both 2024 and 2025 signals consistency in the kitchen's output, which matters more for special occasion planning than a one-off critical mention.
Because specific current menu details are not available in our database, we won't speculate on individual dishes. What the Michelin Plate credential and the contemporary format do tell you: expect a menu that changes with supply and season, and a kitchen that is working at a level above the city's mid-market contemporary options. If you want ingredient-forward cooking at a price point below Berlin's starred tier, Lovis is a credible answer. For comparison, Nobelhart & Schmutzig pushes sourcing ideology further and charges more for it; Lovis is the version of this approach that doesn't require you to commit to a full ideological programme with your dinner.
For the full effect of the space , the candlelit atmosphere, the sense of privacy , an evening reservation is the only way to experience Lovis as it's intended. Weekend evenings in Charlottenburg fill up across the neighbourhood's better restaurants, so Thursday or Friday typically gives you easier booking without the Saturday rush. The venue's Google rating of 4.5 across 243 reviews suggests consistent performance rather than a kitchen that fluctuates; you are unlikely to hit a bad night here, but you are more likely to feel the room's energy on a weekend than mid-week. For a significant anniversary or birthday, Saturday evening is worth the extra effort to secure a table. For a lower-pressure date or a business dinner where you want conversation to be easy, Thursday is the practical call.
Reservations: Book ahead , the combination of a small room, Michelin recognition, and a Charlottenburg location makes walk-ins a gamble on any evening. Booking difficulty is rated as easy relative to Berlin's starred restaurants, but advance planning of at least a week is sensible for weekends. Dress: Smart casual is the safe register for a €€€ contemporary restaurant in this neighbourhood; no formal dress code is confirmed in our data, but arriving underdressed would feel out of step with the room's atmosphere. Budget: €€€ positions Lovis meaningfully below the €€€€ tier occupied by CODA Dessert Dining and FACIL; expect a spend that reflects serious cooking without the full tasting-menu price architecture of Berlin's Michelin-starred rooms. Group size: Leading suited to two; the room's intimacy works against larger parties. Getting there: Kantstraße is well-served by U-Bahn (U7, Wilmersdorfer Straße) and is central to Charlottenburg's restaurant corridor.
A Google rating of 4.5 from 243 reviews is a reliable signal at this volume , not a small sample that flatters, but enough data to suggest that the experience holds up across different visitors and occasions. Paired with back-to-back Michelin Plate recognition in 2024 and 2025, the picture is of a kitchen that performs consistently at a level that earns notice without overpromising. For Berlin's contemporary dining tier at €€€, that combination of independent diner sentiment and professional recognition is a sound basis for booking.
For more options across the city, see our full Berlin restaurants guide, or explore hotels, bars, wineries, and experiences in Berlin. If you're building a broader Germany itinerary, consider Aqua in Wolfsburg, JAN in Munich, Schwarzwaldstube in Baiersbronn, Vendôme in Bergisch Gladbach, ES:SENZ in Grassau, and Restaurant Haerlin in Hamburg. For international contemporary dining in the same register, César in New York City and Jungsik in Seoul are useful reference points. Restaurant Tim Raue in Berlin rounds out the city's high-end contemporary options if you want to compare within the capital.
Lovis is a better call for two than for one. The room is built around intimacy, and that spatial logic is designed for couples or pairs. Solo diners aren't excluded, but you'll get more out of the atmosphere with a companion. If solo dining is your plan, a counter seat (if available) would be the ideal arrangement , but confirm this directly when booking, as seating configuration is not confirmed in our data.
Current menu specifics aren't available in our database, and we won't invent dish names or tasting notes. What the Michelin Plate recognition and contemporary format tell you: the menu changes with season and supply, so the leading approach is to ask the kitchen what's driving the current list when you arrive. At €€€ with two consecutive years of Michelin recognition, ordering the full menu rather than cherry-picking is likely the stronger value proposition.
Smart casual is the right call. Lovis is a €€€ contemporary restaurant in Charlottenburg , a neighbourhood where the dining clientele skews polished. No formal dress code is confirmed in our data, but the room's atmosphere and price tier make overdressing safer than underdressing. A jacket for men and a dress or smart separates for women won't be out of place.
If you want to spend more and step up to starred territory, FACIL and Rutz are the obvious moves, both at €€€€ with Michelin stars. Nobelhart & Schmutzig is the right choice if you want the sourcing philosophy pushed further and are willing to commit to a fixed menu format. CODA Dessert Dining is a completely different proposition , the dessert-focused format won't suit everyone but is worth knowing about as a post-dinner option or an alternative special occasion booking. For the Lovis price tier with a different cuisine register, Restaurant Tim Raue is the comparison to make.
A week ahead is the minimum for weekday evenings; two weeks is safer for Friday and Saturday. Lovis's booking difficulty is rated as easy relative to Berlin's Michelin-starred rooms, so you're unlikely to face a months-long wait , but the room's size means availability tightens quickly around peak evenings. For a specific date like an anniversary or birthday, book as early as you can confirm the date.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lovis | €€€ | Easy | — |
| CODA Dessert Dining | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Rutz | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Nobelhart & Schmutzig | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| FACIL | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Horváth | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
Lovis is better suited to twos or small groups than solo visits. The candlelit, intimate atmosphere in the Charlottenburg space is designed around a shared-meal format, and at €€€ pricing, the experience is harder to justify alone. Solo diners who want counter-style engagement would find Nobelhart & Schmutzig a more naturally fitting room.
Specific menu items are not confirmed in available data, so ordering advice beyond what the kitchen communicates on the night isn't possible here. What the Michelin Plate recognition and contemporary classification do signal is a kitchen focused on sourcing and composition, so follow the server's guidance on the day's strengths rather than arriving with fixed expectations.
Lovis sits in a discreet Charlottenburg address with a candlelit, atmospheric interior and Michelin Plate recognition — the room tilts dressed-up rather than casual. Think dinner-appropriate rather than formal: no tie required, but showing up in streetwear would feel out of step with the space and the €€€ price point.
For a higher-stakes special occasion with more Michelin weight, FACIL or Rutz both operate in a stronger awards tier. If the intimate, philosophy-driven format appeals but you want a more politically outspoken kitchen, Nobelhart & Schmutzig is the natural comparison. Horváth offers a similar atmospheric seriousness in Kreuzberg at a comparable price point.
Book at least two to three weeks ahead for weekend evenings. The combination of a small, intimate room, a Charlottenburg location, and back-to-back Michelin Plate recognition in 2024 and 2025 means availability moves fast. For a specific date — anniversary, birthday — four weeks is the safer margin.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
