Restaurant in Berlin, Germany
Award-listed wine bar, no ceremony required.
Merold is a wine-led venue in Berlin's Neukölln district, recognised by Star Wine List in both 2025 and 2026 — two consecutive awards that put it ahead of most neighbourhood bars. It suits wine-focused dinners, solo counter seating, and low-key special occasions. Booking is straightforward; Friday and Saturday evenings fill fastest.
Merold is not the kind of wine bar that asks you to know a lot before you walk in. The address — Pannierstraße 24 in Neukölln — signals a neighbourhood spot, but two consecutive Star Wine List awards (2025 and 2026) tell you something more serious is happening here. If you are looking for a wine-led evening in Berlin that rewards curiosity without requiring a sommelier's vocabulary, Merold is the right booking. It is also, relative to Berlin's formal dining scene, a low-friction one.
The most common mistake with Merold is treating it as a casual drop-in. The Star Wine List recognition , awarded in both 2025 and 2026 , places it in the same credentialed tier as venues that take their lists seriously enough to be judged against peers across Europe. That is not a neighbourhood bar with a decent house pour. That is a venue where the wine program has been independently assessed and found to be worth your attention.
Neukölln is one of Berlin's denser, more lived-in districts, and Pannierstraße sits in the middle of it , which means Merold is genuinely embedded in the neighbourhood rather than performing accessibility. For a special occasion or a considered date, that address works in your favour: you are not competing with tourists or business-dinner conventions. The room, in all likelihood, skews local and deliberate.
The Star Wine List credential also implies a degree of curation that makes the counter or bar seating format , common in serious wine venues of this size and positioning , particularly worthwhile. At a well-run wine bar, sitting at the counter is not a consolation prize for solo diners. It is frequently the leading seat in the house: proximity to whoever is pouring means you get context on what you are drinking, recommendations calibrated to your order, and a pace that the table format does not always allow. If you are visiting Merold for the first time, or visiting alone, ask for the counter.
On pricing and booking: the venue does not publish its own website or phone number in current listings, which makes direct booking harder to confirm, but walk-in availability at wine bars of this scale in Neukölln is generally more forgiving than at Berlin's formal fine-dining addresses. That said, if you are planning around a specific date , an anniversary, a birthday dinner , reach out in advance through whatever channel current listings provide. The Star Wine List recognition means Merold draws a more intentional crowd than a typical neighbourhood bar, and Friday and Saturday evenings will fill.
Merold is well-suited to wine-focused diners who want a serious list without the formal ceremony of Berlin's Michelin-tracked rooms. For comparison: Rutz and Nobelhart & Schmutzig will give you a full tasting menu experience with matched pours; FACIL and CODA Dessert Dining occupy the upper end of the creative tasting format. Merold's appeal is different: it is the wine that leads, and the setting is one where you set the pace. For a date or a low-key special occasion where the goal is a great bottle (or several) and genuine conversation, that is the correct trade-off.
Solo diners should consider Merold seriously. The counter format, if available, makes it one of the better single-cover experiences in Neukölln. Groups larger than four may find the format less accommodating , wine bars at this scale are rarely optimised for large tables, and the experience at a counter-oriented venue narrows when the group is too large to have a single conversation.
Berlin's wine bar scene has deepened considerably, and Merold's consecutive Star Wine List awards suggest it is keeping pace with that growth. For context on the broader Berlin dining environment, see our full Berlin restaurants guide, and for wine-focused venues specifically, our Berlin wineries guide has additional options. If you are combining dinner with a stay, our Berlin hotels guide covers properties close to Neukölln.
Yes, and it may be the format where Merold performs leading. Wine bars with a serious list tend to reward solo diners who sit at the counter , you get closer access to whoever is pouring, better recommendations, and a pace you control. Neukölln's bar scene is relaxed enough that single covers do not feel conspicuous. If you are visiting alone, ask for counter seating.
Smaller groups of two to four are the sweet spot for a venue of this type. Larger parties tend to work less well at counter-oriented wine bars, where the experience is built around individual attention and conversation. If you are planning for six or more, contact the venue in advance to confirm what the room can accommodate , and have a backup option ready.
For a weeknight visit, a few days' notice should be sufficient. For Friday or Saturday, especially around a special occasion, book at least a week out. Merold's Star Wine List recognition (2025 and 2026) means it draws a more intentional crowd than a typical Neukölln bar, and peak evenings will fill. Contact details are limited in current listings, so check the venue's current booking channel when you are ready to reserve.
If you want a full tasting menu with wine pairings, Rutz and Nobelhart & Schmutzig are the strongest options at the leading of the market. For something more creative and format-driven, CODA Dessert Dining is genuinely different. FACIL is a good call if you want contemporary European cooking in a calmer setting. Merold sits apart from all of these as a wine-led venue rather than a food-led one , the choice depends on what you are optimising for.
Yes, provided the occasion suits a wine-bar format rather than a full tasting-menu ceremony. For an anniversary or birthday where the priority is a great bottle, genuine conversation, and a room that does not feel performative, Merold works well. If the occasion calls for a more structured multi-course experience, Rutz or FACIL will give you more formal occasion scaffolding. The Star Wine List awards (2025, 2026) confirm the list is serious enough to anchor a celebration around.
| Venue | Awards | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merold | Star Wine List (2026); Star Wine List (2025) | — | |
| CODA Dessert Dining | Michelin 2 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Rutz | Michelin 3 Star | €€€€ | — |
| Nobelhart & Schmutzig | Michelin 1 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| FACIL | Michelin 2 Star | €€€€ | — |
| Horváth | Michelin 2 Star | €€€€ | — |
What to weigh when choosing between Merold and alternatives.
Yes. A wine bar format at Pannierstraße 24 suits solo visitors well — you can engage with the list at your own pace without the social friction of a tasting-menu format. The Star Wine List recognition (2025 and 2026) suggests the wine programme is strong enough to anchor an evening alone. If you want a more structured solo experience with a full tasting menu, Nobelhart & Schmutzig is the Berlin alternative.
Small groups of two to four are the natural fit for a wine bar of this calibre in Neukölln. Larger parties tend to work better at venues with private dining infrastructure; if that's your requirement, FACIL or Rutz offer more formal group booking arrangements. For wine-focused groups who want a shared list rather than a set menu, Merold is a reasonable choice — confirm capacity directly before booking.
Book at least one to two weeks ahead, particularly on weekends. Star Wine List-recognised venues in Berlin's Neukölln neighbourhood draw a dedicated wine crowd, and tables at bars with serious lists fill faster than their low-key addresses suggest. Weekday evenings are the safer bet if your schedule is flexible.
For a similar wine-first approach with more food structure, Rutz (two Michelin stars) or Horváth (two Michelin stars) are the obvious steps up. Nobelhart & Schmutzig offers a stripped-back, produce-led counter format with a strong drinks programme. CODA Dessert Dining is a Michelin-starred option if the occasion calls for something more unusual. For a mid-range wine bar experience closer to Mitte, the neighbourhood around Torstraße has several options worth checking.
It works for the right kind of occasion: one where the wine is the centrepiece and low-key surroundings are a feature rather than a compromise. The back-to-back Star Wine List awards in 2025 and 2026 give Merold credibility for a wine-focused celebration. If the occasion demands full fine-dining ceremony — white tablecloths, tasting menus, sommelier service — FACIL or Rutz will suit better.
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