Swisswatches is delighted to present the watch community with the industry’s very first ‘Boutique Travel Guide’. In this new segment, we will share not only the very best watch boutiques in town, but also the other most exciting things available in the area. What does the city have to offer? Where are the best drinks? The finest restaurants? The secret haunts known only to locals? Discover the city guide curated exclusively for horology enthusiasts, for those who want to make the absolute most out of their trip to a boutique by uncovering everything there is to experience in town.
Following on from Munich, Berlin is following suit by opening its own Patek Philippe boutique on the lively Friedrichstraße. Located in the heart of Berlin, the luxury Swiss manufacture’s latest boutique has a number of prestigious neighbours, from top gastronomy and luxury shopping to exclusive living options for short and long stays in the German capital. Located in the listed Einstein Palais, watch aficionados can discover a carefully curated selection of Patek Philipp timepieces across two floors. The boutique is managed by Bucherer, as it is in Munich. For Patek Philippe, this new acquisition marks the opening of its fourth boutique in Germany.
The new premises cover a space of around 100 square meters, divided into a first floor and mezzanine. Thanks to the ceiling’s height of 5.5 metres and large windows on the façade, the boutique has a bright, open feel. In the mezzanine – the lounge area of the boutique – the focus is the bar.
Here, customers can enjoy a cappuccino or champagne while discovering the manufacture’s timepieces in a quiet, relaxed atmosphere. Surrounded by light brown wood, handmade wall panels with mineral fibres, and a mosaic marble floor, the area is a stylish and comfortable place to linger and ponder over a new favourite watch.
Customer Experience
Naturally, the unique customer experience at the boutique also includes impeccable customer service. The store team of specially trained brand ambassadors, as Patek affectionately calls its boutique staff, advise clientele with their expert yet unobtrusive service-oriented demeanour. Making an appointment is not necessary, but recommended if you are planning a more extensive consultation.
Opening hours:
Monday to Friday: 10.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m.
Saturday: 10.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m.
Friedrichstr. 171, 10117 Berlin
Our tips for a perfect stay in Berlin
Freundschaft
It’s one of – if not the – best wine bar in Berlin, which Willi Schlögl and Johannes Schellhorn have been running in Berlin Mitte since 2018. And that’s no coincidence. Schlögl was previously co-founder and sommelier of the famous and unfortunately no longer existing in the form Cordobar, while Schellhorn served as sommelier of the star restaurant Nobelhart & Schmutzig. Both institutions are known for their excellent wine list. With their friendship, Schlögl and Schellhorn have created a place in which to share their personal favourite winemakers and their products with the oenophile public. On a 26-metre-long oval bar made of oak wood, their wine list is available until late at night, ranging from very big names to vintners off the beaten track. There are around 850 items on the menu – a lot from Austria, where the two hosts come from – but also from all over the world. A small fine dining menu provides the right foundation.
Hotel Luc
At the historic Friedrichstraße’s Gendarmenmarkt, perhaps the most beautiful square in Berlin, you can find the newly opened Hotel Luc. The history around the Gendamenmarkt is deeply rooted in the Prussian past, while the hotel is virtually like an ode to the time. In this boutique hotel, an elegant world in deep Prussian blue opens up to its guests. It can be found everywhere – on the walls, on the sofa in the lobby, the chairs or even on vases. The motto is openness, tolerance and generosity, running through the interior, gastronomy and even the philosophy of the hotel. The hotel, which belongs to the Marriott Autograph Collection, has 70 rooms and 22 exclusive suites. It was designed by Frankfurt architect Oana Rosen, who has already designed several noteworthy properties in Germany. On another note, the hotel’s excellent breakfast is served right up until 3:00 pm.
No3 Schinkelplatz Serviced Apartments
If you are looking for a more intimate alternative to a luxury hotel, or want to stay directly in the capital for several weeks or even months, you can rent one of No3 Schinkelplatz’s stylishly furnished residences. Located in the historic centre of Berlin at Schinkelplatz, there are nine furnished serviced apartments between 156 and 335 square meters of living space to choose from for a stay from three nights up to six months. Included in the booking are: a personal concierge service, a private neighbourhood garden, an in-house underground parking space (on request) plus a breath-taking view of the Berlin City Palace and cathedral. No3 Schinkelplatz is the discreet alternative to the Presidential Suite.
Restaurant dóttir
Only just opened, yet it’s already on the name on everyone’s lips. Since the end of last year, Berlin’s fine dining scene has grown to include an exciting new address. In the newly opened boutique hotel Château Royal in Berlin Mitte, the restaurant dóttir simultaneously opened its culinary doors. Dóttir is the Icelandic word for daughter, and the focus of the restaurant, run by Victoria Eliasdóttir and Elena Müller, is vegetarian dishes made predominantly from regional, seasonal and sustainably sourced produce. However, the cuisine is not all vegetarian: fish and meat just play a subordinate role. One of the signature dishes: ‘In Beans we Trust’, comprising of Pilarica beans, smoked mushrooms, crème fraîche, pumpkin, orange zest and kale. Guests choose between a rotating five-course menu accompanied by wine or à la carte. In addition to three guest rooms, there is a bar with lounge, a winter garden, and a fireside lounge on the first floor. Contemporary art can be admired in both the public spaces and the rooms; the more than 100 artists and their works were curated by former gallery owner Kirsten Landwehr and Krist Gruijhtuisen (KW Institut for Contemporary Art).
Julia Stoschek Foundation
Entrepreneur Julia Stoschek is a gifted art collector. In 2017, Stoschek founded the Julia Stoschek Foundation, which is dedicated to the public presentation, mediation, promotion, conservation, and scholarly reappraisal of time-based art. Two exhibition houses in Berlin and Düsseldorf are associated with the foundation, with both opening media and performance art to the public. At the same time, they collectively house one of the world’s most extensive private collections of time-based art, with over 900 works by more than 300 artists. Since 2016, the collection has been presented in solo and group exhibitions in a roughly 3,000-square-meter exhibition house in Berlin-Mitte (JSF Berlin). The house can be visited on weekends (12-6pm) and by appointment via email [email protected].
Gentlemen’s Circle
The Gentlemen’s Circle is not just a barbershop, but a concept store where owner André Goerner has created a unique lifestyle world for men. André offers everything in his store, from a shave to a pedicure, from a haircut to shoe shining, from suit to robe or from rum to Cohiba cigar – it probably has almost everything that makes men happy. Visually, the Gentlemen’s Circle is reminiscent of the sophisticated salons of the 1920s and 1930s; heavy armchairs stand on the parquet, brass elements decorate the interior, and the bar counter is made of pure onyx. Meanwhile, for the ladies, André Goerner has founded the Stilinstitut Goerner & Company: an upscale hair salon with a cosmetics studio just around the corner from Gentlemen’s Circle.
Berlin State Opera House Unter den Linden
Frederick the Great had this magnificent opera house built in Berlin’s Mitte district in 1741. The first premiere, Cleopatra e Cesare by Carl Heinrich Graun, took place on December 7, 1742. After being destroyed in World War II, it was rebuilt in 1951 by Richard Paulick. The Staatsoper Berlin, also known as the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, is the oldest opera house in Berlin and offers culture fans a high-calibre, varied programme throughout the year. The current artistic director is Matthias Schulz, who will move to the Zurich Opera House in the fall of 2024 and will be succeeded by Elisabeth Sobotka on September 1, 2024. For many years, the State Opera was closed due to extensive renovations. Official performances resumed on December 7, 2017 – exactly 275 years after the first performance.
