Sub-districts: 5
Neukölln
Britz
Buckow
Rudow
Gropiusstadt
Soulcat
A
minute from a church and next-door neighbour to municipal Wohngemeinschaft (communal flat) gardens, in the
next-to-be-gentrified southeast of the city, is where you'll find this kitsch
and unobtrusive vinyl-only bar.
The
music played here is solely spun 50s and 60s records. This means soul, early motown
and R&B; swing, funk and rock & roll; and no modern mainstream tracks
at all, and it's marvelous. The DJs seem to select their tunes from an omnipresent box beneath the decks rather than bring their own records. And they are as keen on the sound of the vinyl as
much as they are the songs themselves. The tracks pop and
crackle and sound slightly tinnier than they do bass-y – exactly like your (grand)parents
used to play them; the volume is pitch-perfect and conducive to conversation.
Soulcat's
decor is simple and aesthetically pleasing. The walls are roller-painted
burgundy and gold and are postered with vintage album sleeves and adverts. The
furniture is wooden and reclaimed. The tables are all candlelit and ashtray-ed
and the smell of tobacco, when mixed with the scent of the picked flowers on
each table is a far cry from the cigarette-lit dancefloors elsewhere in the
capital. The floorboards here gently bend as you tread them to the bar.
The
crisp Riesling house white wine is €3 a glass, a bottle will set you back €13.
Pilsner from the tap is €3.30 for a half litre and long drinks start at €4.50.
Their summer special is the 'Hugo', a chilled and refreshing mix of lime,
prosecco and mint that costs €3.50 and is highly recommended.
There
is, inside and out, space for around 70 people, but any more than that would be
uncomfortable. Only at weekends and football screenings are these limits really
tested.
Soulcat
is, essentially, a bar-bar, where students, parents and seniors congregate for
quiet drinks interspersed with and accompanied by the soft warmth of the likes
of Billie Holliday and Johnny Cash. And maybe, every now and then, they might have an arms at 90 degrees palms downward facing boogie to good old Sam and Dave.
Pannierstr 53, 12047 Neukölln
U-Bahn: U7 Rathaus Neukölln; U8 Hermannplatz
Open: 19.00-Late, Monday-Saturday
soulcat.abcde.biz
Other Site of
Interest
My favourite gelateria, Mos Eisley, resides on the cusp of Neukölln and Schöneberg-Tempelhof.
Herrfurthplatz
6, 12049 Neukölln
U-Bahn:
U8 Boddinstraße
Open:
Monday-Sunday, 13.00-19.00
moseisley-gelateria.de
Why not check it out and make your way, scoop(s) in
hand, to Tempelhofer Feld.
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