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Being in Berlin: Are you a Currywurst or Döner person?
Greetings from Berlin, the capital of sausage. (Yes, there is arguably more than one capital of sausage out there. I don't want to be getting hate mail from Munich and other seasoned capitals of sausage!)
Horror of all horrors. In the field of fast food and street food in Berlin, the famous Currywurst (consisting of hot pork sausage cut into slices and seasoned with curry sauce, consisting of ketchup with curry) is being overtaken by Döner kebab, pieces of lamb, beef or chicken (or falafel) served with a salad made from shredded lettuce, tomatoes and onions, often also with cabbage and cucumbers. Because of German's large Turkish population, there are now Döner stands everywhere. Statistically, the Germans are supposed to consume 200 to 300 metric tonnes of Döner Kebab per day. Man, that's a lot of kebab.
I tried both - Currywurst and Döner. And so should you. There is no better way to stretch the weak dollar than turning to street food!
The currywurst is great after a night of drinking, if you really need something greasy. Truth to be told, I have had better sausages in my life. Actually, I even like the German wine sausage better.
A currywurst has sentimental value though. If you, like me, are a sucker for a good story, you might want to give it a chance just for that. Apparently, the currywurst was invented shortly after World War II by a sausage stall owner in Essen, who accidentally dropped a can with curry powder into some ketchup. Something tells me this is how a lot of fast food is invented. I wonder who dropped what where before they invented McDonald's, but I sincerely hope that it didn't involve a toilet.
Back to Germany though. I loved the Döner kebab sandwich I got. It had lots of fresh veggies in it. It has got to be one of the healthier fast food options out there. I only went with 
falafel, not meat. The whole meat-spinning-on-stick for hours and hours (in the sun) never really looked super-appetizing to me. It always screamed "food poisoning waiting to happen". I don't know. I might be overreacting. How do you feel about kebab?
Filed under: Food and Drink, Europe, Germany, Travel Deals
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Justin Glow Jun 8th 2008 3:50PM
Definitely döner kebab for me. I ate them for lunch and dinner when I was in Munich last. Mmmm...
The best one I had, however, was in Vienna, at a random street stall.
Jon K Jun 8th 2008 7:41PM
overall i'm a döner person, but when there's good currywurst to be had, step back! LOL
omg i miss having döner (at least a weekly thing, if not more often, when i went to school in germany). *sigh*
Wengkius Jun 8th 2008 10:05PM
Definitely currywurst. The doner that I had was unbelievably salty. I think only someone piss drunk could've appreciated it.
al gore Jun 9th 2008 2:55AM
Doner Kabobs all the way. You can find them in any market area and it's much better food then the traditional German Faire. As long as the meat does not cool down you really don't have to worry about food poisoning. Old meat on the other hand.. that's a different issue.
Bill Singleton Jun 9th 2008 6:43AM
Iva,
I think street food is kind of self regulating, in that if people are getting sick at a stand, it will soon be out of business. Greetings from Kyrgystan. We have doner here but they call it gamburger with a g.
Iva Skoch Jun 9th 2008 7:35AM
Gamburger? That sounds like gum disease or something...
Enjoy Kyrgystan. Sounds fascinating.
--Iva.
Anna Brones Jun 10th 2008 5:02AM
I had currywurst in Munich once and thought it was rather unappetizing.... I am definitely a doner lover and am a fan of how easily you can get them in Europe; it's something I often complain about the States not having.
arex Jun 10th 2008 5:09AM
The few times I've been to Germany, döner was my staple food while traveling through towns and train stations. Cheap and tasty. What more can you ask for? I was craving it so much when I got back I can't find it as good I had it in Germany. Man o' man, I want one for lunch.
David Troyer Jun 10th 2008 4:59AM
The great thing about living in any city in Germany for a time, is that you quickly figure out where to find the best Döner. I generally rated the best Döner by the size and the quality of the vegetables, as the meat seems generally the same wherever you go. When I lived near Worms about 3 years ago, high-quality 2 euro döners were easy to find.
That said, I enjoyed currywurst but for some reason associated it with Weihnachsmärkt (Christmas Markets).
Iva Skoch Jun 10th 2008 5:01AM
So, what you are saying is that the "Worms Doner" is the best?
LOL
paid2surf Jun 12th 2008 8:57PM
Döner, absolutely. I had it in Germany and Canada, but the best one, not surprisingly, was in Paris.
Some Turks run a kebab shop called, not surprisingly, "The Kebab Shop," a few blocks from Petco Park, where the San Diego Padres baseball team play. I call ahead to order chicken or sort-of-lamb döner and some falafel, then double park while picking up my dinner on the way into a game. In fact, I just had one today, while watching the Padres demolish the L.A. Dodgers.
Go Padres! Go döner!
Frank Jun 25th 2008 2:34PM
Berlin isn't really the right place to get a good Currywurst. Or München for that matter.
A totally different story of you travel to the Kohlenpott or Pütt - the area from Duisburg to Dortmund with the above named Essen in the middle.
That's where you get the real Currywurst. Differently done at almost every Pommes Bude.