Well, hungry, aren’t you? Welcome to arguably Berlin’s most famous snack stand: Konnopke’s.
You won’t find any stars here—except, perhaps, in the eyes of the people savoring a bite
of Konnopke’s sausage.
In 1930, Max Konnopke strapped on his portable tray and set up shop right here, beneath
the elevated train tracks on Schönhauser Allee. It was strictly a night operation—licensed
to run from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. His wife, Charlotte, pitched in, and together they sold sausages
to Berliners craving a late-night bite.
During the war, meat became scarce, so potato pancakes took the place of sausages. Max
returned from the war in 1947—and with him, the aroma of sizzling fat returned to the street.
He rebuilt the stand—this time as a permanent structure, built with a proper plan.
Then came 1960: Their son, Günter, brought back a recipe from West Berlin. This gave birth
to East Berlin’s very first Currywurst—served without a casing, as sausage casings were
nearly impossible to come by in the GDR. The sauce was homemade, a closely guarded
secret, and absolutely delicious. They had to get creative, for unlike in West Berlin, ketchup
was initially unavailable here. Since then, this spot hasn’t just been sizzling up sausages—it’s
been making history.
In 1983, their daughter, Waltraud, commissioned the construction of the gleaming yellow
kiosk you see standing here today—looking (almost) exactly the same. She—and later her
daughter, Dagmar—kept the business running through the era of the Wall, the Wende
(the political transition), and Reunification.
Today, Konnopke’s is a culinary institution. The sausage? Still casing-free. The sauce? Still
a secret. The line out front? Sometimes long, sometimes very long. But as the locals say:
“It’s worth it.”
So go ahead, grab yourself a Currywurst, take a good look at the stand—and don’t forget:
There’s no fuss or frills here—just pure charm. And a piece of Berlin history. Well then—bon appétit!
Konnopke's Snack Bar
from the audio walk Berlin Like You’ve Never Heard It Before – True Stories & Secrets
254:05 min Audio
8
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A Brief Excursion into Berlin's History (7:59 min) • St. Nicholas' Church / St. Nicholas' Quarter (2:49 min) • Newspaper District (4:28 min) • Checkpoint Charlie (1:55 min) • Former Gestapo Headquarters (2:57 min) • Former Tempelhof Airport (3:46 min) • 7 Wannsee Conference (4:45 min) • Walther Rathenau Memorial (2:34 min) • Olympic Stadium / 1936 Olympic Games (5:36 min) • Commune 1 (2:27 min) • Benno Ohnesorg / Student Movement (2:16 min) • Rolf Eden (1:54 min) • Café Kranzler (2:08 min) • Kurfürstendamm (3:03 min) • Zoo Palace (3:47 min) • Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (2:22 min) • Karl Liebknecht and Rosa Luxemburg (3:28 min) • Schöneberg Town Hall (2:33 min) • Former Sportpalast / Sportpalast Speech (5:12 min) • Bendlerblock/Stauffenberg assassination attempt (4:47 min) • Kroll Opera House / Enabling Act (3:09 min) • Reichstag Building (4:14 min) • Reichstag Fire (4:28 min) • Brandenburg Gate (2:52 min) • People's Court (3:08 min) • Potsdamer Place (2:58 min) • Former "Führerbunker" (5:06 min) • "Tresor" (Safe) (1:43 min) • Popular Uprising in the GDR (2:11 min) • Reich Chancellery / Hitler's Seizure of Power (5:11 min) • "Die weiße Maus" (The White Mouse) (2:57 min) • Friedrichstraße Station / "Tränenpalast" (Palace of Tears) (3:46 min) • Humboldt University (1:56 min) • Berlin Palace (5:04 min) • Red City Hall (2:30 min) • Alexanderplatz (2:30 min) • Otto Weidt's Workshop for the Blind / Anne Frank Center (2:05 min) • Hackesche Höfe (5:21 min) • Rosenthaler Platz (2:58 min) • St. Sophia's Church (3:03 min) • Sophie-Gips Courtyards (2:08 min) • Koppenplatz (3:16 min) • Clärchen's Dance Hall (3:54 min) • New Synagogue (2:19 min) • Berliner Ensemble (3:55 min) • Friedrichstadt-Palast (4:02 min) • Dorotheenstadt Cemetery (2:25 min) • Bloody May (2:18 min) • Humboldthain Flak Tower (5:17 min) • Chris Gueffroy and the Victims of the Wall (1:28 min) • Tunnel 57 / Egon Schultz (2:40 min) • AMIGA (1:37 min) • Bernauer Street (4:07 min) • Former Bornholmer Straße Border Crossing (3:26 min) • Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn Sports Park (3:43 min) • Mauerpark (4:07 min) • Arkonaplatz (3:03 min) • Zion Church (3:44 min) • Prenzlauer Berg Fire Station (3:18 min) • Hirschhof (2:41 min) • Freya Klier (2:28 min) • Prater (2:28 min) • Oderberger Straße Municipal Baths (3:36 min) • Oderberger Street 2 (1:58 min) • Currywurst (2:16 min) • Gethsemane Church (2:09 min) • Museum in the Kulturbrauerei (1:06 min) • Kulturbrauerei (3:24 min) • Frannz-Club (2:31 min) • Husemann Street (1:58 min) • Jews' Passage (3:32 min) • Prenzlauer Berg Water Tower (2:37 min) • Rosa Luxemburg Square (4:34 min) • Mont Klamott (1:43 min) • Samaritan Church (2:23 min) • Former Stasi Headquarters / Stasi Museum (2:48 min) • Berlin-Karlshorst Museum / Unconditional Surrender (2:54 min) • East Side Gallery (2:59 min) • House Squatting in the 1980s (2:34 min)
