While cemeteries in the German capital have long been rooted in communities, some cafe owners have gone one step further
They’re beautifully tucked away in some of the quietest, leafiest corners of central Berlin, and for their passionate patrons, they are a way of life among the dead.
The German capital has about a dozen cemetery cafes – not necessarily spaces for mourning, although they can be that, too – but mainly serving as islands of peace in busy districts.
Unlike Paris or New York, where burial grounds traditionally occupy vast expanses on the historical outer reaches of the urban landscape, Berlin’s cemeteries have long been human-scale and primarily kiezbezogen, or rooted in communities.
There has been a boom over the past decade, with coffee houses opening within cemetery walls and even in a former crematorium. Initial fears that customers would be spooked or mourners offended have proved largely groundless.
