I thought of one, in particular, and wished she could share the moment with me, the two of us reading and enjoying each other's company. Those were the feelings invoked in me during breakfast in this oasis of serenity (not including the parrots, of course!), but given that I was there quite early, in the dead of winter, makes me doubt that the Blumencafé is anything if not popular--it's on the main drag in Prenzlberg, of course, and only a jaunt up from Kastanienallee. The service was very relaxed and uninstrusive, and when I left, the cute girl offered me a flower from the shop next door. Nice touch!

Luxus calls your attention with its postcard towers and storefront sale backets; the shop itself seems to overflow with the creative energy so emblematic of Europe's "hottest city," and provides a space for local artists who as of yet can't afford to open up their own. Favorites include breakfast trays by Berliner Toechter and shirts by Volksmarke, but you can also get a keyboard ring or a candle shaped like the TV Tower. Kitsch, you say? Yeah, but you'll score a point or two just because it's from Berlin.