Shopping

Do you remember Amélie Poulain and Yann Tiersen’s soundtrack to the movie? Well this is what I had the first coming up to my mind when I discovered this cute little jewel in the city centre.

“Le Magasin du Café de Paris – Le petit Paris” is actually a store where you can get all french specialities which are offered in the main Café at the other side of the street.

I really love the concept of this location with the shelves of wine, books, marmelade, antiques, pastries and other goods. In between all of it you can get some great coffee and have a great talk with the shop assistant who can tell you every story behind the items provided.

I mean seriously, this place is like you walking around in the most crowded part of the city and then suddenly for a moment beeing pulled back to the early 20ies of big european cities.

From noon until the evening the “Petit Paris” serves oysters and champagne but sometimes they just decide to put out some great (cup)cakes or cider at will.

If you leave the store a certain satisfaction will overcome and make you smile until you notice a black door to your right with a signboard: “Le Lion de Paris”. But this my friend be patient, is so very much worth another post.

As I LOVE everything about cooking, food and eating (I read cookbooks like other people read novels) this place is one of my favorite spots.

The Kochkontor is a mixture of bookstore and restaurant. They sell cookbooks of all shades, from different countries, about different topics – everything your culinary heart could wish for.

Included in this shop is a big open-space kitchen and a few tables. Every day they select one of their incredible plenty of books and cook one or two dishes for lunch. You should go there early as there are only a few tables for many potential guests. If you liked your dish you may just buy the appropriate book or any other book that caught your eye.

If you have the possibility and you speak German you can also participate in one of their cooking classes. I haven’t done this yet, but it’s definitely on my agenda. I would probably choose „Classique – French cuisine”. Have a look at the dates on their homepage. Many classes are booked out long before.

I associate very special or at least just beautiful-days-without-a-special-cause with the Atlantik Fisch. Atlantik Fisch is a shop with diner located in the Große Elbstraße directly at the harbor. And guess what you get there: everything the ocean has to give. From oysters, gambas, crabs to diverse shells and fishes – you will find everything.

I always go there on Christmas eve about noon to buy Irish oysters for my family and me and then I get a glass of white wine or champagne and have some oysters already for lunch. The interior is very simple and pragmatic, you sit on wooden benches between this great selection of sea-fruits and look at the flurry of activity.

We go there as well in summer times to have oysters, white wine and baguette, sitting in the sun and enjoying our lifes. Sad to say, that’s not our everyday program, it’s rather reserved for some special days.

Go there if you like high quality seafood or need something really special, you will find it here. Or just enjoy the harbor atmosphere and have a salmon sandwich – as you like.

The Human Empire is a design and illustration studio that works for a lot of interesting and international clients, lots of them come from the fashion-, music-, art- or culture-section. For example they designed for a lot of musicians including Feist, Deathcab for Cutie or Architecture in Helsinki. They do good stuff, which you may see on their website.

Since 2007 they run a small store in the Schanzenviertel. You can buy creative things there from posters to clothes and books and accessories. 

All posters are created by young and aspiring international illustrators, graphic designers or artist and so are most of the clothes. Meanwhile they carry some interesting international fashion brands which are not easy get in hamburg such as Happy Socks, Sitka or Rvlt and hence Sandqvist. The books they offer cover the latest in design, typography or illustration, furthermore they have a beautiful selection of kids books and accessories. Prices are very affordable; you can buy posters from 10 EUR.

I go there whenever I need a special gift or just to buy myself new stuff for my walls or for my collection of design books. You will love it, if you are into in design and creative things and fashion.

“Some people dream of having a big swimming pool. With me, it’s closets”(Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany’s)

Vintage and Rags offers 350m² of space on two levels to dive down into the world of the 50ies, 60ies and 70ies. At the beginning I was a little bit skeptical about the shop which is located in the inner city just a 3 min. far away from the main train station in the pedestrian zone because usually such kind of stores are not located in the city centre – at least not in Hamburg.

You probably will have to search a a little while for it because the entrance somewhat hides between coffee-to-go-shops. I never noticed this store so far which only has another affiliation in Cologne.

Why blog about it? Well so there you go… It’s a really unique place in Hamburg. It’s so not the usual second hand store but rather a real nice shopping experience creating real Ladies and Gents.

If you are looking for an individual piece of fashion then I guarantee you’ll find it here. And yes boys, I’m also talking to you. Forget off-the-peg clothing and get some new style. It’s also a great way to keep Hamburg in your heart.