Café Johanna is located at Venus Berg, which – to my mind – is a very special street. It’s near the harbour, near the portugiesen-viertel and the michel, but at the same time it is very calm because it is a little bit off the touristic trouble. There is a pleasant neighbourhood with lots of design and architecture studios.

The interior is kind of Scandinavian-style, everything is very simple and clear. They offer some snacks, very good cakes and fantastic coffee. Last time I had a Swedish cocoa-cake which was really awesome. Prices are not that cheap but everything is organically grown (which seems to be standard in hamburg’s café meanwhile – I remember I wrote this sentence before…). I think it’s the perfect stop after a walk ’round the harbour or the Portugiesen-Viertel and a very good alternative to all this crowded Portuguese cafés in the Ditmar-Koel-Straße (which are nice as well, no question).

By the way: none of the founders of Café Johanna is called Johanna. I never asked how they came up with their name..

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Café Johanna | Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Snacks | Coffee € 3.00
Venusberg 26 | Harbour | +4915787925891
Mon – Fri 08:00 – 18:00, Sat 10:00 – 18:00

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.

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Atlantik Fisch | Bars, Shopping, Snacks | Seafood dish € 6.00
Große Elbstraße 139 | Harbour | +4940391123
09:00 – 18:00 daily

The early bird catches the worm: For everybody who likes to take a long walk or to jog along the Elbe river in the early morning, take a Nordic breeze here:

The big stone, erratic boulder, is the oldest and probably first immigrant of Hamburg. During the Kansan glaciation (around 400.000 years ago) or the Wolstonian Stage (around 135.000 – 200.000 years ago) it came from East-Småland in Sweden to Germany and “slept” on the ground of the Elbe river in the valley till September 17th, 1999.

When they tried to deepen the Elbe river to increase the turning circle of big container ships, the stone became a dangerous obstacle. Divers prepared the Alter Schwede with steel-nets to lift it out of the water. A massive crane singled it out of the water, shortly after it came out it suddenly fell back into the river. Only 5 days later they tried it again, with hundreds of curious onlookers – it worked!

The 217 tons Småland-granite was baptized June 6th, 2000 with Elbe water and given its name: Alter Schweder (old Swedish). Between “birth” & “baptism” are 1,7 or 1,8 million years. The measure is 19,7 meter and 4,5 meter high. For geologists it’s very interesting to see the striation of the glaciers.

In the summertime it’s a nice spot for couples to watch a bit separately the sunset or making a fire with friends.

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Der alte Schwede | Art & culture, Relaxing | Free
Hans-Leip-Ufer | Harbour
24 hours daily

If you’ve got itchy feet, because you haven’t traveled in a while, or if you are homesick, because you are still traveling – this is the best place to go!

Dockland is a fantastic 25m high office building (by HadiTeherani) formed like a ship, situated in the middle of the harbour with a great view from the top to the docks with all incoming and outgoing ships.

Take the HVV-ferry from Landungsbrücken to Dockland for a romantic harbour sunset. It always gives me the feeling I am at the gate of the world! No entrance fee, only a little work-out with all 140 steps up to the platform.

But after that little exercise I am always feeling like ‘Rocky’ on the top, – no matter if it is foggy or sunny, Monday or Saturday, in the morning or evening (closed in night), it is always awesome! Ohhh, itchy feet!

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Dockland | Relaxing | Free
Van-der-Smissen-Straße 9 | Harbour
Daily (except nights, closes at 23:00 and if it’s too stormy)

For only € 2.00 or € 3.00 (common) you will get a girl next-door behind the bar and a good electronic DJ. Here we are! Whenever you come to the Pudel (nobody says Golden Pudel Club – it’s too long).

It is special and different. Whether in the afternoons with cake and coffee, or evenings with quiche and beer or late sitting on the steps watching the habour (it is very close to Park Fiction – check the Park Fiction article) or in morning at 07:00 for the last beer after partying while watching the sunrise before breakfast at the fish-market on Sunday!

With great electronic beats there is sometimes not enough space for everybody shaking their bodies and dancing. Inform yourself about which DJ will play! Go there, dance there, don’t think about the day after!

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Golden Pudel Club | Bars, Music | Entrance € 2.00
Am St. Pauli Fischmarkt 27 | Harbour | +494031979930
From 22:00 daily

Several times a year I go to Willkomm Höft in Wedel at the Elbe River. Starting in 1952 Hamburg’s welcoming and goodbye-ing all ships which come to the harbour.

This welcome point (footbridge) is dipping the flags and an oldschool voice saying “Willkommen in Hamburg, wir freuen uns, Sie in unserem Hafen begrüßen zu können” (“Welcome to Hamburg, we’re happy to welcome you in our harbour.”). Followed by the national hymn of the ship and many interesting technical facts like how long, how big, how many cargo tons the freighter has loaded, told by one of the six Welcome-Captains from a cabin at the Schulauer-Fährhaus. Now it’s mainly computer-controlled (but still not every Captain uses it), but there are still many cassettes with the 150 national hymns and speeches in 45 languages.

The Schulauer-Fährhaus is a restaurant which I only recommend for a coffee in between many white hairy people, the main dishes are quite expensive and not so good. On the way to toilet you’ll find a permanent and free photo exhibition about the fatal storm floods in 1962 and 1976.

Outside Willkomm Höft there is one of the best fish bistros I know (Strandweg 3, 22880 Wedel). Cheaper than Landungsbrücken and pretty damn tasty. I’d recommend the Schollenfilet in Brötchen (baked plaice filet in bread with salad and remoulade) for around 3,80 Euro or fish cake with potato salad. Go for it!

If you like to check the Willkomm Höft from home, here is a webcam and ships arrival and departure info.

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Willkomm Höft | Art & culture, Relaxing, Snacks | Free
Parnaßstraße 29 | Harbour
Daily

An amazing place for starting the day, best with relaxing breakfast in sunshine and with a great view over the Elbe river!

Inside it is hip and cozy, if you find a place to sit. To brave the cold weather, just go outside (especially in wintertime) – it is unbeatable – here you’ll find warm blankets. It is not very cheap there (fresh orange juice for 2,90 Euro), it no-frills, and not alternative.

It is one of my favourite breakfast points in this town. It’s a great spot for staying after long breakfast/lunch, sipping slowly and thoroughly enjoying your latte and trying the cake in the afternoon. Talking, watching and staying for the first wine and taking the day to the blue hour, the night comes, the harbour lights shines – that’s like a visual soundtrack of the Hamburg harbour!

By the way 1: There is also a big playground for kids in front of the Amphore Café.

By the way 2: Here I always bought my sparkling rhubarb juice to go to Park Fiction (see the Park Ficton article).

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Café Bar Amphore | Bars, Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Snacks | Orange Juice € 2.90
St. Pauli Hafenstr. 140 | Harbour | +494031793880
From 10:00 daily

The Strandperle has since many years been the only simple snack stall at the beach. Under the sunshades, the free chairs or at the sandy beach you can sit down and relax.

Sometimes it seems all Hamburgers (from students to seniors) are here standing in line for drinks & (the best!) french fries from the fast and friendly service. The atmosphere is easy-going and relaxed.

At the beach you can listen to the rushing Elbe and to the seagulls. The container-dockyards from the opposite are still working day and night. Listen to the deep, hard sound. Ships from all over the world loaded with containers, no one can guess what’s inside, the ships will turn around in front of you.

There are 3 options to get here: (1) bus nr 36 from city center or St. Pauli to “Liebermannstr.”, then steeply downhill, across very luxurious mansions, back into the Strandperle or (2) take the ferry nr 62 from Landungsbrücken to Övelgönne/Neumühlen or (3) bus nr 112 from main trainstation or St Pauli or Altona to Övelgönne/Neumühlen (final destination).

PS: Surprisingly I heard that in former times the Strandperle was a milk stand and people came here for a glass of milk after bathing in the river Elbe. It closed during the WWII & reopened 1949 as a restaurant. The owner changed in 1973, so the Strandperle (as we know it) was born. 2006 the owner changed again but kept the idea.

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Strandperle | Bars, Relaxing | French fries around € 2.00
Övelgönne 60 | Harbour | +49408801112
Summer (Apr – Oct) 11:00 – 23:00 daily (weather-dependent) | Winter (Nov – Mar) Sat – Sun from 11:00

Well, how to describe a hall which looks like an old, over-years-unused barn or abandoned freight depot which is fairly new built during shooting a film “Soulkitchen” by Fatih Akın? In 2009 the movie “Soulkitchen” was the best German movie of the year. As a kind of lovestory to my beloved city Hamburg, it is about people around a restaurant which is threatened to close.

Now the filmcrew is gone and the Soulkitchen hall is still there. A non-commercial place for art, culture and come together. It is open during events like swing-dance-workshops, concerts, board game parties and many more. Volunteers from Hamburgs district Wilhelmsburg are working there for free.

A small bar with beer, wine, coke and juice you’ll find there beside a cozy couch area for chilling. If it’s not crowded you can rummage in the vinyl collection to be a DJ for a time.

It’s a very nice and very alternative place with loads of good and active people – the opposite of the posh in-crowd.

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Soulkitchen Halle | Art & culture, Bars, Music
Industriestr. 101 | Harbour
Check website for events

HVV – Hamburger Verkehrsverbund -public transport company of Hamburg. Beside metro and subway trains as well as busses here we have the public ferries. Every 15 minutes the ferry number 62 travels from Landungsbrücken to Finkenwerder and back (just stay on the ferry). If you have a common HVV-ticket for the day or single ticket for € 2.85, don’t miss it.

Fortunately there are no annoying voices from bad speakers trying to explain the harbour with unfunny jokes. Step up on the roof, enjoy the wind and the great view. Start at Landungsbrücken Bridge 3, ferry 62, short stops at Altona/Fischmarkt (see the Fishmarkt article), Dockland/Fischereihafen (see the Dockland article), Neumühlen/Övelgönne (Elbstrand), Bubendey-Ufer and Finkenwerder and back.

If it is too cold, walk down inside the ferry, with great view, too. They even serve hot and cold beverages!

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HVV Fähre | Art & culture, Relaxing | Single Ticket HVV € 2.85
Landungsbrücken Bridge 3 | Harbour | +494019449
See the timetable