GEM Bar, Berlin

About GEM Bar

GEM is a small cocktail bar on Fuggerstraße in Schöneberg, half a block off the Nollendorfplatz strip that has anchored gay Berlin since the Weimar years. It runs on the personality of owner-bartender Tommi, who tends to remember regulars by name and builds the drink list himself, from a proper Mai Tai to house specialties like a Tom Yum martini. This is a talking bar, not a dance bar. The room is intimate, smoking is allowed indoors, and the music stays low enough to hear the person next to you, closer to a neighborhood living room than a club. Tuesday karaoke is the one night it gets loud, pulling a mix of locals and visitors. If you want a DJ and a floor, the bigger Motzstraße venues are a two-minute walk away; come here for a well-made drink and conversation.