John Muir

I visit Berlin quite often its like my second home and so is John Muir. The bar tenders are super cool and nice. Cocktails are great & fresh, and the beer selection is good too! You can find some American beers as well as local German craft brews.

Das John Muir wollten wir wegen der angeblich guten Craft Beer Karte ausprobieren. Die Auswahl war absolut top, ca. 10 – 12 verschiedene Sorten, darunter auch das köstliche Flying Turtle!
Leider konnten wir nirgends ein Schild entdecken, dass uns darauf aufmerksam gemacht hätte, dass wir an der Bar bestellen müssen, aber das freundliche Personal hat in zuverlässigen deutsch-​englisch weitergeholfen und dann gleich alles über die Theke gereicht.
Obwohl wir uns ursprünglich durch die Karte probieren wollten, haben wir uns für das fruchtige Domestic Craft (Tap Beer) im Pitcher entschieden. Der Preis war absolut fair und geschmeckt hat es auch. Klare Empfehlung!
Obwohl direkt an der Skalitzer Straße gelegen, hat das John Muir eine klasse Atmosphäre: Draußen sitze man unter großen alten Linden auf Klapp-​Holz-​Möbeln und Kiesboden. Lichterketten und Windlichter runden das Ambiente ab. Klassisch kreuzberg-​hip und gemütlich.
Zur gut bestückten und stilsicher eingerichteten Bar gehts ein paar Stufen runter. Passend zur lässigen Location gabs jazzige und klassische R’n’B-Musik wie «Hit the road Jack».
Zuerst wollte ich nur 4 Sterne geben. Denn obwohl das Personal freundlich war, konnte von Service keine Rede sein. Allerdings war es super angenehm, dass nicht alle 30 Minuten die Keller am Tisch standen und fragen ob alles ok ist. Wer also einen ungestörten Abend in Kreuzberg verbringen will und mit Selbstservice kein Problem hat, dem sei das John Muir wärmstens empfohlen. Ich war auf jeden Fall nicht das letzte Mal da, schon allein weil ich da noch einige andere Biere probieren muss…

Glassware worthy of serving bourbon. Brickwork is a sweet backdrop to the Jazz standard tunes and swirling cigarette smoke curling around bearded hipsters.

I’m going to echo Mike A’s sentiments about the rude bar staff. Even by Berlin standards, this place is bad. If you’re on a date or looking for a relaxing drink in a nice atmosphere, go somewhere else.
I’d read some good reviews, heard some good things, and was looking forward to visiting. My boyfriend took me along on my 29^th birthday. It was a Friday evening, but the bar was fairly quiet; maybe 3 – 4 tables of people all drinking craft beer.
My boyfriend headed to the bar and ordered two cocktails (at € 8 – 10), the bartender told him it would be a few minutes. We know proper cocktails take ages to mix so he popped back to the table so I wouldn’t be sitting like a norma no-​mates playing with my phone.
About five-​ten minutes later the bartender showed up with our drinks, and said to us in a scolding manner «we don’t do table service. You pay at the bar.» My other half apologised, and explained he’d already paid. She totally ignored him, handed us our drinks, pointed to the bar and said «ummmm???» at which point I snapped at her «we’ve already paid.»
She slunk off then a couple of minutes later turned up with a bowl of pretzels for every table. I don’t understand why she couldn’t have said to us «your drinks are at the bar» when she brought the snacks, and I don’t know why she couldn’t have confirmed with the other girl that we’d paid before coming over and talking to us like we’re dirt.
I’d already been thinking about which € 9 drinks to order next, but after being spoken down to we decided to leave. If we hadn’t already paid I’d have walked out as soon as she came over and stunk up the atmosphere. We were looking to spend a lot of money that evening, and I’d rather spend it somewhere that I can relax without worrying about getting spoken to like a child.
I was so offended I even *gasp* deleted the photos I was going to share on Instagram and Twitter. Basically there are loads of awesome bars in Kreuzkolln, you do not need to put up with abuse to get a good cocktail.

Super cozy, great atmosphere and — most important — some of the most amazing and tasteful artisan cocktails. Creative, unusual but laid-​back and unpretentious, on top of the best music I’ve heard in a bar in Berlin. Bar staff is friendly and quick and good crowd of locals, expats and scene.

I remember the first time that I saw this place my friend and I were walking to an art show last summer and then these bright lights illuminated «JOHN MUIR». I was sold and we tried to come in but it was closed for a special event… Fast forward a year and few months I am back in Kreuzberg and John Muir is on the list of things to do! If you were to know me then you would know that I love John Muir… So much so that I visited his home in Martinez, Ca. in the Spring. He’s life and views of nature is amazing. But, you don’t need to care about history, the Sierra’s or Yosemite to come to the John Muir bar. Come, because they make EXCELLENT COCKTAILS and they have a good beer selection as well.
Dan, the bartender can make a good Whiskey Sour and can make you laugh as well (he’s a comedian) The ambiance is great, they give you pretzel sticks and peanuts to snack on which nowadays seems rare but greatly appreciated! The patrons of John Muir seemed to be a mix group of expats and tourist all of which were very friendly. Drinks are fair in price as well. They will not put a dent in your wallet. Smoking is allowed so if you are not a fan I suggest arriving early (as I did to avoid the stench) However it is not so bad as other places. When you walk in there is not a lingering smell that hits you like some places.
In short
Good drinks,… Especially if you like craft cocktails.
Good vibe.
Good neighborhood…
Inexpensive.
AND for crying out loud it’s named after an amazing naturalist, John Muir — the man!

Without hyperbole, I can honestly say I’ve never been more insulted as a customer in my life. Without going into detail, suffice it to say I arrived completely sober around midnight with a female friend, was given the once over by an obnoxious ex-​pat bartender, and was then openly mocked and refused service because said bartender «just didn’t like me». I’m no rookie to Berlin nightlife (lived here for a year and a half), but this was extreme. Leaving aside the fact it’s supposed to be a chill bar and not an exclusive club, the places in town that do use «face control» don’t go out of their way to insult you.
I was so put off that for the first time in my life I wrote to complain (and started a Unilocal!account). Management (via email) was apologetic, but said this individual was dealt with «graciously» and would hopefully be working there for some time. It didn’t sound like they took it very seriously at all. It was also insinuated that I was partially to blame. I left it at that. It was a thoroughly upsetting experience.
Summary: This is Berlin. There are way way way too many cool, un-​judgemental bars here to have to put up with this. Save your time, money, and temper and go anywhere else.

The drinks here are delicious and the bartenders know their stuff! I ordered one of their specialty cocktails that was smoky and rich and came with a bruleed pineapple, as in they literally coated a slice of pineapple in sugar and took a torch to it. This complimented the mescal in the drink perfectly.
My friend ordered an aviator, which was not listed on the menu, yet executed perfectly. My boyfriend was very pleased with the craft beer selection!
So far I have been here twice in the summer, and I am really really hoping that this bar has a separate smoking area and still has breathable air in winter so I can continue to visit this place! Please don’t let your bar fill up with smoke in the colder months!

Drinks are average, which is somehow positive since drinks in this city are mostly crap. And that is the best one can say about it.

Ein paar Stufen hinab und man ist drin. Klein, dunkel aber gemütlich. Von der Atmosphäre her fühlte ich mich gleich wohl, obwohl ich ½ h vor den anderen Unilocalern da war. Der Barmann war sehr freundlich und sehr hipster, wie ein Großteil des Publikums übrigens auch. Hipster links, Hipster rechts. Nun gut mich stört’s nicht. Die Wände alle unverputzt– hmm nicht gerade zeitgemäß. Komme mir ein bisschen in die 90er zurückversetzt vor. Aber irgendwie passt das hierher. Die Unilocaler trudeln langsam ein bzw. sind schon da. Svenja zumindest. An ihr laufe ich schnurstracks vorbei, ohne sie zu bemerken. Es ist tatsächlich zieeeeemlich dunkel hier. Eig. müsste ich ja daran gewöhnt sein von New Action und Co?! Der Abend wurde toll. So viel haben wir gelacht. Wenn man die meisten nicht kennt, ist das schon bemerkenswert. Was mir allerdings den Abend etwas vermiest hatte, war folgendes:
1. Die Barfrau weigerte sich vehement, mit mir deutsch zu sprechen. (ich spreche sehr gerne und gut englisch– wenn ich in London, Manchester oder Glasgow bin!)
2. Es gab nur einen Barkeeper, der Cocktails konnte (der nette Hipster), was dazuführte, dass sich in dem nur mäßig gefüllten Lokal eine große Warteschlange am Tresen bildete.
3. Die völlig überzogenen Cocktailpreise. Ich erhielt einen winzigen Cocktail für 7,20 € in einem halbvollen Whiskyglas, welchen ich in 3 s austrank. Auf einen 2. wollte ich darauf verzichten.
Dafür muss ich insgesamt 2 Punkte abziehen.

Terribly slow service and tiny portioned cocktails. The guy was taking his time mixing the cocktails, while his assistant was standing around, doing nothing… until i suggested she could as well serve some beer…“oh yeah, right… I work here too”…that is how i managed to get my beer after 10 minutes of waiting.
The 2 points are given for the english speaking staff, the great company of friend-​yelpers and the good location, right in the middle of the cool area of Kreuzberg.

Meine absolute lieblings Bar. Die Karte wechselt alle drei Monate und die Drinks sind alle liebevoll zusammengestellt. Die Barkeeper/​innen sind freundlich und alle sehr engagiert außergewöhnliche Drinks zu mixen. Die Einrichtung ist gemütlich und passt hervorragend ins Konzept von John Muir, dem Naturschützer.

I may still be in the honeymoon phase, but I keep coming up against places like this all over Berlin, over and over again. Great atmosphere, great décor, easy on the wallet, a refreshingly diverse clientele and more often than not, fantastic music wafting through the air. I’m in love with this city and I’m in love with this place. Hesitant to use the oft overused term «hipster», which to be fair is certainly a ubiquitous characteristic of many a place in Berlin, I don’t think John Muir is trying to be anything but what it simply is: a fine place for «liquid libations» and excellent beatz.
I first took accidental notice of the place not too long ago while walking down Skalitzer with a dear friend, the namesake of a beloved California hometown hero grabbing my curiosity in spades, drawing me into the warm glowing light from those glorious incandescent light bulbs. We didn’t have the opportunity to go in, so I made a mental note… Fortune and circumstance now brings me back to these parts, and this time, with a colleague and plenty of relaxed minutes to kill, I had the chance to settle in.
Cocktails are not my thing, and I am a disappointing lightweight when it comes to the drink. But wow, I was most appreciating the mixes on the menu. Places such as these can very easily toe the line with other similarly pretentious, trendy efforts. But I never got that feeling here. John Muir has a very relaxed atmosphere, inviting, caring, warm, enveloping you in the light and sound and feel of its décor. And I swear, all of this was before I had anything! I don’t mean to wax poetic about this place, but… poetry. That’s one word that does come to mind when I think of our night here. I left feeling light and airy and happy. I was made something off the menu with spicy ginger beer, cinnamon, and whisky. So warming.
Oh, and the prices? Considering double the cost for the usual sickly sweet concoctions offered in most other small towns like Paris, London, Hong Kong, even the village of Frankfurt… You simply cannot go wrong. Even for those who absolutely staunchly refuse to try any of their cocktails, they have a small but wonderfully solid selection of beers and the usual softer drinks at hand. The place is small but cozy. I can imagine it getting absolutely stuffed to the gills at peak hours, but the weekday nights are more than manageable and relaxed.
Not yet a year old… Oh I want this place to do so well. Live long and hearty, John Muir. I’ll be seeing you around xo
(aaaaaaaaand…they have karaōke nights!!! woooo hoooo!!!)

Eine Bar, die dem Namen nicht noch gerechter sein könnte: man muss ein paar Stufen runter gehen, um zur Eingangstür zu gelangen. Drinnen ist es nur schummrig beleuchtet und die Augen müssen sich erstmal dran gewöhnen.
Hinter dem Bartresen steht ein einsamer Barkeeper, der und an dem Abend ein paar verboten leckere (und echt starke) Cocktails zusammengemischt hat. Auf der insgesamt recht übersichtlichen Cocktailkarte findet man Cocktailnamen, die man sonst selten bis nie hört, zum Beispiel Mrs Krabapple.
Eine richtig kultivierte, gemütliche Bar mir einer ordentlichen Spirituosenauswahl und einem geübten Barkeeper.

As a California transplant, John Muir is a wonderfully welcome piece of home in my kiez. The inside feels like a San Francisco bar-​the décor and atmosphere are cozy and hip. The owner is an Irishman who dresses the John Muir part and is friendly and knowledgable.
I am not much of a cocktail person, but the drinks here are good. Admittedly, I would like my € 7 cocktail to be a bit stronger, but the flavours are still unique. The beer selection is small but the focus is on quality and not quantity, so expect some good German brews on tap, as well as Anchor Steam. LOVE!
They also have vegan root beer floats, although the vegan ice cream was out when I was there last. But I will be back.
Pro tip: Show up early to secure a good spot, especially on weekends. The place can get pretty packed by about 10 p.m.

Tolle Bar, sehr gemütlich und klassisch. Die Cocktails sind auch ziemlicht gut, nicht der Standart

Best cocktail bar to my knowledge in Berlin. Cocktail bars in Berlin are not something I can generally rave about, but the care and interest in cocktail making going on here is really something special.
The bar isn’t big, and they turn up the outdoor tables pretty early to keep the noise inside, so I can’t say when is best to go. We were there one night pretty late during the week, and four of us easily got a table and 2 rounds of drinks. I had a plum fizz and a basil mojito. YUM. The other hit was the Campfire which is made before your very eyes with real fire and smoke and brown booze.

Best new bar in Kreuzberg. I love this place! It’s so well appointed and the drinks are LEGIT! Definitely try the Honey Rye. Try 7 of them. AND they serve Anchor Steam, quite a treat for this San Franciscan… San Franciscite? San Franciscoanese?
A lot of love and care was put into making this place look and feel special, not just some couches and the same ol’ pilsener you see everywhere else. PROPER!