In Berlin, This Coffee Shop Is a Microcosm of the Changing City

Page through a book about West Berlin in the 1950s and ‘60s, that fabled period of post-war boom dubbed the Wirtschaftswunder or “economic miracle,” and you’ll likely see an image of Kurfürstendamm, a major boulevard bustling with shoppers eager to exercise their newfound buying power. You’ll spot the famed Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe) or “Department Store of the West,” that epitome of capitalist consumption in the increasingly heated Cold War.

You may also see a photo of a retro café teaming with patrons at outdoor tables under a red-and-white striped awning practically made for 20th-century Technicolor. What KaDeWe was to shopping, this place—Café Kranzler—was to coffee-drinking: a symbol of indulgence that meant a lot to West Berliners trapped in the midst of communist East Germany.