Osteria Ballarò in Berlin

It was our first time there, but certainly not our last. Very good food at affordable prices. Friendly service and a pleasant atmosphere rounded off a successful evening.

The food was truly top-notch – the carbonara was authentic and very well prepared. The service, however, was rather cold and conveyed a certain arrogance at times.

Unfortunately, we just had a very unpleasant and disappointing experience at this Italian restaurant. We, three of us, wanted to eat there as a family at 6:30 p.m. on a Wednesday. Outside, one-third of the tables were still free, and after a few minutes of waiting, the waiter returned and assigned us a table for four. After waiting for 10-15 minutes, we finally got our menus and ordered. A few minutes later, the "boss" of the restaurant came over and, without a word of hello or introduction, simply asked how many of us were there. After our reply, "Three people," he said, "I'll put you at another table," and left without further comment. And indeed, after another five minutes, a waiter came and asked us to get up and squeeze into a small table for two at the front. We then left the restaurant, which also received no further comment.

Unfriendly, almost rude "boss." No customer should voluntarily subject themselves to that. Mediocre food, very noisy outdoor terrace. 100 meters away, there are two excellent Italian restaurants that excel at service and friendliness.

Great food, a friendly atmosphere, and fair prices. I would go back anytime.

After a rather disappointing dining experience in this lovely corner in the past, Giovanni and the Ballaro have now opened a fantastic restaurant with authentic, traditional Sicilian cuisine of superb quality. The waiters can be a bit rude, but the food and prices are always right.

After living for 5 years now in Berlin,I can say that I have found a perfect place for all of my italian gastronomical senses. Every single piece of food that came to our table was nothing but perfect in taste. The service was like we are really in Italy,and that is something that is hard to find in Berlin. It is a perfect place to hang around in the morning for a cup of coffee, afternoon lunch with the kids,or evening dinner with friends.. Highly recommend

Bad food, bad service, unfriendly staff.

Great Italian restaurant with truly delicious, authentic Italian dishes! All the starters were excellent.

We felt at home, just like in Sicily: fresh fish, fresh meat, olive oil, and the appetizers with fresh Italian bread—everything was perfect. And the friendliness of the owners and waiters—we'll definitely be back when we're in Berlin 😋👍

If you want to eat exceptional pasta, this is the place to go!

Food was very good! The service was super friendly and fast! We'll be back - absolute recommendation.

There is simply good cuisine here. The products are of high quality and the boss is fully committed to his guests.

Great food and very friendly service! Pasta arrabiata was excellent :) Turbot even better! Happy to come back :)

Real Italian! Great Italian atmosphere and super delicious food

Were here for the first time. Nice welcome, friendly service, good wine selection and very tasty food!

Our favorite restaurant! You feel like you are in Italy and at home. Great food and very very nice.

Super friendly staff and the food tastes good too

Very good food, I can highly recommend it.

The Osteria Ballarò offers authentic Sicilian cuisine and competent, very friendly service

Be aware that your experience eating here can be a very unpleasant one!!!! We went there to celebrate a friend’s birthday and we did the reservation a few weeks in advance. From the time we arrived we were greeted in an unfriendly manner by the manager. Our drinks took half an hour to come and the first course half an hour. We asked repeatedly for the main course and only got unfriendly and sarcastic responses. After 2 hours of not getting our order and being treated in such an unfriendly way we decided to leave. While trying to pay what we had consumed, the manager yelled at us swearing with insults and threats, even getting to be physical. Finally throwing us out of the restaurant while screaming all the time, walking through tables full of customers looking at him screaming and threatening us. It has been a very regrettable and unfortunate experience especially for the celebration of a birthday.

It is one of the few real Italians or Sicilians in Berlin. Very fine cuisine with appropriate dishes. And very friendly and personable staff!

Ballaro Don't come here - unless you're prepared to be insulted and disrespected. I have been to Osteria Ballaro many times and have always been very satisfied. But my last visit was one of the worst experiences I've ever had in a restaurant. We had made a reservation for six people at 7:30 p.m. to celebrate a birthday. The manager greeted us shouting: "Reservation for seven people? Go to the back room!" – and disappeared. Drinks came from the 25th minute, starters only after over an hour! After almost two hours of waiting and several questions, we only received stubby, loud answers - including a "Then go ahead!" from the waiter. So we went. I wanted to pay for what I had drawn and waved a 50 euro note - whereupon the manager angrily said "Get out!" shouted. Outside he grabbed my arm and threatened to call the police. To protect myself, I started filming on my phone and went back with him to calmly explain that I only wanted to pay for what I consumed. His response: "You...hole! Don't ever come back!" In my 40 years as a guest and as a manager in the catering industry, I have never experienced such disrespectful and aggressive treatment. Mistakes can happen. This creates “ouch” moments, but they can be balanced out with a “wow”. The opposite was the case here. The manager insulted his guests - and set a shocking example for his team. I wouldn't believe this scene of aggression and insults towards a guest if it hadn't happened to me personally and if I hadn't had it on video!

Kommen Sie nicht hierher – es sei denn, Sie sind bereit, beleidigt und respektlos behandelt zu werden. Ich war viele Male in der Osteria Ballaro und immer sehr zufrieden. Doch mein letzter Besuch war eine der schlimmsten Erfahrungen, die ich je in einem Restaurant gemacht habe. Wir hatten für sechs Personen um 19:30 reserviert, um einen Geburtstag zu feiern. Der Manager begrüßte uns schreiend mit: „Reservierung für sieben Personen? Ab in den Hinterraum!“ – und verschwand. Getränke kamen ab der 25. Minute, Vorspeisen erst nach über 1 Stunde! Nach fast zwei Stunden Wartezeit und mehreren Rückfragen erhielten wir nur patzige, laute Antworten – darunter ein „Dann gehen Sie doch!“ vom Kellner. Also gingen wir. Ich wollte für das Bezogene zahlen, winkte mit einem 50-Euro-Schein – woraufhin der Manager wütend „Raus!“ schrie. Draußen griff er mich am Arm, drohte mit der Polizei. Um mich zu schützen, begann ich auf meinem Handy zu filmen und ging mit ihm zurück, um ruhig zu erklären, dass ich nur für das Konsumierte zahlen wolle. Seine Antwort: „Du Arschloch! Komm nie wieder!“ In meinen 40 Jahren als Gast und als Führungskraft in der Gastronomie habe ich nie so einen respektlosen und aggressiven Umgang erlebt. Fehler können passieren. Daraus entstehen „Autsch“-Momente, die aber mit einem „Wow“ ausgeglichen werden können. Das Gegenteil war hier der Fall. Der Manager hat seine Gäste beleidigt – und seinem Team ein erschreckendes Beispiel gegeben. Ich würde an diese Szene seiner Aggression und Beleidigungen einem Gast gegenüber nicht glauben, wäre es mir nicht persönlich passiert und hätte ich sie nicht auf Video!

The worst restaurant I have ever been to. Rude waiters and manager, the entrees took almost two hours and the food never arrived. They also treated my neighbors very badly and insulted and mistreated them for wanting to leave without having eaten. They also waited 2 hours and the manager was insulting. Never go even mediocre and expensive tickets.

One of the worst experiences I ever had in service and hosting. The owner has zero idea how to treat customers. We waited 2 hours for the food and never came. When we wanted to pay only what we consumed the owner yelled and stated to insult us. When you go out to dinner you don’t want to eat good you want to enjoy the whole experience. This was catastrophic!

Extremely disappointing and disturbing experience. We made a reservation 3 weeks ago for yesterday evening, having had had been here and enjoyed it multiple times. From the get go, staff was very unfriendly to us, probably stress owing to the fact that the restaurant was way over its capacity. We waited almost half an hour for the drinks, appetizers came after one hour and after two hours of waiting and repeatedly asking about our main courses, hungry and frustrated, we made the decision to leave and pay for the food we consumed. This was alarmingly met with physical and verbal attacks from the waiters and manager, including aggressive insults. While walking out, the manager even grabbed one of my family members arm and forcibly tried to pull him back inside. To say I was shocked is an understatement! This has never happened to me at a restaurant and I would especially not expect such behavior from people working in hospitality! Really a shame that a place I’ve enjoyed coming to in the past would treat me and my family in such an unbelievably disrespectful manner. I will never be coming back here.

A piece of Italy in Berlin. On Tuesday evening, all the seats were taken, we waited about 10 minutes to board. We served olives with crispy bread for an appetizer 🤤 - free) pasta with salmon and zucchini and pasta with seafood were delicious) I recommend!🤗

Beautiful ambience, but the experience depends a lot on what you order (some dishes are great, some disappointing), and whether you're a popular regular or not. The wine is good, the olives and the bread are excellent. The manager of the store can be courteous and nice, but can often be quite harsh/arrogant. If you're looking for authentic warmth and a welcoming culture, this isn't the right shop, but everyone is very hardworking and has a smile that flatters you. Business is obviously a priority here. Bon appetit.

A nice Sicilian restaurant. Very polite staff and good food. Certainly not my last visit there. As a starter, Vitello Tonnato then lasagne and as dessert the mixed cheese platter. Everything very tasty and fresh.

A typical Italian Osteria in Charlottenburg. Very friendly staff, very good cuisine and dishes at low prices. The menu is very extensive and there is also a day menu. First there are olives and delicious bread. It's usually very busy and therefore a bit loud and hectic, but you can turn a blind eye to that...

I can give it 5 out of 5 stars, the ambience is great, classic Italian, the waitresses are all super friendly, attentive and accommodating. The food also tastes excellent, whether it's a starter or pasta, only the pizza could be a little better!

Absolutely authentic cuisine, good product quality. And it tastes just like mom’s!! The fish soup was a delight, the braised ox rib was a poem, and the classics such as tomato soup or spaghetti carbonara with real guanciale (or was it pancetta?) were also very tasty. There is a generous supply of olives with home-baked white bread and a digestive on the house, always free of charge. Prices more than fair! Heart, what more do you want?!!

What a wonderful experience! Loved the food, the prices and of course the staff! The people working did what they could to make our evening great - and certanly they did! Would definitely like to come back🫶🏼

We used to go to the Trattoria Vale un Peccato on Aßmannshauser Straße very often when Giovanni and his wife were still the bosses. It was always very tasty and authentic. Now in the new Osteria Ballarò it's like a journey back in time, it was like coming home. Vitello tonnato, carpaccio, drunken fillet of beef and, to top it all off, a tiramisu. Everything of the highest quality and like a trip through Sicily. And regardless of the tough waiters: Giovanni Spartona and his wife are hosts, the likes of whom unfortunately don't exist very often these days. Grazie mille! 🥰😘❤️🍷😋 When I owned it, Giovanni and his mother, and also subito all the Trattoria Vale and Peccato in Aßmannshauser Straße. Sempre molto gustoso e genuino. Adesso nella nuova Osteria Ballarò è stato come tornare a casa. Vitello tonnato, carpaccio, filletto di maiale e, per conclusionre in bellezza, the tiramisù. The high quality comes and goes via Sicilia. E solo gli ospiti di giorno: Giovanni Spartona and his mother, so no due to ammirators and other rari. Grazie mille! 🥰😘❤️🍷😋

Ein absoluter Zugewinn in dieser Gegend. Die gehobenere Qualität und Präsentation der Kost überzeugt und ist hier so leicht eben nicht an "jeder Straßenecke" zu finden für den Preis. Pizza ist auch sehr gut. Erinnert vom Konzept her eher an die Vor-Vor-Betreiber, denen viele aus diesem Kiez nachgetrauert haben. Die Kellner zeichnen sich durch Professionalität und Persönlichkeit aus und haben diese ganz spezielle super- zuvorkommende italienischen Art und Weise. Einfach wunderbar. Wenn man an einem lauen Sommerabend draußen sitzt, wenn nicht mehr so viel Verkehr in der Holtzendorffstraße fließt fühlt man sich komischerweise fast wie auf einer charmanten kleinen Italienischen Piazza vom Ambiente her. Bin kein Weintrinker aber Leute sagen die Weine wären auch exzellent ausgewählt, ohne allzu schnöselig- exquisit daherzukommen. Nö, die machen das echt gut da.

So far I have really enjoyed going to the Osteria. This has been over since last Saturday. We wanted to have a nice evening with good food and ordered linguine with mussels. Already noticed at the first bite: completely over salted. I told the nice waiter and he passed it on to the boss. He comes to the table, sticks his finger into the food, tastes it and says: It's not too salty. Thunders out a few unfriendly-sounding words in Italian and leaves. We order another meal, which is delicious as usual. The most unpleasant thing comes with the bill: we also have to pay for the (claimed) linguine. The waiter is really uncomfortable having to convey this to us. We briefly consider whether we should let our lovely evening be ruined by a discussion with the boss and pay. The Osteria probably won't notice, but that's the last time we'll be seen there. Unfriendliness and a lack of goodwill have their price.

Great place. Good pizza. They got my desire for actual Italian food. Strange there’s no caponata on the menu though.

Good, authentic restaurant with good service

Very good food, my colleagues rave about the Cabonara, I'll try it next time. There is also a day menu with alternating offers. I recently had Scaloppine Vino Bianco - it was great!! However, paying separately is becoming a challenge; previously there was only one bill per table...

Top italienische Küche, Komme gerne wieder!! Besser geht es nicht, die Bedienung einfach nur sehr nett und das Essen wie im Bilderbuch.!! Danke

Das Essen ist sehr gut, der Chef ist gewöhnungsbedürftig, er zeigt dir, dass, wenn du gegessen und getrunken hast und weitere Gäste a änder Tür stehen, dass es gut wäre, jetzt zu bezahlen und zu gehen, das ist sehr schade! Die Chefin und Kellner sind absolut Spitze.

Noble Osteria with excellent Mangare, service e dolce vita;)

Very good it seems to stay in Italy very good good service and it doesn't cost much

Das Essen war gut, Rinderfilet mit Trüffeln/ Großgarnelen und der Flaschenwein der per Glas ausgeschenkt wurde, war sehr gut. Die Tischreservierung hat nicht geklappt.. Ich habe einen Tisch am Fenster reserviert(7 Tage vorher), der mir zugesagt wurde. Als wir eintrafen, waren zwei Tische am Fenster frei. Wir haben keinen bekommen und die Tische waren noch nach drei Stunden frei.

We come here every time we are in Berlin. Really delicious Italian cuisine. Mussels are wonderful! Many greetings from the beekeepers in Freiburg, Bettina and Michael

Since I'm writing this comment it can only mean that I came, I ate and drank and I was very satisfied while leaving this place.

Nettes italienisches Restaurant im Stutti-Kiez mit gutem Essen und mit Einschränkung fairen Preisen. Wir hatten gute Linguine con Scampi (18 Euro), eine ordentlich belegte Pizza Sicilia mit nicht zu hartem Teig (15) und einen großen Salat (8,50), der detwas abwechslungsreicher hätte sein dürfen. Das San Pellegrino Wasser ist mit 6,50 Euro fair bezahlt, der halbe Liter Veltins muss hingegen nicht 5,50 Euro kosten. Selbst im teuersten Stadtteil von München, Bogenhausen-Herzogpark, nimmt man nur 5,20 Euro. Der Padrone könnte freundlicher sein, der Kellner hat uns den sauren, korkenden Weißwein immerhin schnell ausgetauscht. Schnaps wird mir bei Lillo am Steglitzer Damm und bei Veli am Bundesplatz immer angeboten. Fazit: Noch Luft nach oben, deshalb dreieinhalb Punkte. Es gibt eine zweite Chance.

The best bruschetta is here! A cozy atmosphere, friendly service, delicious food, you'll always enjoy coming here.

Das Ballaro ist in unserem Kiez beliebt und wir haben es schon mehrfach besucht. Es bietet authentische süditalienische Küche zu moderaten Preisen, die Caponata ist sehr gut und die saisonalen Gerichte von der Tafel (zur Zeit mit frischen Steinpilzen) sind es ebenso. Das Ambiente außen und innen ist schön, für uns ist alles für einen gelungenen Abend vorhanden. Das Ballaro ist gut ausgelastet, bräuchte also keine Werbung, aber die hier so negativen Bewertungen sollten doch durch eine positivere Wahrnehmung ergänzt werden.

Arogant service! Nice atmosphere. No handwasch shampoo in the toilets and they just say sorry thats it.

Food is of excellent quality, but the service is very poor.. The older owner walks around frustrated, has little to no attention for the guests, and comes across as unfriendly. Ate dinner here with 3 people, when the first person placed the order the waiter walked away and came back later. In short, delicious food. Strange atmosphere and service. Edit: already waiting 20 minutes to pay... Choose a better place

Waited one million years for the waiter and almost died 😭😭😭

Daniele Bello the best waiter ever

Excellent restaurant with (real) Italian cuisine, very friendly and pleasant service (sometimes a little slow but they know how to make up for it ;-D). To try!!!

Delicious authentic pasta! The bread we got at the beginning was also fresh and perfect

Very nice Osteria, would love to come back.

The food was impeccable, but the service was rather slow

Home made quality Sicilian cuisine and they also sell some of the best olive oil I managed to get yet in Berlin.

I ordered the “Linguine alle Vongole” on the recommendation board. The portion wasn't particularly large, but the seasoning was okay. Unfortunately, many of the shells were empty. Even if mussel meat had fallen out of the shells, the amount simply didn't match. The price was hidden and I was shocked when I got the bill - 20.5 euros. That's more expensive than the most expensive linguine dish on the regular menu, which costs 18 euros. If you hope to win regular customers, you shouldn't hide the price and deliver even better quality if the pasta dish costs over 20 euros.

The food is delicious. Price, performance fits. However, we were asked if we would like to drink something else, otherwise they would give the table away. The seven of us didn't think that was appropriate. A pity. Nevertheless, I can recommend the restaurant.

Not a “pizza-pasta Italian”, but selected good cuisine. Personal atmosphere, attentive, friendly service. It is advisable to reserve, parking situation is problematic.

Very tasty, authentic Italian food! Highly recommended and we would love to come back. You can even buy the house-made olive oil (family recipe) on site.

It was my first time in the Osteria. My food was very tasty and the waiters are very friendly. Italian charm.

Minestrone als Suppe so la la, nothing to write home about. Mache ich zuhause besser. Hatten als Hauptgericht 2 mal Fisch bestellt. Kam nach 45 (!) Minuten. Dorade (23 €) ging so aber Steinbut (26€) war kalt. Genauso wie die Gemüsebeilagen. Die waren obendrein auch überhaupt nicht gewürzt. Die Bitte 2/3 der Dorade als doggy bag einzupacken wurde verschlampt. Es stellte sich heraus, dass unser erbetener Essensrest einem anderen Gast als carry out mitgegeben wurde! Nach langen Hin und Her wurde uns dann noch die Hälfte des Steinbutbetrages erstattet. Personal offensichtlich überfordert. Nur Hektik, da viel zu wenig Personal. Wahrscheinlich kann man in dem Laden nur Pizza bestellen, die kommt dann aus dem Ofen wenigstens heiß auf den Tisch, so sah es jedenfalls am Nebentisch aus....

What a lovely way to spend Mother’s Day for my partner. The staff are very open and friendly we hadn’t reserved a table but we’re given one right away. I can see why this place gets busy. The food was very good and the wine was fantastic. The owner was really nice to come and speak with us about life in Palermo. We are new to this area but will definitely make this our new local Italian.

A great experience! A drop of Italy in Berlin. Excellent food, good atmosphere, good waiters.

Everything was fabulous and the owner was a difficult person to find, so kind and very good. Highly recommended.

After I visited the restaurant the first time with a good friend and a really nice waitress looked after us, I went to this restaurant two more times with my partner. Unfortunately, we received unpleasant comments (romance without a man wouldn't work - and whether the waiter would be allowed to sit down later). The service was significantly less friendly on these visits - the food was basically taken away from under our noses and it became clear that we should leave quickly. It's a real shame, I was really hoping to have found my regular Italian here. But I probably won't come back for a while. Small note: while the pizza really isn't that good, the pasta is very tasty.

The food was absolutely great and the service was attentive without being intrusive.

Delicious food at this typical Italian restaurant. Delicious bruschetta and spaghetti carbonara!

The Osteria Ballaro was the culinary conclusion to a training seminar. Great welcome in a friendly environment by the host. The selection left nothing to be desired, all the dishes looked excellent. My pulpo grillata was delicious. Tender on the inside and crispy - spicy on the outside. The portions were good but not large. The meal was rounded off with a glass of Sicilian red wine. Mille Grazie for this experience.

We were very impressed and the very nice, attentive service convinced us that we will definitely come back soon... the food was absolutely delicious... so see you soon

Very tasty food and great service from one of the few real Italians

Service unfortunately inattentive. Food so-so. Neighborhood Italians, with an audience that wants to be seen. A bit like Prenzlauer Berg. Probably not again.

Very tasty food, great hosts and a beautifully decorated restaurant.

Everything was great and tasty, I was there 7 days ago, I noticed that the prices on the menu online are not the same as in the store. It may have changed now 😉.

A good, rather average Italian, with good food. The younger waiter was very good, the older one, probably the patron, was absolutely unfriendly. difficult parking situation in the evening.

Great atmosphere, Excellent food Very courteous service... Any time...!

The restaurant atmosphere is cozy. The ingredients were fresh and delicious. They were all friendly and we were very pleased, especially with the Sicilian wines!

Great food, top service. Only recommended!

Were here for the second time today and definitely not the last time. The food and service were excellent. We had the beetroot gnocchi and fell in love! EXCELLENT!

Super lecker und tolles Personal 🍝

Excellent cuisine and service, well done.

unser Lieblingsitaliener! Fühlen uns wie zuhause. Danke und macht weiter so!

Alles Wunderbar im Restaurant. Ein toller Laden und ein wunderbarer Chef

Super lecker! Gnocchi mit Rote Beete und Trüffelcreme.

Unser Stammitaliener. Wir kommen jede Woche immer wieder gerne hierher. 😊 Mille Grazie Giovanni❤️

Sehr freundlicher Service und gute Küche. Anspruchsvolle Gerichte außerhalb der Speisekarte. Empfehlenswertes Mittelklasse-Restaurant.

Sehr gutes Essen und bestes Mandelparfait

Was soll man sagen nach so einem wundervollen Abend!

Wirklich exzellentes und autentisches Essen. Dazu ein freundlicher und unaufdringlicher Service. Das Restaurant war eine Empfehlung einer Freundin, die dort wohnt. Ein Kiez Restaurant im besten Sinne.

Herrliches Restaurant. Für mich das beste sizialianische Essen der Stadt!

Soooooo lecker! Das Personal ist ebenfalls sehr herzlich und freundlich. Wir waren zur Team-Weihnachtsfeier hier. Es gab eine Vorspeise mit verschiedenen italienischen Leckereien. Hauptgerichte waren ebenfalls super gut.

Wohlfühl-Italiener mit guter Qualität, guten Service und guten Preisen. Passt alleswir kommen gerne wieder.

Had an amazing time here, felt like back in Italy! Nice neighbour in Berlin, food was fantastic and authentic.

Sehr leckere, traditionelle italienische Küche. Sehr empfehlenswert!

Authentisches Ambiente, netter Chef, guter Service, sehr gutes Essen und exzellente Weine! Sehr empfehlenswert!

Dieses Restaurant wurde uns von Freunden empfohlen. Essen und Service waren hervorragend. Jetzt kann ich es weiter empfehlen!

Super leckere Pasta, sympathischer Service und top Vino. Tolles Familienunternehmen man fühlt sich wie in Italien :)