Want the latest from Berlin? As always, we’re on the ground for you. Just recently, we reported on the 40-million-euro investment in one of Berlin’s largest malls, which will welcome a popular discount store and an XXL supermarket , among others, starting in September. Today, there’s more exciting news: things are really picking up at the Kranzler Eck on Kurfürstendamm. After standing vacant for about two years, life is now returning to this historic City West location.
The Italian restaurant Circolo Popolare will open in the historic rotunda inNovember 2026, while a Rossmann store spanning approximately 1,700 square meters will open just a few meters away. This means the well-known location will not only gain a new culinary highlight but also a major new shopping destination. Circolo Popolare is operated by Big Squadra, or rather the Big Mamma Group, and is already the restaurant group’s third Berlin location. The restaurant is expected to seat more than 250 guests in a space of just under 1,000 square meters. Plans also include a terrace, long communal tables, and an elaborately designed interior featuring more than 1,000 vintage bottles, numerous string lights, and Italian curios. The historic Rotunde, with its distinctive architecture, is set to remain an integral part of the new restaurant concept.
The menu features classic Italian dishes such as fresh pasta, Neapolitan pizza, and gnocchi. Among other items, the restaurant has announced gnocchi alla Sorrentina, which will be served straight from the pan. The menu also includes cocktails and large desserts to share. According to the group, it sources its ingredients from more than 170 small Italian producers.
What makes this particularly exciting is the history of the location. The striking rotunda of Café Kranzler has been part of the Kurfürstendamm skyline for decades. The historic, protected complex was built in the 1950s according to plans by architect Hanns Dustmann and , with its red-and-white awning, became a landmark of postwar West Berlin. Café Kranzler moved into the rotunda in 2001 and closed its doors there for good in 2016.
With the arrival of Circolo Popolare, the name “Café Kranzler” will now disappear for good from the dining scene at this location. However, some historic elements—such as the curved marble staircase and the red-and-white awnings—are to be preserved or integrated into the new concept. The rotunda will also be available for private events in the future.
The Kranzler Eck is also undergoing a transformation in the shopping sector. In the row of stores on Joachimsthaler Straße between Kurfürstendamm and Zoologischer Garten , Rossmann is opening a store spanning approximately 1,700 square meters. The space extends across the ground floor and upper level and, after several previous uses, had most recently stood vacant for an extended period.
The new Rossmann is part of a larger renovation of the site. According to Kranzler Eck, two new concepts are being developed in the section of the building at the corner of Kurfürstendamm and Joachimsthaler Straße, covering more than 3,000 square meters: Rossmann will occupy part of the space, while the remaining area will be used for the new dining concept. The restaurant area will span three floors, including the historic rotunda.
