Review: Si An Tra, Prenzlauer Berg

Despite what some people may assume, there is a lot of good food to be had in Berlin. Sadly, if you're a vegetarian, traditional German cuisine doesn't have a lot to offer. True there is Flammkuchen – a kind of pizza without the tomato sauce – and Käsespätzle can be nice on a cold day, but if you're looking for variety you need to seek out the increasing number of good restaurants serving ethnic food. Although Berlin can't really compete with London on that score, I always make an effort to visit the type of restaurants that are a bit of a schlep for me to reach in the Big Smoke.

The Purple Palace

I was wondering through Covent Garden, enjoying the Christmassy buzz, recently when I decided to pop into the Tea Palace shop. Before their Westbourne Grove cafe and shop closed down I had a very enjoyable afternoon tea there so was keen to see how the new place compared. I have to admit I was really shocked that the previous place had shut. It was very busy when I went there and whenever I passed it seemed to be fairly packed. The afternoon teas on offer were also pretty pricey so I assumed they were making a packet. But given their decision to close, and subsequently open a retail shop - without a cafe - in the centre of town, I suppose I was wrong.