Old Commercial Room is a hanseatic restaurant in Neustadt, Hamburg.
Old Commercial Room opposite the Michel in Hamburg has cooked Hanseatic harbour food since 1795 and is the city's canonical Labskaus address.
Signature dishes: Original Hamburger Labskaus, Pannfisch
Must order: The Original Hamburger Labskaus with fried egg, herring, beetroot and gherkin.
Tip: Open daily; lunch tables more available than dinner. Cash welcome but cards accepted.
Address: Englische Planke 10, 20459 Hamburg
Elisabeth Fuengers and Steffen Hellmann's Nil on Neuer Pferdemarkt in Hamburg's St Pauli has run a modern German bistro over three floors since 1989.
Signature: Monthly set menu, Seasonal a la carte
Order: The monthly four-course set menu; the daily fish course rotates.
Tip: Walk-ins possible early; bookings open online 30 days ahead for the busier weekend slots.
Cox on Lange Reihe in Hamburg's St Georg has run a steady bistro menu of modern German classics across a tight room for over two decades, lunch and dinner.
Signature: Bistro classics, Seasonal mains
Order: The daily lunch special; the steak frites at dinner.
Tip: Lunch tables move quickly between 12:30 and 13:30; book ahead for dinner Friday and Saturday.
Salt and Silver Lateinamerika on St Pauli Hafenstrasse in Hamburg cooks ceviche, asado and modern Latin American small plates above the Elbe.
Signature: Ceviche, Asado meats
Order: The ceviche of the day and the wood-grilled meats.
Tip: Bistro Crudo runs in the basement on the left; main dining room on the ground floor on the right.
Petit Amour on Spritzenplatz in Hamburg's Ottensen reopened in late 2023 under Eike Iken and Monique Lingg and held its Michelin star again in 2025.
Signature: Five- or seven-course tasting
Order: The full tasting; the seafood course leads.
Tip: Small dining room with around 24 seats; weekday bookings far easier than weekends.
Wahabi Nouri's Michelin-starred Piment on Lehmweg in Hamburg's Eppendorf threads French technique with Moroccan spice across a six-course tasting menu.
Signature: Six-course tasting, Lamb course
Order: The full tasting; the lamb course is built around Nouri's Moroccan heritage.
Tip: U3 Hoheluftbruecke five minutes' walk; street parking on Lehmweg only after 18:00.
Heinz Wehmann's Michelin-starred Landhaus Scherrer on the Elbchaussee in Hamburg-Altona cooks modern North German with a bistro wing for lunches.
Signature: Pannfisch, Seven-course tasting
Order: The Pannfisch in the bistro room; the seven-course tasting in the main dining room.
Tip: Lunch tasting is the better-value entry; book a window table for Elbe views.
