Curry 36

Curry 36 is one of the best-known places in Berlin to try currywurst, the city's favourite street food: sliced sausage covered in a ketchup-based curry sauce and dusted with curry powder. The stand on Mehringdamm in Kreuzberg has been serving it since 1980, and it has become a fixture for locals on their way home, office workers at lunchtime and visitors who want to taste the dish in a classic setting.

This is a no-frills snack bar. You order at the counter, choose your sausage with or without skin, and pick your side, usually chips with mayonnaise or ketchup, or a bread roll. Portions arrive quickly on a paper tray with a small wooden or plastic fork, and most people eat standing at the tall tables outside, whatever the weather. Besides currywurst, the menu covers other grilled sausages and simple snacks. Prices are low, which is part of the appeal.

It suits anyone on a budget, solo travellers, groups heading out for the evening and families looking for a quick, inexpensive meal. Vegetarians should check the current menu at the counter, as options can change. The atmosphere is busy and fast-moving rather than relaxing, and queues form at lunchtime and late at night, but they move quickly.

Curry 36 is open every day from 9am until 5am the next morning, which makes it a reliable late-night stop after a bar or club in Kreuzberg. There is no table service and no booking; just join the queue. Seating is limited, so expect to stand. It is a good place to try currywurst before comparing it with other famous stands, such as Konnopke's Imbiss in Prenzlauer Berg, which has its own loyal following.

Currywurst itself is said to have been invented in Berlin in 1949, when Herta Heuwer began selling sausage with a curry-spiced sauce at her stand in Charlottenburg, and it has been part of the city's identity ever since. Eating one at a busy stand such as this, surrounded by people of every age and background, is as much a part of a Berlin visit as seeing the Brandenburg Gate. If you are not sure how much spice you like, ask for the milder sauce first.

The stand is beside Mehringdamm U-Bahn station on the U6 and U7, so it is easy to fit into a day of sightseeing. Bergmannstrasse, with its cafés and shops, is a few minutes' walk to the south, Viktoriapark and the Kreuzberg monument are a little further west, and the Jewish Museum Berlin is about fifteen minutes away on foot.