This tour is intended as an idea for a day trip and as an experience report. The focus is on American diner with their special flair and food offer. The tour is intended for all those who want to experience a bit of “Route 66” on the weekend or in a few free hours, whether they are traveling by motorcycle or car.
Start at the cruise-in, Spandau
The best way to start the tour is in the morning at the Cruise In in Spandau. Probably the most original of all Berlin dinners was built in an old gas station. The all-round view is sensational, even if the view of the commercial park does not impress with extraordinary highlights. The original flair and the family atmosphere are unusually authentic. If any of the numerous US car owners in Berlin are here on that day, the situation with the large windows will have an entertainment effect that cannot be surpassed. Here you could like to endure it longer. However, we leave the "Cruise-In" after a small snack with coffee (or coffee, as the Berliner says) and drive over a rather narrow part of Pawesiner Strasse to Seeburger Strasse and then on to Heerstrasse (B 5) in the direction of Nauen .
The great Planes (approx. 26 km)
We leave Berlin on the generously developed Heerstraße heading west. Car convoys in particular will be delighted here. The multi-lane streets invite you to leisurely overtake. The driving speed can be reduced to a leisurely "cruising" without disturbing other road users. After a few kilometers we leave Berlin and drive into the state Brandenburg. On the way we also pass the barracks complexes (to the right and left of the B 5) from Dallgow-Döberitz. The village with the quarters for the Olympic athletes was built here in 1935. After crossing the Berlin motorway ring, we come to an unusual landscape. Admittedly: the Great Planes are not, but the long road in front of Nauen and the extensive fields to the right and left of the route give a rather unusual feeling of space for Germany.
Lunch at Big's, Nauen
After a drive of about 40-50 minutes we reach the Big's Diner in Nauen. Behind the rather inconspicuous facade, delicious burgers and sandwiches as well as exceptionally nice service await us. There are plenty of parking spaces. Big's is also a regular meeting point for the biker and US car scene. The possibility to sit outside on the terrace when the weather is nice and watch the arrivals and departures is particularly attractive.
Continue to Potsdam (approx. 50 km)
We drive back on the B 5 / B 273 to the Berliner Ring. Here we do not drive back to Berlin, but follow the B 273 over an increasingly scenic route via Wustermark, Hoppenrade, Bucho-Karpzow to Falkenrehde. In Falkenrehde we can make a small detour through Ketzin via the L114, which will take us back to the road shortly after Paaren Potsdam (L 204) brings. Here we cross the A 10 / Berliner Ring and continue on the Marquarder Chaussee (B 273) via Bornim to Potsdam. In Potsdam we continue to follow the B 273 (Bornstedter Straße) over the beautiful Potsdamer Alleen past Park Sanssouci. At the intersection with Hegelallee, we turn left into the same (B 2) and follow the course of the road to B 1. Here we also turn left and follow the B 1 (Berliner Straße) to just before the Glienicker Bridge.
Indian Motorcycle Café, Potsdam
The Indian Motorcycle Café on Berliner Straße in Potsdam, just before the Glienicker Bridge, is one of the cult spots of the Berlin / Brandenburg biker scene. The square, which is also built in and around an old gas station, has its own charm. Although the parking facilities (for cars) are quite limited, on nice days, crowds of motorcycle enthusiasts also meet here during the week, whether they are traveling on foot, by car, on their own motorcycle or by bike. Self-service is the order of the day. The explicit friendliness of a diner cannot be assumed here - coolness is the order of the day. the coffee and cake is excellent and there is nothing more to take a coffee break here.
Return via the Avus and across Berlin (approx. 32 km)
Via Avus, Bismarckstraße, Ernst-Reuter Platz and then further on Straße des 17ten Juni, through the Tiergarten and to the Brandenburg Gate. Via Beherenstrasse, Unter den Linden, Alexanderplatz and Karl-Marx Allee, we also have many Berlin sights on the route.
Completion of the tour
The tour ends with an ice cream in Hennings Eiscafe. This is not an American Diner, but a real (East) Berlin attraction, of the rank of Konopken. There are plenty of parking spaces available on the splendid boulevard of the east. The proximity to Straußberger Platz invites you to take a short walk.
