Haus Schwarzenberg: Berlin's Last Rebellious Courtyard (And Our Favorite Bar)

The first time we stumbled into Haus Schwarzenberg, we almost missed it entirely. We were walking down Rosenthaler Straße, distracted by the polished facades of the Hackesche Höfe, when we noticed a narrow entrance with crumbling brown walls covered in decades of graffiti. No fancy sign. No Instagram-ready welcome. Just a doorway that whispered: if you want the real Berlin, come inside.

We've been coming back ever since.

While tourists pack into the neighboring Hackesche Höfe with their boutique shops and upscale restaurants, we slip through that unmarked entrance at number 39 and descend into a world that time refuses to touch. This is Dead Chicken Alley—officially Haus Schwarzenberg—and after countless visits, we're convinced it's the most important courtyard in Berlin that most visitors walk right past.

What Makes Haus Schwarzenberg Different

Haus Schwarzenberg isn't trying to be a tourist attraction. It exists because a group of stubborn artists refused to let capitalism erase Berlin's creative soul.

In 1995, when the rest of Mitte was being gutted and renovated for wealthy investors, an artist collective called the Dead Chickens moved into this abandoned building complex. They named it after Stefan Heym's novel about a short-lived grassroots democracy in post-war Germany—a fitting tribute to what they were trying to create. Together with Jutta Weitz from the Berlin housing association, they transformed a decaying post-war ruin into something revolutionary: an independent cultural house that operates entirely outside government funding.

The result is jarring in the best possible way. Step through that entrance and the polished Berlin of souvenir shops and €5 coffees dissolves into layer upon layer of street art, bizarre metal sculptures, and facades deliberately left unrestored since the Wall came down. The contrast with the sanitized Hackesche Höfe next door couldn't be more extreme—and that's precisely the point.

Eschschloraque Rümschrümp: The Bar We Keep Coming Back To

Here's what we need to tell you about our favorite spot in all of Haus Schwarzenberg: the Eschschloraque Rümschrümp. Yes, the name is almost impossible to pronounce. No, we still can't say it properly after all these years. None of that matters once you're inside.

The bar sits in the second courtyard, and finding it for the first time feels like discovering a secret. You walk past walls exploding with graffiti, past metal monster sculptures that seem to watch you, until you reach what looks like a post-apocalyptic entrance. Push through, and you're in one of Berlin's most authentic underground bars.

The interior defies description. Monster sculptures created by the Dead Chickens collective loom in the semi-darkness. The walls are covered with decades of artistic accumulation. Strange lights cast everything in otherworldly shadows. It's part art installation, part living room, part time machine back to 1990s Berlin.

We always grab drinks and head to one of the worn couches in the back. Cocktails run around €7-8, beers are cheaper, and the bartenders actually know what they're doing. The place opens daily at 2pm as a "Kaffeekaschemme" (coffee dive), but transforms as evening approaches. Some nights, parties explode unexpectedly and don't stop until sunrise. Other nights, you'll find yourself in strange conversations with artists, old-school Berliners, and curious travelers who somehow found their way off the tourist path.

The Eschschloraque has been running since 1995—nearly 30 years of defying the gentrification that swallowed everything around it. In 2025, they're celebrating their anniversary alongside Haus Schwarzenberg's 30th birthday. That's three decades of serving drinks in a space where the mainstream was never invited.

Practical info:

• Address: Rosenthaler Straße 39, 2nd courtyard, 10178 Berlin-Mitte

• Hours: Daily from 2pm until late (often until 5am on weekends)

• Payment: Cash only

• What to order: The cocktails are surprisingly excellent for a dive bar. Beer is always reliable.

• Pro tip: The summer courtyard garden is perfect for early evening drinks before the crowds arrive.

The Street Art: An Ever-Changing Gallery

Haus Schwarzenberg functions as Berlin's most concentrated outdoor gallery. Unlike curated street art zones where murals are commissioned and protected, this is raw creative expression in its purest form.

Every surface tells a story. Paste-ups layer over stencils layer over tags layer over murals, creating an archaeological record of Berlin's underground art scene spanning decades. Works change constantly—what you see today may be partially covered tomorrow. Artists aren't seeking permission here; they're simply adding their voice to an ongoing conversation.

Notable pieces include tributes to Otto Weidt (more on him shortly), politically charged murals addressing gentrification and resistance, and surreal imagery that defies easy interpretation. One of the courtyard's charming oddities is a vintage art vending machine by Berlin artist Marius Schäfer—a repurposed cigarette dispenser that now sells small packaged artworks for a few euros.

We've watched the walls evolve over our visits, and that's part of the magic. Haus Schwarzenberg isn't preserved; it's alive. Come back a month later and something will have changed.

Further reading: Want to explore more of Berlin's street art scene? Check out our complete guide to Berlin's best murals and graffiti.

The Monsterkabinett: Where Dead Chickens Come Alive

Hidden in the basement beneath the courtyards lurks one of Berlin's strangest attractions: the Monsterkabinett. This is where the Dead Chickens collective houses their pneumatically operated monster machines—grotesque, beautiful, utterly bizarre kinetic sculptures that sing, dance, and tell stories.

The experience lasts about 25 minutes. A guide leads small groups down a steep staircase into a dark vault where mechanical creatures perform choreographed shows. It's part art installation, part theater, part fever dream. The machines run on Windows XP-controlled pneumatics (seriously), and keeping them operational has become increasingly challenging—which somehow adds to their charm.

The Monsterkabinett opened in 2010, though the Dead Chickens have been creating these creatures since the 1980s. They were completely overhauled in spring 2025, so current visitors are seeing them in their best condition in years.

Practical info:

• Hours: Wednesday-Thursday: Ticket sales from 5pm, shows 4:30pm-8:30pm hourly. Friday-Saturday: Ticket sales from 4pm, shows 4:30pm-9:30pm hourly.

• Duration: About 25 minutes

• Tickets: €10 at the door (cash only)

• Age limit: Children 6+ must be accompanied by adults

• No photography allowed during the show

• Reservations: Only for groups of 10+; otherwise just show up during opening hours

History That Matters: Otto Weidt and the Silent Heroes

Here's what makes Haus Schwarzenberg more than just a cool art space: it's built on ground where actual heroism happened.

During World War II, this building housed Otto Weidt's brush and broom workshop. Weidt employed mostly blind and deaf Jewish workers, claiming they were essential for war production. But his real purpose was protection. When the Gestapo came for his employees, Weidt fought back. He bribed officials. He obtained false papers. He hid people in a secret back room behind a wardrobe.

Most of his workers were eventually discovered, deported, and murdered. But Weidt never stopped trying. He helped one employee escape from a concentration camp during the death marches. In 1971, Yad Vashem recognized him as "Righteous Among the Nations."

Today, the Museum Blindenwerkstatt Otto Weidt tells this story in the very rooms where it happened. The hidden room behind the wardrobe has been preserved—you can walk inside the space where people clung to survival while the world burned outside.

The museum is free, powerful, and importantly, not crowded like the big Holocaust memorials. We've spent time here on multiple visits, and each time we notice something new in the photographs, letters, and personal documents that make the history intensely personal.

Museum Blindenwerkstatt Otto Weidt:

• Hours: Monday-Friday 9am-6pm, Saturday-Sunday 10am-6pm

• Admission: Free

• Location: First courtyard, left entrance

Adjacent to the Otto Weidt museum is the Anne Frank Zentrum, the German partner organization of Amsterdam's Anne Frank House. Their exhibition "All About Anne" connects Anne Frank's story to Berlin's own history of persecution, using interactive elements designed especially for younger visitors.

Anne Frank Zentrum:

• Hours: Tuesday-Sunday 10am-6pm (closed Mondays)

• Admission: €8 adults, €4 reduced, €17 family ticket

• Tip: Group reservations required for 8+ people

Other Venues in the Courtyard

Haus Schwarzenberg packs an impressive amount of culture into its courtyards:

Kino Central – An independent arthouse cinema showing films you won't find at the multiplexes, often in original language with subtitles. The attached Café Cinema serves decent coffee and cakes and opened on October 2, 1990—hours before German reunification.

Neurotitan Gallery & Shop – Part gallery, part record store, part comic shop. Neurotitan hosts around 12 international exhibitions yearly and sells work by non-mainstream artists. The vibe is deliberately uncommercial.

• Hours: Monday-Saturday 12pm-8pm

Artist Studios – Various working artists rent space throughout the complex. You'll occasionally see them coming and going, a reminder that Haus Schwarzenberg is a living creative community, not a museum piece.

How to Experience Haus Schwarzenberg

Our honest advice: don't try to see everything in one visit. The space rewards multiple returns.

For a first visit: Walk through the courtyards slowly. Let the street art sink in. Grab a drink at Eschschloraque and people-watch. Visit the Otto Weidt museum (it's free and takes about 30-45 minutes). If timing works, catch a Monsterkabinett show.

For a deeper experience: Come back on different days and at different times. The courtyard feels different at noon than at midnight. The bar crowd shifts from afternoon coffee drinkers to late-night characters. The street art might have changed since your last visit.

Best times to visit:

• Late afternoon into evening for the best atmosphere at Eschschloraque

• Weekdays for quieter museum visits

• Friday or Saturday evening for the liveliest bar scene

• June 2025 for the 30th anniversary Hoffest (courtyard festival)

Getting There

Haus Schwarzenberg sits at Rosenthaler Straße 39, between the S-Bahn Hackescher Markt and U-Bahn Weinmeisterstraße stations.

• S-Bahn: S3, S5, S7, S9 to Hackescher Markt (2-minute walk)

• U-Bahn: U8 to Weinmeisterstraße (3-minute walk)

• Tram: M1 to Weinmeisterstraße

Look for the brownish, deliberately unrestored building between the polished neighbors. The entrance is an archway—easy to miss if you're not looking for it. That's part of the point.

Planning your Berlin trip? Read our complete guide to where to stay in Berlin to find the perfect neighborhood for your visit.

Why Haus Schwarzenberg Still Matters

Thirty years after the Dead Chickens moved in, Haus Schwarzenberg remains one of the only truly independent cultural spaces in central Berlin. It operates without government subsidies, resisting the commercial pressures that have transformed everything around it.

That survival isn't guaranteed. The fight against gentrification continues daily. Every year, another creative space closes, pushed out by rising rents and investor interest. Haus Schwarzenberg persists because people keep showing up—buying drinks at Eschschloraque, visiting the museums, attending the exhibitions and events that fund its operations.

When we sit in that back courtyard with a beer, watching the monster sculptures guard the entrance while street art covers every visible surface, we're participating in something that matters. This isn't nostalgia tourism. It's supporting a living community that refuses to surrender Berlin's creative soul to the highest bidder.

Come for the street art. Stay for the drinks. Return because places like this are worth fighting for.