Although the food on offer in Hamburg can be very good, local dishes are not so appealing: sweet-and-sour eel soup (Aalsuppe), and corned beef hash, (Labskaus). Grossneumarkt, north of St Michaelis, is fertile ground for restaurants, as is the Schanzenviertel, north of St Pauli. Head to the waterfront for Portuguese eateries, such as O Farol (Ditmar-Koel-Strasse 12, 3199 3760). The Tafelhaus (Neumühlen 17, 892 760, www. tafelhaus.de), with noted cuisine and a harbour view, vies for the honour of Hamburg’s best restaurant with Gunnar Hinz’s recently opened Das Kleine Rote (Holstenkamp 71, 8972 6813) near Altona.

The St Georg area, near the Hauptbahnhof, is another nexus of drinking and dining, with main artery Lange Reihe offering a cosmopolitan cornucopia. Turnhalle (No.107, 2800 8480), Cox (No. 68, 249 422) and the newly opened Buddha Lounge (No.113, 2880 3993) all offer Asian-influenced cuisine to a trendy clientele.

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