Denns Biomarkt — Supermarket in Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin

Denns Biomarkt sits on Danziger Straße in Prenzlauer Berg, a branch of the organic chain in a neighbourhood where the daily shop is taken seriously. Walk in and the first thing you see is the produce: a large section of fresh fruit and vegetables, arranged so it looks appetizing, and big enough that you can do a full shop here rather than picking up one thing.

The produce is the pick. It earns its space for the size of the section and the way it is laid out, and it is where most of a basket gets built. The cheese and meat counter is the second stop, with cheese and meat singled out by name. The bakery is part of the same shop, so bread for the next morning is one more thing you can cross off in the same trip.

The store is organized and clean, laid out so you can find everything for a household in one pass. There is a play area for toddlers, which changes the arithmetic if you are shopping with small children in tow. The deli counter keeps its own hours, so if you arrive at 8 am set on ground beef for lunch, expect to be told to come back in an hour; the counter's opening hours are not posted separately.

A basket lands somewhere between €10 and €30, and this is organic food at organic prices, so the total climbs faster than in a conventional supermarket. Checkout can be slow when only one register is open, and the second one does not always get staffed.

What you get for the money is a produce section worth planning a meal around and a cheese and meat counter that holds its own. Come for the fruit and vegetables, add cheese from the counter, and leave time for the checkout line.