As Bitcoin Friday came to a close, Joerg Platzer of Room 77, a renowned restaurant in Berlin and a hub for the local Bitcoin community, used the occasion to announce Bitcoin Kiez. This project aims to bring a large number of businesses in Berlin's Graefekiez district into the Bitcoin ecosystem by accepting BTC as a payment method.
Bitcoin Kiez has revealed its initial three participants:
Primo Maggio: This restaurant offers a diverse range of homemade Italian food, including sandwiches, antipasti, pasta, and desserts. Primo Maggio prides itself on using high-quality ingredients, ensuring that customers experience the best of original Italian cuisine.
Fabelhaft Bar: Known for serving some of the finest cocktails in Berlin, Fabelhaft Bar offers a unique atmosphere reminiscent of a gothic castle intertwined with an underground bordello. The bar attracts a mix of locals, expats, and artsy individuals, providing a space for lively conversations, cold brews, and handcrafted cocktails.
Vinyl Living Room Longplayer: A cozy used record store frequented by DJs from both Berlin and beyond, Vinyl Living Room Longplayer is a popular hangout spot. The store boasts an extensive collection of hip-hop, funk, soul, jazz, reggae, rock, and punk records, making it a treasure trove for music enthusiasts.
Joerg Platzer envisions Bitcoin Kiez as an evolving project, with plans to adapt and optimize the Bitcoin infrastructure based on the experiences of participants during this initial phase. He expressed confidence that more retail stores and restaurants will soon announce their acceptance of Bitcoin. Platzer anticipates that by December, residents will be able to shop for Christmas gifts and dine at numerous cafes and restaurants within the Graefekiez district, paying for everything with Bitcoin. This initiative seeks to establish an "alternative local currency with global reach."
If successful, the formation of a
stable local Bitcoin community in Berlin would signify a significant milestone
for Bitcoin. It would mark the first large-scale trial of Bitcoin acceptance in
the physical world. The residents of Graefekiez would witness firsthand the
adoption of Bitcoin, transforming it from an abstract concept into a tangible
reality as they encounter signs of businesses accepting Bitcoin and customers
using it for daily transactions. Moreover, this initiative would demonstrate
Bitcoin's practicality in the non-technical realm, providing concrete evidence
to skeptics that Bitcoin has evolved beyond a speculative investment. Berlin's Bitcoin
Kiez could serve as a model for other cities to follow, further expanding the
adoption and acceptance of Bitcoin in the real world.