Berlin Delicatessen Chain Butter Lindner Reclaims Its Original Name After Three Decades

Butter Lindner, the upmarket Berlin delicatessen chain founded in 1950 in the western district of Schmargendorf, is officially reinstating its original full name after having operated under the shortened brand 'Lindner' since the 1990s. Management says the renaming reflects 'the close connection between brand and customers' — an acknowledgement that Berliners never actually adopted the shortened version, stubbornly referring to the shops as 'Butter Lindner' in everyday speech regardless of what the signs said. Even people who had recently moved to Berlin continued using the traditional name, according to the company. The transition will happen gradually, with logos, branches, and products all set to carry the Butter Lindner name once more, though the company acknowledges full implementation across all locations will take considerable time. The decision is being read less as a nostalgic rebranding exercise than as the official recognition of a long-standing reality: the city's collective memory had preserved the original name across three decades. With multiple outlets in Berlin and other German cities, Butter Lindner ranks alongside landmarks such as the KaDeWe food court and the revived Rogacki shop as one of the capital's best-known delicatessen destinations.