Peking duckbeside Museum Island.

Jolly’s Peking duck is about the contrast between fragrant, crisp skin and juicy meat. The slices come with pancakes, spring onions, cucumber and sauce. Try a piece of skin on its own before wrapping the duck with its accompaniments.

You do not have to order a whole duck. The starter comes with eight pancakes and sauce, while a whole duck serves three to four. There is also a set for one that includes hot-and-sour soup, mixed dim sum, duck and dessert.

Har gow, xiaolongbao and siu mai offer different fillings and wrappers, and a mixed basket lets you try several together. Pork potstickers come with a ginger and vinegar sauce; dumplings in chilli oil add peanuts to the mix.

Cumin lamb takes the meal in a different direction from duck. Black pepper beef comes with broccoli, while Sichuan water-boiled beef brings together Sichuan pepper, chilli oil and garlic. Each gives the table another flavour to explore.

A vegetable and tofu casserole includes glass noodles, and pak choi with fresh mushrooms offers another vegetable dish. These also make it easier to put together a meal with companions who prefer to eat without meat.

Jolly is on Am Kupfergraben, opposite Museum Island. The open kitchen offers a view of the cooking, and the dining room has plenty of seating. The terrace looks towards the museums, making it a convenient stop after an exhibition or a walk by the water.

A museum visit or a gathering in the centre gives you a reason to come; the duck makes it worth planning the meal itself. The spacious room allows time to linger. At weekends or with a larger group, reserving a table is a sensible way to arrange the evening.