Frankfurt Restaurants and Dining

(Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany)

Where to eat in Frankfurt depends on many factors, namely cuisine, location, budget and also atmosphere. Many restaurants in Frankfurt cater well for the younger crowds, featuring trendy surroundings, cocktail bars, outdoor seating and nearby nightclubs. However, for sophisticated dining and many classic German dishes, plenty of restaurants are available around central Frankfurt and beyond, where families are always welcomed.

For many, a sit-down meal in a brewpub is quintessentially German, where you can expect everything from sandwiches and soups, to pot roasts and stews, with the dishes often being dictated by season. Of course, when dining in one of Frankfurt's many brewpubs, a stein of the homebrew beer is almost obligatory.

What to Eat

With meat-based dishes a plenty, many restaurants serve pot roasts of beef, port, poultry, venison and even boar, together with a wide choice of side orders, such as thick noodles or potatoes, which are often mashed or served as a potato salad. For vegetarians, vegetable soups and stews are often a good option, together with side orders of sauerkraut cabbage, and if nothing else takes your fancy, more international dining options will be sure to tempt you. When dining at one of Frankfurt's restaurants and eateries, look out for the city's famed local specialities.

• Apfelwein - strong tasting apple wine, usually served in a traditional mug
• Frankfurter sausages - famous smoked port sausages, usually served with mustard and bread, quite different to the American 'frankfurter'
• Green sauce - a mixture of minced and finely chopped herbs, usually accompanying both potatoes and boiled eggs
• Handkäs mit Musik - a particularly strong local cheese often served alongside rye bread

Where to Eat

A good selection of restaurants and cider bars lie close to the Hauptbahnhof station, within the Bahnhofsviertel area of Frankfurt. This part of the city is particularly known for its diverse dining opportunities, with restaurants here serving cuisine from southern Europe, Asia and many parts of the Middle East.

Often referred to as 'Munch Alley' (Fregasse), many top dining options in Frankfurt await on the Grosse Bockenheimer Strasse and the nearby Kalbächer Gasse, close to both the Opernplatz and Rathenauplatz squares. Here you will find many inexpensive restaurants and eateries offering outdoor dining areas and courtyards. A good selection of fast-food restaurants also reside in this part of Frankfurt, while slightly to the north-east, many interesting streets are also lined with trendy and particularly appealing eateries.

Around Frankfurt's bustling Sachsenhausen district lies an enticing dining scene, centred between both the Darmstädter Landstrasse and the nearby Grosse Rittergasse. With almost every single one of the buildings here being either a restaurant, bar or some kind of eatery, you certainly won't go hungry in Sachsenhausen. For further restaurants in Frankfurt, consider the Römerberg area, the Zeil shopping district, and the Berger Strasse, within Nordend, which is lined with a host of bars, cafes and cheap eats.

On the western side of Frankfurt, the Bockenheim district, close to the city's university buildings, is known for its stylish restaurants with a noticeably relaxed, Bohemian atmosphere. This is particularly the case along Leipziger Strasse, which stands near to the Bockenheimer Landstrasse and is a great spot for both inexpensive dining and shopping.