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Surviving hunger at Frankfurt airport!

Surviving hunger at Frankfurt airport!

Old Sep 14, 2015, 4:23 pm
  #31  
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I'm not sure where in FRA you were gouged for this hot dog sandwich that cost as much as a chicken in a semi-fine-dining establishment in the US, but if you're flying internationally, I'd suggest finding another €30 or so which will get you a feast fit for a king in central Frankfurt, along with a return ticket on the S-Bahn. Plus you get some fresh air.
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Old Sep 15, 2015, 12:55 am
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And if OP wants to really indulge and can make another 6.50 EUR available, he can visit the observation deck of the Main Tower for a nice view of the city, the airport and the Taunus mountains. http://www.maintower.de/en/
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Old Sep 15, 2015, 6:48 am
  #33  
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FRA airport is good only if you have lounge access. We went into the city in transit and were not impressed. Its not cheap. But while we were there, a street fair was happening and there were lots of food vendors on the street, but FRA downtown looked kinda sketchy.
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Old Sep 15, 2015, 7:41 am
  #34  
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Originally Posted by LondonElite
11 hours in a lounge in FRA? No thanks. Not even the FCT is that nice. You'd go mental.
Indeed!

Originally Posted by DrewGzy
11 hours without lounge access sounds even worse!!
Yes, but 11 hours are enough to visit the city, visit some museums etc. I hardly have that much time if I do a daytrip to Frankfurt
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Old Sep 15, 2015, 10:41 pm
  #35  
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Originally Posted by cdn1
Germany is not as cheap specially with Euro as their currency.
Food at restaurants is quite expensive anyway
You did not anyhow follow the development of the the exchange rate, did you? And restaurants are currently a steal compared to the U.S. if you consider that restaurant prices on the menu are in general including service and tax and you are just expected to leave a small tip of probably a Euro or two or three behind.
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Old Sep 16, 2015, 12:28 am
  #36  
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Originally Posted by Flaneurs
... I remember having a really good Frankfurter in the LX business lounge (maybe it was LH, can't remember.) Had to try it just because it seemed like the right move at the time, eating a Franfurter in Frankfurt!
There's no LX lounge in FRA so it must have been the LH lounge. Avoid non-Schengen LH lounges where they serve turkey Frankfurter rather than the real stuff.
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Old Sep 16, 2015, 8:23 am
  #37  
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Originally Posted by Flaneurs
I remember having a really good Frankfurter in the LX business lounge (maybe it was LH, can't remember.) Had to try it just because it seemed like the right move at the time, eating a Frankfurter in Frankfurt!
Good idea, but you most likely had a WIENER not a FRANKFURTER in a Hotdog.

What the Austrians call FRANKFURTER WRSTEL (because they were invented by a butcher from Frankfurt in Vienna) is called WIENER WRSTCHEN in Germany (because they were invented in Vienna).

FRANKFURTER WRSTCHEN are something different: Sausage of pure pork in a casing of mutton's intestine with a special taste acquired by a special method of smoking the pork. These should not be cooked, might however be heated, but are in general not used for Hotdogs.
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Old Sep 16, 2015, 11:19 pm
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Surviving hunger at Frankfurt airport!

Thanks for the correction, Flying Lawyer. As a silly American I always thought frankfurter=wiener=hot dog. I appreciate now knowing the difference.
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Old Sep 18, 2015, 10:30 am
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Originally Posted by cdn1
Germany is not as cheap specially with Euro as their currency.
Food at restaurants is quite expensive anyway
Sorry, but I find Germany to be probably the best value for food on almost anywhere in western Europe. You get decent portion size for good prices. Of course airports in Germany are the exception to the rule and there are always some places that are not so good.

Back to the original question. To stay cheap you have several options.

T2 airside non-schengen you have Burger king
T2 landside at the top of the terminal you have McDonalds (and others around)

T1 landside in the "Airport city mall" (it's in the basement, best to go looking for the rental car centre and it is right there) you have many different take away/quick and cheap(er) options. Including;
McDonalds
KFC
Thong Thai
Nordsee (fish restaurant)

and on the same level is a supermarket (mentioned above)
Scattered around you have places like "Kamps" and "Quickers" which are bakeries and do snacks, Sandwiches, etc.

T1 A airside: This is pretty poor and I find most places are not so good and expensive for what they are. But you can get a Sandwich or similar.

T1 B airside non-schengen: you have another McDonalds.



But, given your layover I would do as suggested and go into town. The S-Bahn train will take 20mins each way (allow min 45 in case of delays) and costs a little under 10 euros return.

Go to Hauptwache which you can do sometimes without changing (sometimes you have to change at the central station/ Hauptbahnhof). This the centre of town so lots of food options, including Subway at "Groe Eschenheimer Str. 45" which is 2-3 min walk away. And you can then do some siteseeing etc. to waste some time.
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Old Sep 19, 2015, 2:22 pm
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The layover that you have sounds like an excellent time to go into Frankfurt. It takes 15 mins by S-Bahn. Come back 3 hours early if you're so concerned with making the flight. You can leave hand luggage at the main train station in Frankfurt.

Eating out in Germany is cheaper than in the US. Fast food is also cheaper.
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Old Sep 21, 2015, 2:02 am
  #41  
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You can even use Burger King and McDonald's coupons at the airport locations!
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Old Sep 25, 2015, 8:58 pm
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Originally Posted by Flying Lawyer
Good idea, but you most likely had a WIENER not a FRANKFURTER in a Hotdog.

What the Austrians call FRANKFURTER WRSTEL (because they were invented by a butcher from Frankfurt in Vienna) is called WIENER WRSTCHEN in Germany (because they were invented in Vienna).

FRANKFURTER WRSTCHEN are something different: Sausage of pure pork in a casing of mutton's intestine with a special taste acquired by a special method of smoking the pork. These should not be cooked, might however be heated, but are in general not used for Hotdogs.

And let's not forget the sublime RINDSWURST that reflect the Jewish history and influence on local cuisine in Frankfurt.
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Old Sep 25, 2015, 10:12 pm
  #43  
 
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Originally Posted by NYTA
Buy a fully refundable first class ticket from FRA to anywhere. Go eat in the F lounge. Then cancel your ticket after you have finished eating.
...or maybe not such a good idea.

http://www.economist.com/blogs/gulli...irport-lounges

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...ood-freeloader
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Old Sep 26, 2015, 6:03 am
  #44  
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But mainly stupid, because the refund can take ages; I've waited eight weeks for a refund on a fully-flex business class ticket. If you want to tie up say €6,000 for a couple of months in order to eat in the FCT, you should maybe consider buying 'Personal Finance for Dummies' book.
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Old Sep 27, 2015, 9:11 am
  #45  
 
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Btw, this must sound ridiculous to most of you, but I used to live in Frankfurt as a kid for some years due to my dad being posted in Germany as an export manager. This was in the late 1970's/early 80's.

So I still love this undervalued city, actually everything about it. Only Cologne rates higher in my books, due to studying management there later.

There was a lovely mom'n'pop style Delicatessen close to Frankfurt Railway Station earlier. Unfortunately the couple that ran it have retired and their kids only do online wine retail now. Before, it was par with anything New York City or Paris could offer.

These days, I like to stay overnight in Frankfurt-Niederrad. And one of my Frankfurt layover highlights there is an "Imbiss" owned by a very sympathetic local couple who, if they were Italian, would surely operate a perfect Trattoria.

Now they are doing a sublime Rindswurst, pommes frites, salad and a soft drink well under 10 euros. Love this place located in front of the local hypermarket a few minutes from Niederrad S-Bahn station and regularly eat there instead of the city or overpriced FRA food outlets.
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