The jolliest antiauthoritarian vegan walkabout (guide) of Frankfurt

Updated 2 October 2014 - thank you Daniele for the corrections

You step outside Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof (central exit). Right in front of you, a bit to the right, you should see this:

KUMHO TYRES

You cross the zebra crossing, careful, don’t get run over by the S-Bahn (metro).

You are now at the starting point of Kaiserstraße (This: “ß“... is a German kind of “double S“. It looks sort of like a Greek “beta“). Kaiserstraße - “emperor street“ - is something like Frankfurt’s vena cava, a major blood vessel. 

Note this important message just as you're crossing at KUMHO TYRES.

Note: If you don't have time... scroll down to the big fat "NOW".
BEFORE you start walking, let me tell you: If you were going to turn to your right at this point, you’d soon come to the river (called “Main”). On the way you could go to “MoschMosch”, a Japanese restaurant chain with some menu marked vegan options – someone told me it’s not great. I don’t know. 

IF you were going to turn to your left (from where you are, your starting point: beginning of Kaiserstraße), you’d come to “Frankfurt Messe” (where the famous bookfair is held around October) and at some point you'd come to Frankfurt “West End”.

IF you take the street parallel to Kaiserstraße (to its left, Taunusstraße) you’ll see a few strip clubs/pornography/what-not kind of places and a few more drug users than on Kaiserstraße.

Cig Köftem 
IF you take the street parallel to Kaiserstraße (to its right, Münchener Straße) you’ll see a few Arabic and Turkish shops, AND you will get to “Cig Köftem“ – an unusual Turkish take away. It’s Eastern Turkish food, and their main option - "Dürüm” - is vegan. The “Baklava” and all other sweet pastries are NOT vegan - even though I had previously been told, on several occasions, that they are vegan.  So you can assume the only thing that's vegan that they have is the dürüm, kind of strange as they use the word "vegan" to advertise their chain of restaurants.

They also do have meat, even though their restaurants say "vegetarian" on the store fronts. The "Icli Köftem" (bottom left of menu) is meat and they have yoghurt drinks in the fridge. The "Dürüm" is the meaty looking stuff here. It's wheat based, and cold (!), not warm. It's great summer food. If you're there in winter, maybe ask them to warm it up in the microwave.

Kaiserstraße: Now you are still at your starting point. Start walking. To your right you see a “DM” drugstore. They have a health foodie section with soya milk etc., also Vegan Society logo shampoo, shower gel etc. (See the Germany Guide)

After a few steps, there's a new East Asian supermarket called "Gutleut Supermarket" (Gutleut is the part of town south of the central railway station). "Gutleut" is a "modern feel" East Asian shop - it doesn't smell like fermented vegetables and it's not completely cramped. They have "fresh" frozen durians (around 20 Euros), wakame, lots of stuff - but they're not "Yuan Fa" (see below). 
Gutleut

A bit further down, also on your left, there’s an Indian/Pakistani shop called “Spicelands”. It looks like an English off licence from the outside, but it’s quite big inside and they sell some interesting things like black salt, soya chunks, spices, fresh "Indian" vegetables, green mango pickle, etc. 
Spicelands

Kaiserzeit
A bit further down, on your right, there's a café called  "Kaiserzeit". They usually have a vegan option (in these two photos: lentil soup/Asian veggie soup with sauerkraut).

Yuan Fa
Just a bit further down, also on your right – opposite McDonald’s – there’s a Chinese shop called “Yuan Fa”. They sell excellent cheap tofu and tempeh, "Chinese" vegetables, soya milk powder, miso, galanga root, silken tofu, and many vegan mock meats (soya/seitan based, some marked “vegan”). They have another location. They seem to not always open on time in the mornings (maybe I'm being too German about this). 

This is jellyfish, not vegan, but would you eat it if you knew jellyfish (sorry: jellyfishes) have no consciousness whatsoever? (which is possible, as they don't have a brain) 

 

vegan mock shrimps

 

I think these are vegan. Durian or black bean ice cream.

 

(On Kaiserstraße – as night creeps – especially if you are a solo male, you might be approached (very timidly) by prostitutes or illicit drug vendors.)

Walk a bit further down the street. To your right there will be a tiny park with a big blue Euro sign, to its right Frankfurt's opera house ("Oper", you sometimes hear them sing - not the “Alte Oper” – which is a bit more towards your left). You keep walking straight and you'll get to "Willy-Brandt-Platz" (small fountain/Starbucks/American Apparel) and then “Hauptwache” - the starting point of Frankfurt’s main shopping street: “Zeil”.

ACTUALLY if you really like walking, you can walk straight, straight, straight (a subjective "felt straight", not actually straight, better use a map/GPS), all the way to “Veganz” supermarket. On “Zeil” there are big chain stores and shopping centres.

Common at "Hauptwache": anticapitalist rallies, no war rallies, and other rallies (you might end up seeing a German police officer in riot gear and a green, flat mohawk, or a a ponytail and full beard). 

Nearby "Hauptwache" there's a small yellow box kiosk-like food vendor (just outside "Sport Arena") that says "OFENFRISCHE LAUGENBREZELN".. They sell vegan samosas (containing potatoes, a few stray green peas and "Indian spices").

Rag Bar 
I would say: You have to go to Rag Bar and eat cake.

Note: Zeilgallerie ≠ My Zeil (two shopping centres)

“Zeilgallerie” is located directly next to (to the left of) “My Zeil”.  

The entrance to Zeilgallerie

... and the entrance to "My Zeil"

“Rag Bar” is located in the basement of Zeilgallerie. Walk in, go down the steps, you’re there.

All the food at Rag Bar is vegan, and most of it is raw. All of the raw cakes look amazing – it’s difficult to choose which one to get. Note that they also offer a savoury raw dish. They also have coffee with dairy milk (the only non vegan thing they have), soya milk or almond milk. 

biodegradable forks made from corn/potato starch

This is what it looks like when it's closed (here you can see: Rag Bar is opposite Pizza Hut).

There's also a “Lush” (soapy stuff) shop in "Zeilgallerie" (Shop 29, E2), and also toilets (not free).

You are now smack dab in the centre of Frankfurt. 

Close-by to your right is the “Kleinmarkthalle”, an indoor market which includes an all vegan stall/shop area by the controversial German religious group “Universal Life” – they sell seitan sausages, basil pesto, “Bärlauch” pesto (bear’s garlic), bread, fruit, vegetables, etc. They do vegan organic farming, but they are, well, controversial. The “Kleinmarkthalle” also has free or “semi free” toilets.

 

"Hauptwache" is the big red dot. "Kleinmarkthalle" is the small yellow "09". But the easiest way to find "Kleinmarkthalle" is to keep walking on "Zeil" until you get to this fountain ("Primark" cheap clothing store to the left). Here you turn right.

After a hundred metres, you'll see "Kleinmarkthalle" on your right. Directly next to its front entrance you'll find "Das Eis" - an ice cream "parlour" that has vegan ice cream. "Double Nut", "Schoko Cookie Dough", and all the fruit sorbets are vegan - their website lists more vegan flavours ("Mandel küsst Orange" and "extraVEGANza"), but they might not have all of them available. I think they don't have ice cream cones (in German: "Waffel"), which is sad, but it saves you asking if they're vegan.

Kleinmarkthalle (front):

Keinmarkthalle inside: "Lebe Gesund" stall (aka "Universal Life")

 

Kleinmarkthalle (back entrance)

 

 

Das Eis

The first and the third from the right aren't vegan. I was told the raspberry/beetroot/ginger flavour is great. The "double nut" (peanut and hazelnut) is good, I think.  

The "chocolate cookie dough" flavour at "Das Eis" is also vegan.

If you keep walking down the street, turn right... you'll (probably) come to Frankfurt's most touristy square "Römerberg" - must see. 
Note: My directions might not be 100% foolproof (aka correct - I hope they are). If in doubt, consult a map. Frankfurt is quite small though, no need to worry. 
First another square:

 

German armourers

 

And across the street: Römerberg 

 little ones

On the way back to the central railway station.
I thought this man looks hilarious, but it's actually a holocaust memorial. Opposite this statue there are some knife/pots & pans shops, and these are apparently special to Chinese tourists who arrive by the busload to shop there. Appreciative of this opportunity, on Saturdays, close by you'll find Falun Gong activists protesting China's human rights violations against practitioners of Falun Gong.

 

Some man

 water waste

Remember this movie? I think there are several jokes hidden within this sticker, not sure, something to do with football.

 

"An ostrich who was one and a half years old

In size and form of this build

From Tunis, the barbarian's land

Was known to us since 1577"

This ostrich is not amused. If only he had known of the Germans' defeat in Tunis (1943).

Die Kuh die lacht
Just before the "Oper", at Willy-Brandt-Platz "U-Bahn" station is a non vegetarian burger place called "Die Kuh die lacht" (the cow who laughs). The do have vegan burger options! If you don't mind paying 8-10 Euros for a vegan burger in a place called "the cow who laughs", do support their vegan options! And tell me if they're good!
Sometimes "omni" restaurants are good places to go when you're with people who "hate vegetarian food".

"Vegetarian/vegan

All burgers are available as a vegetarian/vegan patty option, and will be served in a vegan bun." 

Sides

French fries

Yuca [which I think means cassava] or parsnip chips

Side salad"

See-Land
 Already on "Münchener Straße", just before you'll get to "Cig Köftem", there's an Indian/Pakistani shop called "See-Land". They have cheap tofu.

NOW:

There are two centres of interest (apart from Rag Bar) when it comes to Frankfurt and visiting vegans looking for good food:

1) The all vegan café “Savory” in the “Rödelheim” district of Frankfurt. You could walk, if you really like to walk. Otherwise take the “S-Bahn” (S3, S4, or S5 to “Rödelheim” station, the fourth stop after “Hauptbahnhof”. Directly next to the "normal train" platforms, go down the stairs to the "S-Bahn", not to be confused with the "U-Bahn". Go to platform 102 - right at this moment though, the troublemakers at Deutsche Bahn are causing trouble. See platform 102 for info on where you really have to go in order to get to Rödelheim.)

“Savory” has the most delicious burgers south of Loving Hut Camden (London), maybe even better. It’s quite small, with a small "store" section, and it’s really cool. It’s not in the centre, and it’s not in “Vegan Ville” Frankfurt, but you must go there, I say must. 

Come out of "Rödelheim" station. This is the right side:

 

Walk straight into the first street (slightly to the right): Radilostraße

You'll walk past this picture of a falafel (on your right). REWE will be right in front of you. Cross.

Walk past REWE (about 5 steps), you'll see this: "Lady's", turn right, a few more steps.
On the corner (right hand side) there's "Savory".

 

Savory

 

2) “Vegan Ville” Frankfurt. (Note: I just made this up, no one calls it "Vegan Ville", but you can. This district of Frankfurt is called "Bornheim".) 
Vegan Ville is arranged in a circular fashion around the “U-Bahn” station “Bornheim MItte”. Vegan Ville includes: Veganz, Chimichurri, Wondergood, Edelkiosk, Extravegant, and as a bonus “Vegan Bio Spahn” – all of these are completely vegan.

- Almost right outside “Bornheim Mitte” station is “Veganz” – the vegan supermarket chain, you already knew that. Inside Veganz there’s a café counter operated by “Wondergood”.

 

Tofurky, Field Roast, American meats section - note: the green ones at the top are German! 

The cheapest Seitan powder I know of: 5,99/kg (non organic, centre)

 

German meats by "Vantastic Foods" in Veganz

 

Supplements sold at Veganz. If you live in Europe, I'd recommend this one: the Vegan Society’s “VEG 1”, take one a day.

I’m not exactly a connoisseur of chocolate, but of course it’s always good to have an opinion anyway: “Rapunzel Nirwana Noir” and “Vivani Dunkle Nougat” are some of the best chocolate bars you will ever taste.

- If you’ve just come out of Veganz, turn right and walk up the street – just a few metres, or yards, or however you measure distance... on the right is an organic butcher’s shop (!) – YES, BUTCHER! – called “Bio Spahn”. Adjacent to it, to its left, is “Vegan Bio Spahn”. “Vegan BioSpahn” – or whatever it is called – is all vegan. They sell vegan take away (or sit in) German meaty sandwiches, vegan kebab, ...and also have vegan ice cream, and a few more edible bits and bobs.   

 

- Keep walking and you’ll come to a little square called "Fünfingerplätzchen" ("little five finger square").

Turn left and walk up the hill (Rendelerstraße).

If you see this on your right, you’re on the right track (note the Jolly Roger pirate flag).

At the top of the little hill you can already see “Chimichurri” across the street. Chimichurri’s food is all vegan, but allegedly they do not check if their drinks might have been filtered with gelatin (a big issue with some German vegans) – I think this is pretty irrelevant, but you might think otherwise.

- Stand right next to Chimichurri, where that man in the black polo shirt is standing, and look up the “hill”, not up the main street. Almost literally within spitting distance you’ll see two trees with a “Litfasssäule” (yes three S's, an advertising column) in between – right behind it: “Wondergood” – every classy vegan’s destination – do make reservations, at least on Fridays/Saturdays. Their slogan is “Ethical Well Food”. This isn’t Oxford, so don’t get snobby about an unconventional use of the English language. When I was there they had “dessert sushi” with ice cream – I did ask if it had vegetables in it – and the waitress did not roll her eyes – which I appreciated.

 The red thingy marks "Wondergood". Actually I think the red thingy should be a bit more to its right.

 

I think they're cakes are worth being recommended. Last time I was there they didn't have ice cream, and it's best, according to the waiter, to always make a reservation. They also didn't seem too pleased about us ordering mostly just cake.

 

 
- Now if really you wanted cake, cake, cake, and cake, go all the way back to Veganz (not far at all), and walk to “Edelkiosk” ("posh kiosk"), a German “Café”. A German “Café” is all about cake and coffee, not like an English café – but Edelkiosk also offer some savoury items on weekdays, and savoury or sweet breakfast on weekends. And Germans have for years now been infected with the American abomination called cupcakes – so surely, they’ll have cupcakes. But be a man (no matter your gender), eat a proper cake. (I’m not going to insult English speaking nations now, but you don’t have proper cake, do you?)

Your map to success, red marks Edelkiosk.

UPDATE: I've actually been to Edelkiosk now, and had the most delicious chocolate coconut cake ever. Note that in Germany we eat cake with a small cake fork. It's called "posh" for a reason! Edelkiosk also sell a clothesline full of T-shirts, they have a vegan-y related book collection, and beautiful artsy interior decoration. They have a variety of seating options. They have a sense of humour. They probably have everything you have ever dreamed of. I'm prone to easily be swayed by emotions and make highly subjective statements, but Edelkiosk is probably the coolest vegan place in Germany (therefore: the coolest place, full stop).

This is their card, it really looks like that. Paste a piece of paper over the back, write on it, use it as a postcard, and demonstrate high cosmopolitan (not the magazine!) vegan status to your friends and family back home.

 

If you see these roses on your way to Edelkiosk, look for a really fluffy cat.

 

 The scaffolding is already gone!

 

 - Yet another, new vegan café: "Extravegant". German vegans LOVE this kind of play with words. Let them. Extravegant is also located on "Berger Straße" - the street next to Veganz, the same street as "Vegan Bio Spahn" (or: "Bio Spahn Vegan"), but the opposite direction coming from Veganz.
The kids tell me the food at Extravegant is very good. And I was there recently, the sandwiches were great, and the Extravegant people absolutely charming.

There's also a "Weltladen" (= fair trade shop) around here on Berger Straße. "Weltladen" shops are a good place to buy fair trade cocoa powder - a food item you might think of as not essential for living, ... and I respect your opinion. I live on this stuff.

Vegan-Shop Frankfurt (= vegan living history)

If you keep walking down Berger Straße, coming from Veganz, past Extravegant, you'll get to the "U-Bahn" station "Höhenstraße" - which is also the name of this big street.

If you turn to your right here and walk up Höhenstraße (instead of continuing on on Berger Straße), after two "blocks" you will get to the corner of Höhenstraße and Burgstraße. This is were the "Vegan-Shop Frankfurt" is located - I thought it had closed down, but luckily it hasn't, I had just been looking in the wrong place for it! The "Vegan-Shop" was the first vegan shop in Germany (opened in 1994), and probably the first vegan shop anywhere in the world outside of the UK and the US.

This picture is from 2012:

These pictures are from August 2014. The "Vegan-Shop" is not open that often, and they might be closed sometimes, even when they are meant to be open. But do go there and have a look. They have some shoes, too. It's only 18 houses up the street (Höhenstraße) from Höhenstraße "U-Bahn" station on Berger Straße.
On the way.

 

 

Actually 9 cents cheaper than in Veganz!

 The infamous

German must have travel snack

American stuff

  

If you walk back to Berger Straße you'll notice that there are quite a few non vegan places on Berger Straße that advertise their vegan options. Count the times you see the word "vegan" on Berger Straße:

"Mr Samosa"

Indian non vegetarian with vegan options

"Wiesenlust", a non vegetarian burger place. Vegan options marked with a green "V".

"Yummy Yogurt". They sell Belgian waffles, frozen yoghurt, smoothies, etc.The sign says "all the options also available in vegan" ("alles auch vegan")

 

"Mirador" on Berger Straße also seems to offer a vegan option.

"Mint"

an ice cream place with vegan options

"Mint" has vegan ice cream cones! To be honest, I don't really get what the "-2" (?) is referring to in this sign, but that is irrelevant. When I was there they said ALL the fruit sorbet flavours are vegan, PLUS they had three more flavours: chocolate (made with soya milk), coconut-pineapple (made with coconut milk), and almond-poppy seed (made with almond milk).

almond-poppy seed + coconut-pineapple ice cream

"Let me hear you say Yeah for the final judgment."

At the end of Berger Straße you'll come to this corner. Behind the wall is a park (Bethmannpark), and inside of that park is another park, a Chinese garden, which is the cutest spot in Frankfurt (exaggeration, but might be true, Frankfurt is not exactly very cute).

The Bethmannweiher ("Weiher" = pond), opposite side of the street, is good for goose baby watching.  

Bethmannweiher

 Bethmannweiher with goose babies piling up.

Chinese garden (Bethmannpark)

not goose babies

More stuff (don't call it random):

"Eis Christina" is an Italian ice cream place near the "U-Bahn" station "Glauburgstraße". It's on Eckenheimer Landtraße 78. You could easily walk from the "Hauptwache" or from Bethmannpark.)
When I was there they had two vegan flavours: chocolate ("Schoko") and blackberry ("Brombeer"). The ice cream cones aren't vegan - they have egg.

 

"Alnatura" is a German "health foodie/drugstore/organic supermarket chain". This one is in Frankfurt "Westend". I saw posters advertising vegan eating all over that place. Like Nina Simone said: It's a new dawn.

 

Another one of those chainstores like Alnatura is "BASIC". These are two different ones, one near "U-Bahn" station "Glauburgstraße", and one close to "U-Bahn" station "Merianplatz" (on Berger Straße).
I think the "vegan posters" aren't up anymore - they were an advertising campaign. But maybe they'll come back. 

"Vegantastically many choices"

"Vegan - variety and enjoyment" 

This sign says, that if you have any questions, their "in-store vegan advisers" will assist you.

 

When you see a Jewish kosher shop, you might think Middle Eastern conflict, Israeli racism, anti Jewish racism, etc. - I think "Dame Blanche" biscuits and "Torino" truffle chocolate. Unfortunately this "AVIV" shop seems to be closed, and it was closed, rumour has it, under mysterious circumstances, i.e. a police investigation investigating drug smugglers ...turned out it had nothing to do with this kosher butcher shop, but the shop was ruined.

If you visit the main cemetary (U-Bahn: "Hauptfriedhof"), you might, if you are a good scout, find the graves of Arthur Schopenhauer, Theodor Adorno, and Alois Alzheimer.

I "recommend" going just before it closes at dusk, you'll meet some strange characters. Note: This cemetary is humungous.

Arthur Schopenhauer's ("the acid old fart of Frankurt") modest grave. Did you know his dog's name was Atma? ("the world's soul").

Theodor Adorno's grave ("the school of Frankfurt")

Alois Alzheimer's grave

expiring graves

 big tree on grave

 "Command the Lord your ways..."

If you end up around the zoo:   

 

 Neither chimp nor tiger look happy.

"No one wants to spend their life behind bars." (zoo's outer wall)

  

"Städel" is Frankfurt's most famous museum of art (although I prefer the MMK). It's on the other side of the river. Here are some pictures: 
I love this painting.

Know who this is? Win something.

 

 

Italians have for centuries indulged in the mocking of Germans. Here you have the highlight of this longstanding tradition.

 

Jesus is not at all amused.

 

 

Dancing rats, forgot the painter's and painting's name

 

Modern

 

 

 

This man is made from chocolate (vegan chocolate? maybe, cheap baking chocolate might be vegan)

 

 

Poster ad by a Frankfurt newspaper: "People with strong convictions stir the world..."

Note: There are many non vegan restaurants in Frankfurt that have felt the "Winds of Change" and now offer vegan options on their menus. The "Frankfurt Vegan" Facebook group has a list and a map of restaurants with vegan options in Frankfurt (of course, this list cannot be complete, nor 100% up-to-date):

Big note: Support vegan businesses. They usually have the best food anyway, because they know how to cook vegan.

List

Map (Red stars mean "all vegan". Note that the caterers listed are not actual places you can visit.)