Bahnhofsviertel, Kleinmarkthalle, and Beyond: Where Frankfurt's International Grocery Scene Actually Is
Frankfurt's international grocery scene concentrates most heavily in the Bahnhofsviertel, the dense district immediately west of Hauptbahnhof, where Münchener Straße alone carries the Turkish supermarket Alim Market at number 37, the Orient Asia Supermarkt at number 57, and Spicelands on Kaiserstraße 60 for Indian and East Asian ingredients, alongside Big Mama African Shop on Taunusstraße for Nigerian, Ghanaian, and Cameroonian products. That concentration tracks the city's own numbers: as of the latest official figures, 57 percent of Frankfurt residents have a Migrationshintergrund and 32 percent hold a foreign passport, with Turkish nationals the single largest group at 24,344 people, ahead of Croatians at 15,280, out of 178 nationalities represented citywide. For a single stop covering many countries at once, the Kleinmarkthalle at Hasengasse 5-7 packs over 60 vendors under one roof: Turkish butcher Anadolu Metzgerei, Japanese specialists Kinya and Inari-San, Greek goods from Spezialitäten Tsironas, Persian dried fruits and spices at Das Persienhaus, Spanish tapas and cured meats at Arkade Cafe and Feinkost Nadia, and a cluster of Italian delis and pasta counters. Beyond those two hubs, specific neighborhoods carry specific communities: Casa de Portugal in Sachsenhausen for Portuguese wine and pastries, the Türkischer INTERMarkt in Gallus, A Taste of Britain in Nordend for British staples like HP sauce and baked beans, and a Polish specialty shop in Bornheim. None of this is one signature street the way Berlin has Sonnenallee, it's several overlapping hubs shaped by where different communities actually settled.
Why This Looks Different in Frankfurt
Frankfurt’s international grocery scene isn’t organized around one signature street the way it sometimes gets described elsewhere in Germany. It’s shaped instead by the city’s own demographic reality, and that reality is genuinely unusual for a German city this size. According to Frankfurt’s own statistics office, 57 percent of residents had a Migrationshintergrund as of the latest official count, and 32 percent held a foreign passport, 248,477 people spread across 178 nationalities. Turkish nationals are the single largest foreign group, at 24,344 people, ahead of Croatians at 15,280, a pattern that shows up directly in which grocery category is most common across the city’s shopping districts.
Bahnhofsviertel: The Densest Cluster
The Bahnhofsviertel, the compact district immediately west of Hauptbahnhof, is the closest thing Frankfurt has to a concentrated international grocery hub. Münchener Straße alone carries the Turkish supermarket Alim Market at number 37, described by an independent Turkish-market directory as stocking a wide range of fresh produce, meat, fish, dairy, spices, and Middle Eastern sweets, and the Orient Asia Supermarkt at number 57, a few doors down. On Kaiserstraße 60, Spicelands specializes in Indian and East Asian ingredients, curry pastes, dals, and snacks that a general supermarket typically won’t carry. For West and Central African cooking specifically, Big Mama African Shop on Taunusstraße stocks Nigerian, Ghanaian, and Cameroonian products, including exotic vegetables and beauty items, according to a local Frankfurt neighborhood guide.
| Shop | Address | Specialty |
|---|---|---|
| Alim Market | Münchener Straße 37 | Turkish groceries, produce, meat, spices |
| Orient Asia Supermarkt | Münchener Straße 57 | Asian groceries |
| Spicelands | Kaiserstraße 60 | Indian and East Asian ingredients |
| Big Mama African Shop | Taunusstraße 45-47 | Nigerian, Ghanaian, Cameroonian goods |
The Kleinmarkthalle: One Roof, a Dozen Countries
If the Bahnhofsviertel is where you do a full, dedicated shop, the Kleinmarkthalle at Hasengasse 5-7, in the city center, solves a different problem: buying smaller amounts of several different specialties in a single visit. According to the market hall’s own vendor directory, more than 60 stalls operate under one roof, and the international spread is genuinely wide.
| Cuisine | Vendor |
|---|---|
| Turkish | Anadolu Metzgerei (veal and beef specialties) |
| Japanese | Kinya (fresh sushi), Inari-San (matcha) |
| Greek | Spezialitäten Tsironas |
| Persian | Das Persienhaus (dried fruit, spices) |
| Spanish | Arkade Cafe (tapas, wine), Feinkost Nadia (cured meats) |
| Italian | Alasti, Alla Vita Buona, Casa Marko, Dolce Vita, Pinocchio |
| South American / Asian | Wong's Asia Latino |
Photo by Kostiantyn Klymovets on Pexels
Neighborhood Specialties Beyond the Two Hubs
Outside the Bahnhofsviertel and the Kleinmarkthalle, specific neighborhoods carry their own communities’ shops, and it’s worth knowing these by name rather than assuming the two central hubs cover everything.
| Shop | Neighborhood | Specialty |
|---|---|---|
| Casa de Portugal | Sachsenhausen (Brückenstraße 60) | Portuguese wine, cheese, olive oil, pastries |
| Türkischer INTERMarkt | Gallus (Kleyerstraße 74-78) | Turkish groceries, same-day delivery |
| American Food Club | Gallus (Skyline Plaza) | American snacks, cereals, beverages |
| A Taste of Britain | Nordend (Oeder Weg 34) | British groceries, bacon, HP sauce, tea |
| Polish specialty shop | Bornheim (Wiesenstraße 13) | Polish sausage, dairy, baked goods |
None of this adds up to one signature street the way Berlin’s Neukölln has Sonnenallee. Frankfurt’s version is several overlapping hubs, each shaped by where a particular community actually settled, which tracks the city’s own unusually high foreign-resident share rather than a single historic immigrant quarter.
Step by Step
- Start with the Bahnhofsviertel if you want a full weekly-style shop for a specific cuisine, Münchener Straße and Kaiserstraße cover Turkish, Asian, Indian, and African groceries within a few minutes' walk.
- Go to the Kleinmarkthalle if you want a smaller amount of several different things in one visit, fresh pasta, Persian spices, and Greek cheese from separate stalls under one roof.
- Check the neighborhood-specific shops if you're after something narrower: Portuguese goods in Sachsenhausen, British staples in Nordend, Polish specialties in Bornheim.
- Don't assume any single shop or street covers everything: with 178 nationalities represented citywide, Frankfurt's international grocery scene is genuinely distributed, not centralized.
Compliance Note
This page reflects publicly available information from Frankfurt’s city statistics office and local neighborhood guides, current as of mid-2026. Shop names, addresses, and opening hours can change; confirm current details directly with the shop before making a special trip.
FAQ & Common Pitfalls
Is there one street in Frankfurt like Berlin's Sonnenallee for international groceries?
Not really, and treating the Bahnhofsviertel as a full equivalent misses how spread out the actual scene is. The Bahnhofsviertel, especially Münchener Straße and Kaiserstraße, is the densest single cluster, with Turkish, Asian, and African shops within a few minutes' walk of each other and of Hauptbahnhof. But specific communities have their own separate strongholds elsewhere: Portuguese goods concentrate in Sachsenhausen, Turkish supermarkets also anchor Gallus, and British and Polish specialty shops sit in Nordend and Bornheim respectively. Frankfurt's international grocery map is genuinely several overlapping neighborhoods, not one street.
What's the difference between shopping in the Bahnhofsviertel and the Kleinmarkthalle?
They solve different problems. The Bahnhofsviertel gives you full, dedicated grocery stores, the Alim Market or Orient Asia Supermarkt, where you do a real weekly-style shop for a specific cuisine's staples in bulk. The Kleinmarkthalle at Hasengasse 5-7 is a covered market hall with 60-plus individual stalls under one roof, better for buying a smaller amount of several different things in one visit, fresh pasta from one counter, Persian dried fruit from another, a Greek cheese from a third, rather than stocking a full pantry from any single vendor.
Where do I find West African or Central African ingredients specifically?
Big Mama African Shop, on Taunusstraße in the Bahnhofsviertel, specializes in Nigerian, Ghanaian, and Cameroonian products, including exotic vegetables and beauty items that a standard German supermarket, or even most other international shops in the city, won't stock. It's a genuinely specific address rather than a general category of shop, worth knowing by name if that's what you're looking for rather than assuming any Bahnhofsviertel grocery covers it.
Does Frankfurt's foreign population actually explain why these shops exist here?
Yes, and the numbers back it up more directly than in most German cities. Per Frankfurt's own statistics office, 57 percent of residents had a Migrationshintergrund as of the latest count, and 32 percent held a foreign passport, 248,477 people across 178 nationalities. Turkish nationals are the single largest foreign group at 24,344, followed by Croatians at 15,280, which tracks directly with why Turkish grocers and butchers are the most numerous single category across the Bahnhofsviertel, Gallus, and the Kleinmarkthalle alike.
Are these shops more expensive than a regular Edeka or Rewe?
For the specific ingredients they specialize in, usually not, and often the opposite. A Turkish greengrocer or Asian supermarket typically prices fresh produce, spices, and specialty staples like rice, lentils, or specific cuts of meat lower than a general supermarket would, partly because they're sourcing and turning over that inventory at higher volume for their core customer base. Where you'll pay more is for a full generic weekly shop, bread, dairy, household goods, since these stores aren't trying to compete with Edeka or Rewe on that front, and mostly don't need to.