If we’re ever travelling, ensuring we’re well-fed beforehand is a must or it’s a recipe for disaster. We turn into one of those types of travellers that everyone hates to be seen with. We’re rarely ever organised enough to pack a lunch, however, but we don’t need to be – as Birmingham New Street is one of Europe’s top stations when it comes to food.
If you love to grab a quick bite for hopping on a train, a new study from Radical Storage aims to work out which European city has the best dining options at its railway stations. By using Google data to analyse the variety, cost and average rating of restaurants and eateries, it’s had a look at 100 of Europe’s most popular stations – and it has placed Birmingham New Street in 6th.
So we might not have anything quite as breathtaking as Le Train Bleu at Paris’s Gare du Lyon, but Birmingham still has a lot of great options. That’s 29 eateries to choose from, with the joint highest ‘average Google rating’ of the top 10 (shared with Vienna’s Wien Mitte) at 4.2. With an average price of £21.11, it’s not exactly the cheapest mind.
So where should you eat in Birmingham New Street? The station is full of standard chain spots like Yo! Sushi, Nandos, Giraffe and, you know, more of that sort of thing? One stand out has to be Mowgli, however, the Indian street food eatery known for its glittery decor and Indian chip butties. Just outside of the station too, you’ll find some of our favourite spots like Bonehead, Grand Central Kitchen and Tiger Bites Pig.
Europe’s top station for food was Hamburg Hauptbahnhof – where there are 36 dining options and the average food price was £14.77. Coming in second was London Bridge, which had an average food price of £18.94, an average Google rating of 4.0 and 34 dining options. Also ahead of Birmingham New Street was Wien Mitte, Berlin Friedrichstraße and Leipzig Hauptbahnhof
Europe’s Top Train Stations For Food
- Hamburg Hauptbahnhof
- London Bridge
- Wien Mitte, Vienna
- Berlin Friedrichstraße
- Leipzig Hauptbahnhof
- Birmingham New Street
- Wien Hauptbahnhof, Vienna
- London St Pancras
- Marienplatz, Munich
- Estación De Atocha, Madrid
To see the full study head here.