They did, opening Maxie Eisen (Closed), a modern deli, cafe and cocktail bar named after a Jewish gangster from Chicago and selling what must be the best pastrami sandwich in Germany; an ambitious bistro called Stanley Diamond (Closed) serving local dishes like roast beef with Frankfurt’s famous local green sauce; and the Taunusstrasse Arts & Bites festival, a monthly art market in one of the Bahnhofsviertel’s ancient wrought-iron shopping passages.

‘My father loves good food and, unlike many other kids who grew up here, we used to come to this area all the time to eat at the Vietnamese, Turkish, Moroccan and Thai places you still see out there,’ says Ardinast, gesturing out the window to a street scene so culturally varied that only the fluffy floating snowflakes suggest our northern Europe location.

‘That’s why we wanted to start with a Jewish deli, to celebrate our roots, to keep the flair and atmosphere of this area. We want the shiny banking people to come and sit side by side with the people from this area rather than recreate the white tablecloth establishments you find elsewhere in the city.’