Rockville diner group files lawsuit against airport concessionaire

A Rockville-owned and operated diner chain is suing a Germany-based corporation for what it says are attempts to end its decades-long operations at Baltimore-Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport.

Silver Diner filed the lawsuit in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court against Fraport, the airport concessions operator. The diner, which has operated inside the airport for two decades, is alleging breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation on the part of Fraport.

In a 48-page lawsuit, Silver Diner alleges it entered into an agreement with Fraport in 2022 as the concessionaire was seeking a new contract with the state. That contract was meant to ensure that the restaurant, which employs 120, would remain at the airport if Fraport was successful in its bid for the new contract.

The tortured search for a new operator started in the final year of the second term of then-Gov. Larry Hogan (R). Fraport, the incumbent operator, was awarded a lucrative 23-year contract to oversee concessions at the airport in February 2025.

“Within days of the award, Fraport unilaterally and without contractual authority imposed a new ‘Gutting Requirement’ that included a complete rebuild of the kitchen and other requirements not included in the Collaboration Agreement, which was focused exclusively on the customer dining space,” Silver Diner said in a press release accompanying the suit.

The “gutting requirement” called for the diner to shut down for a year and spend $8 million to $10 million on renovations, the suit said. The company said it had expected to spend $1.5 million on renovations as part of its 2022 agreement with Fraport.

A spokesperson for Fraport did not immediately respond to a request for comment.