Markets and Food Halls around the world

I’ve grown up loving food and travel and a highlight of any city (or French village) I’ve visited is going to the local food hall or marketplace. These markets give a true “taste” of the town or city in which they are located, carrying produce from near by farmers, hand crafted food delicacies, freshly baked breads, fabulous cheeses, spices stalls featuring herbs used in the native cuisines and often a plethora of ethnic foods reflecting the diversity of the city’s population. What better way to experience the culinary culture of a new city? My quest is to visit as many of these around the world as I can and I invite you to join me on this journey.

I’ve found that often, unless you know the name of the market ahead of time, it can be difficult to find the information you need about the markets or food halls in the area being visited. This website provides the logistical information on the markets such as hours and location as well as the number of vendors and restaurants so you can have some idea of the scale of the market. I also give you my impressions and often recommendations on specific vendors within markets if I’ve visited these personally. If I haven’t been to a market (yet!), I will present some summary information gleaned from a number of sources and these will be updated once I’ve visited those places personally (or have a contributor who shares their impressions).

You can find the food halls or markets on the site in a number of ways:

Search by city or market name (if known)
Use the top menu bar and drill down geographically
Use the Market Map to select the cities and their markets

In the meantime, I’m continuing to gather information on these markets through research, friends and contributors so that when you go to a new city, you can check here for information on these markets before you go and then, please, feel free to add your comments and recommendations based upon your market expedition!