Did you know that Barcelona is divided into ten different districts? Each one has its own character, festivals, traditions and (for our endless happiness!), food markets. To make things even better, each one of these districts has at least three municipal food markets, Yes, you read it correctly: three! Meters and meters of stands filled with fresh, good looking and deliciously scented food. From fresh juicy meat to fruits and vegetables, fish, eggs, types of pates and jamón, artisan pastry and homemade bread and pasta, you can find anything and everything you want.
Visited by locals and tourists, young and old, the markets (mercats municipals) are a very traditional way to shop for the weeks’ groceries. As every market is different, ones are prettier and cleaner than others, but they all have their own charm. Being the foodies that we are, we just love to visit them all and see what’s fresh while we plan our meals for the day.
Market Hunt
As I’m always surrounded by foodies, either at home or at work (Spanish Trails’ staff won’t disappoint when it comes to good food!), I thought it would be interesting to try a “food market hunt” around the city to learn more about their stands, the people that usually visit them and, well, also try some of their delicacies. Whatever it takes for fair, empirical journalism! 😉
Mercat d’Hostafrancs in Sants-Montjuïc
Mercat Galvany in Sarrià Sant-Gervasi
Mercat de la Llibertad in Gràcia
Mercat de Santa Caterina in Ciutat Vella
Each one of these markets has multiple stands and new and fresh merchandise arrive every single day. Going there for daily shopping is in the routine of many locals. Lara Reglá, for instance, tries to go with her neighbor Gustavo Sánchez as often as possible. “He is too old to come by himself”, she says, so she brings him every time. When I met Lara, Gustavo Sánchez was buying German mustard in a German stand – his favorite. He would find a way to come every day, hunting for fresh goodies, and taking advantage of the market to decide spontaneously what he would eat later that day. Situations like these are the normal, daily life of the food markets in Barcelona.
In the Hostafrancs market, there is one particular ibéricos stand that catches peoples attention (after you go inside by the main entrance, the first stand to the left). It has big jamón legs for everyone to see (you can have an entire piece from 70 Euros and up). “It’s very traditional to see jamón legs in markets like this one. You could say it’s the main attraction”, said Marc Villar, a friendly shopper.
People normally go to these places from all over the city, and shopping in these markets is also like a social encounter for locals. Teresa and Agustín Moreno are husband and wife, and they shop every week in the Mercat de la Llibertat in Gràcia. That’s not the interesting part of it all; the fascinating thing about their story is that they live in Valldoreix, a town 30 minutes outside of Barcelona by train. “We come here every week. We like it better because the markets up in Valldoreix aren’t the same. We lived in Gràcia for 30 years and we’re used to coming here, everyone knows us and we know everybody”.
One of the most attractive markets in the city, besides the internationally known and king of food markets La Boquería, is the Santa Caterina market. With its colorful high ceilings, both locals and tourists visit this market daily. “Sometimes it gets a little bit too crowded, but the food that you get here is amazing,” Marta Pardo, a 40-years-old lady said, as she bought some fruit from a pretty looking stand. Locals would even say that the quality of the food is even better at Santa Caterina than in La Boquería, plus you won’t need to fight your way to the jamón through dozens of tourists who are interested in absolutely everything, except for the food.
There are certainly several markets in the city, 39 to be exact, and they all offer great, delicious and fresh food. There’s no better way to discover a city than by its food, and what better place to buy Catalonia’s best products than in a local, traditional street food market?
Here’s a list of all the markets in town, addresses and working hours:
Mercat de l’Abaceria Central: Traverssera de Gràcia, 186.
Mon-Thu: 7:00 to 14:30h and 5:30 to 20:30h
Fri and Vigilias: 7:00 to 15h and 17:00 to 20:30h
Sat: 7:00 to 15h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Mercat de La Barceloneta: Pl. Poeta Boscà
Closed on Mondays
Tue-Sat: 9:30 to 23:00h
Sun: 9:00 to 17:00h
Good for: a slice of local life
Mercat El Besòs: C/ Jaume Huguet, 38
Mon-Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 14:00h and 16:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Mercat El Bon Pastor: C/ Sant Adrià, 168
From September 1st to June 30th
Mon and Wed: 8:30 to 14:00h
Tue and Thu: 8:30 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
From July 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu: 8:30 to 14:00h
Fri and Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de La Boquería: C/ Rambla, 89
Mon-Thu: 8:00 to 20:30h
Good for: having breakfast in one of the Boqueria’s restaurants 🙂
Mercat de Canyelles: C/ Antonio Machado, 10
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu: 7:30 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:30 to 15:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu: 7:30 to 14:30h
Fri and Sat: 7:30 to 15:00h
Mercat del Carmel: C/ Llobregós, 149
Mon-Wed: 7:30 to 14:00h
Thu: 7:30 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Fri: 7:30 to 20:30h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de Ciutat Meridiana: C/ Costabona 4*6
From September 1st to June 30th
Mon and Thu: 7:00 to 14:30h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
From July 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 7:00 to 14:30h
Mercat del Clot: Pl. Mercat, 26
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon: 7:00 to 14:00h
Tue-Thu: 7:00 to 14:30h and 17:30 to 20:30h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:30h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu: 7:00 to 14:30h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:30h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de La Concepció: C/ Aragó, 311 *LB
From September 1st to July 14th
Mon and Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
Tue-Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
From July 15th to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de L’Estrella: C/ Pi i Margall, 73*75
From September 1st to June 30th
Mon, Wed and Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h
Tue: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 14:30h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
From July 1st to July 31st
Mon, Wed, Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Tue and Fri: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Mercat de Felip II: C/ Felip II, 118
Mon, Wed, Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Tue: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:30 to 20:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
Mercat del Fort Pienc: Pl. Fort Pienc, 3
From September 1st to July 14th
Mon: 8:00 to 14:00h
Tue-Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
From July 15th to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de Galvany: C/ Santaló, 65
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Mercat del Guinardó: C/ Teodor Llorente, 10
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 14:30h
Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 8:00 to 14:00h
Mercat de la Guineueta: Pg. Valldaura, 186*190
Mon: 8:00 to 14:00h
Tue-Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
Mercat d’Horta: C/ Tajo, 75
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 8:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 8:00 to 14:00h
Mercat d’Hostafrancs: C/ Creu Coberta, 93
Mon-Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:30 to 20:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de Les Corts: Trav. Corts, 215
From September 1st to June 30th
Mon-Wed: 7:00 to 14:30h
Thu: 7:00 to 14:30h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
From July 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de Lesseps: C/ Verdi 200
From September 1st to June 30th
Mon, Wed and Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h
Tue: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:30 to 20:30h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:30h
Sat: 7:00 to 14:30h
From July 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Mercat de la Llibertat: Pl. Llibertat, 27
Mon-Fri: 8:00 to 20:30h
Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de la Marina: Pg. Zona Franca, 178-180
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon and Wed: 8:00 to 14:00h
Tue and Thu: 8:00 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 8:00 to 14:30h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 8:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 8:00 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Mercat de La Mercè: Pg. Fabra i Puig, 270*272
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Wed: 7:30 to 14:30h
Thu: 7:30 to 14:30h and 17:00 to 20:30h
Fri: 7:30 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:30 to 15:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu: 7:30 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:30 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:30 to 15:00h
Mercat de Montserrat: Via Favència, 241
Mon-Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Mercat del Ninot: C/ Casanova, 160
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Fri: 8:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 8:00 to 15:00h
Fri: 8:00 to 21:00h
Mercat de Núria: Av. Rasos de Peguera, 186
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Mercat de Poblenou: Pl. Unió, 25
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon: 8:30 to 14:00h
Tue-Thu: 8:30 to 14:30h and 17:30 to 20:30h
Fri: 8:30 to 20:30h
Sat: 8:30 to 15:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Thu: 8:30 to 14:00h
Fri: 8:30 to 20:30h
Sat: 8:30 to 15:00h
Mercat de Provençals: C/ Menorca, 19
Mon and Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Tue-Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:30 to 20:30h
Fri: 7:00 to 14:00h and 16:00 to 20:30h
Mercat de la Sagrada Familia: C/ Padilla, 255
Mon: Closed
Tue-Thu: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:30 to 20:30h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:30h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
June 23rd: 7:00 to 14:30h
Mercat de Sant Andreu: Pl. Mercadal, 41
Mon: 8:00 to 13:30h
Tue-Thu: 7:30-14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Mercat de Sant Antoni: Rda. Sant Antoni, 15
Mon-Thu (except June 23rd): 7:00 to 14:30h and 17:00 to 20:30h
Fri and Sat: 7:00 to 20:30h
June 23rd: 7:00 to 20:30h
Mercat de Sant Gervasi: Pl. Joaquim Folguera, 6
From September 16th to July 31st
Mon, Wed, Thu and Sat: 8:00 to 14:30h
Tue: 8:00 to 14:30h and 17:00 to 20:30h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:30h
From August 1st to September 15th
Mon-Sat: 7:30 to 14:30h
Mercat de Sant Martí: C/ Puigcerdà, 206*212
From September 1st to June 30th
Mon-Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 14:00h and 16:00 to 20:00h
From July 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 14:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon- Sat: 7:00 to 14:00h
Mercat de Santa Caterina: Av. Francesc Cambó, 26
From September 1st to June 30th
Mon-Wed and Sat (except June 21st): 7:30 to 15:30h
Thu-Fri: 7:30 to 20:30h
June 21st: 7:30 to 24:00h
From July 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 7:30 to 15:30h
Fri: 7:30 to 20:30h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 7:30 to 15:00h
Good for: tomatoes (there is a stand with over 20 different types of tomatoes!)
Mercat de Sants: C/ Sant Jordi, 6
Mon: 8:00 to 14:30h
Tue-Fri: 8:00 to 20:30h
Sat: 8:00 to 15:00 and 17:00 to 20:30h
Mercat de Sarrià: Pg. Reina Elisenda Montcada, 8
Mon, Wed and Sat: 7:30 to 15:00h
Tue and Thu: 7:30 to 15:00h and 17:00 to 20:00h
Fri: 7:30 to 20:00h
Mercat de Les Tres Torres: C/ Vergós, 2
Mon-Sat: 8:00 to 14:00h
Mercat de La Trinitat: C/ Pedrosa, 21
Mon: 8:00 to 14:00h
Tue-Thu: 7:30 to 14:00h
Fri: 7:30 to 20:00h
Sat: 7:30 to 15:00h
Mercat de Vall d’Hebron: Pg. Vall d’Hebron, 130*134
From September 1st to July 31st
Mon-Thu and Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
Fri: 7:00 to 20:00h
From August 1st to August 31st
Mon-Sat: 7:00 to 15:00h
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