Preparing food sightseeing

Know your – local -blogger. This is what helped me. With just a few hours time a got some great impressions of what kind of food or produce is characterizing Zürich in Switzerland.

In my case it was Nicole Hasler the “zumfressngern” blogger. Her blog covers a lot of topics around meat, especially from a nose to tail perspective and on modern cuisine with a soul. Anybody a more perfect guide in mind?

And for a guy who is too lazy to prepare food sightseeing, it was really a blessing to know her and get some insights. Without this local knowledge, I believe I would have missed far more than half of what I was able to see and taste.

First impressions of Zürich

Zürich is a rich city. I am not used to that. Walking through the city center, I was impressed by the magnitude of luxury shops, not necessarily the usual luxury brands, rather something distinct and unique. All a bit beyond my budget but great to look at.

Zürich is a clean city. I am not sure how they make it. Are the people just behaving better than the ones in other localities? Or are there little elves which make everything non orderly disappear? Anyway, it left an impression on me.

Somehow all of this was a bit intimidating for an outsider but it gave a great sense of safety. I had no worries to walk after a few drinks at night being afraid of slipping and breaking a leg due to a banana skin on the walkway.

Starting food sightseeing

Before heading towards the real thing from the perspective of this blog, I was told to visit two food sections in department stores in downtown. Not my usual way of discovering the food “personality” of a city or village.

I have to say I was overwhelmed. The cheese section in the “Coop City St. Annahof” was pure paradise. The cheeses were in a separate room, a humidor, ensuring relatively high humidity so that the cheeses did not have to be wrapped every time. The variety of Swiss mountain cheeses was unbelievable. And the lady behind the counter incredibly helpful and humorous. She shrink-wrapped my cheese selection for home so that nobody would become jealous of my Swiss goodness while traveling. For my personal “streetfood” experience she cut some cheese cubes. They were gone fast. I thanked her by making the heart sign with my hands, she instantly asked if I was married and as I affirmed it, she mumbled “always the wrong guys are married” Well, I like those conversations which end in compliments (deserved or undeserved) …

The next stop was the food section, more precise the meat section of the Globus department store. The number of different cured hams and the meats from the best places on this planet was incredible, the same for the terrines. They did not have Swiss Magalica ham, but the alternatives were excellent as well and added to my streetfood treasures.

With these two discoveries my colleague and I had a small feast before heading for lunch in the market hall “Im Viadukt” my true destination.

Heading towards the market hall

The good thing about focusing on food and produce in a new location is that the weather seems not so important. And in November I do not expect anything else than: grey. As long it does not rain, strolling through the city is fine.

While walking for almost half an hour towards the market hall I was trying to think what I could expect. I was told to go there by my local blogger, and I knew that it would not be a mistake. This way I was at least prepared to see quality destinations, still I am always angry about myself of not doing more. There are always these questions which need some guidance beforehand: what is the characteristic food and cuisine of the region, what kind of produce are popular, in season etc. How are the markets, more producer or more trader centric? What kind of treasures should I look for. Yes, discovery is nice, but preparation is better. Next time, maybe … When I get smarter.

Market hall “Im Viadukt”

A “Viadukt” is an overpass, and in this specific case one for the railway dating from the 1890s . Underneath embedded is the market hall which opened in 2010. For more details see the history section of the homepage.

The whole market hall is modern. At first sight I got a bit worried, it immediately felt like a place that had been transformed into a concept piece of real estate, not leaving enough room for creative shop owners. The booths were predefined in some aspects like the patterns of the fronts close to the ceiling. I had the same mixed feelings when I was at the Fresh Market in Bratislava, where the booth pattern put restrictions on design opportunities and lacked personality. But after a while I saw that the individual characters of the shops with certainly good to excellent products.

Well crafted traditional products like cheese, meat, sausages and pasta were next to “cool” lemonades, craft beers and chocolates. And not to forget the “street food” offers, like pies, Asian inspired and European dishes. A few produce, potatoes being my favorite, and flowers completed the offering I saw. So how would I characterize the offering? It is not hipster despite some elements indicating it. It is not traditional despite some products coming from small producers. It is also not trendy, even when seeing the craft beer and hipster lemonades. So I guess it is for people who appreciate the value of products were classic craftsmanship cannot be replaced to create food perfection and who are at the same time open for new, “modern” food and taste discoveries.

My personal highlights

I am cheese fan and I like great sausages. I found both in the market hall. Absolute delights. The sheep cheese “Hölziges Schaf” was not a typical great Swiss mountain cheese and did not remind me of other sheep milk based cheeses. It was for more interesting in its aromas especially with its complex “acidity”. A class on its own. And thankfully it survived more than day without fridge to be savored at home .

For the “Schwein/Rind Salsiz” a porc and beef sausage which is dried and pressed, I was less worried about lack of cooling. The producer is Tanya Giovanoli who got back to the old butcher crafts to create again natural perfect meat products. Just by seeing all these sausages hanging on strings in a special fridge made me so happy. All these colors and shapes showed that they could not be produced in a factory. And the taste indicated it too.

More impressions

I could not buy from every booth, still there were a few more things which impressed me. The pasta guy who produced on site. The butcher who had such nice cuts and dry aged porc hanging to beautifully. And the the pie stall which provided our wild boar pie. It is produced by 8 ladies nearby. We shared the pie for lunch, a whole one would have been to much. Remember: we munched our ways through cheese and ham towards the market hall.

Even though the market hall is not huge there were more things to discover than to be expected at the beginning. So take more time than I had the chance to have, you will not regret it. And hunger and thirst will find relief in the restaurant.

Zürich from a food perspective

For me it is clear: Zürich stands for high quality food, especially cheese, meat and sausages. By my own definition it is a great city. With a little more money in the pocket a gourmet life in Zürich could be close to heaven.

All in all: In the market hall “Im Viadukt” in Zürich you will find great products, a lot from small Swiss producers and some nice places to eat. Worth a detour.

A little link list:

• The official website of the Markthalle im Viadukt in English
• The website of “my” local blogger
• The sausage producer Tanya Giovanoli
• The “Berg & Tal” booth were I bought the sausage
• The “Tritt Käse” booth where I bought the great cheese
• A post from lovefoodish including a short video on the market hall

The post Know your blogger – Market hall “Im Viadukt” in Zürich / Switzerland appeared first on Food & Farmers' Markets.

Scroll down for the map including directions

Yes! This is the feeling I got when walking through the Thursday market in Rethimno. Yes, because when you think Mediterranean you think colors, freshness and buzz. And this what I experienced.

A rainy day

No a good start of a day when you do vacation on Crete: gray clouds and increasing amounts of rain. But this cannot stop a market aficionado, better get wet than missing a chance. And it was worth it, as there were a guy selling cheap umbrellas and friendly vendors with their large enough marquees.

Colors

Stepping around some water peddles I came across approximately 60 stalls each with its own small truck in the back with replenishment. It was a feast for the eyes, everywhere local produce of the season in all their colors: tomatoes, peppers, grapes, beans, apples, pears, leaves, okra, clementines, potatoes, nuts, beets and much more. I saw freshness everywhere, and the produce were not standardized and photo perfect as what I am used to find in supermarkets. It was great to see that the produce had their own personalities aka. shape, color and size, their roots certainly have touched some real soil. Nothing seemed to be coming from a wholesale market. I saw apples which the size of apricots, and they had their distinct taste. Just great to see, smell and eat that.

No butchers by the way.

Buzz

This market does not focus on products for tourists. Certainly, there was nicely packaged olive oil, herbs and honey available, ready to bring back home on a plane, but this was something everybody bought anyway. The market was clearly made for local consumption, people were walking around selecting their fresh produce by themselves, the mostly large quantities handed to the trader to be weighted and paid for.

The crowd was astonishingly relaxed and even the partly heavy rain die not create a bad mood. As the vendors had large marquees, there was shelter for some people at least. The umbrella vendor probably had a good time as well.

Still what impressed me most, is that the people really looked at the produce, smelled and touched it before making their own selection. This to me is a sure sign that people still have and interest in good food, and put a high value into tasty, satisfying meals.

Viagra

Quite a few vendors were able to speak at least a few words in English making interactions possible, something I really love about markets, they produce nice little stories and memories which pop up from time to time when I am day dreaming.

This way I learned about the Cretan Viagra. “I got one son from it!” the cheese monger said, “it is Viagra” pointing at the cheese I could not identify and looked a bit different from the others (check picture gallery). “One son!” he said again. With a help of a friend he explained me that this hard cheese was made from goat milk and ripened in a kind of goat skin bag. A must buy, as it is so rare to see. I still have some at home, easy to preserve. Unfortunately I forgot its name. Anyway, the aroma is intense as can be expected from an aged cheese, yet does not remind too much of goat or goat skin. And I cannot confirm the Viagra part of the story.

Buying as a tourist

When I am visiting markets outside my own city, I often buy produce like sausages, cheeses etc. because of easy transportation and no need of refrigeration. As I wrote after my visit at the Fresh Market in Bratislava: it is a mistake. First of all it narrows down the experience and secondly the opportunity to expand aroma knowledge.

This time I took besides cheese, nuts, almonds and herbs some grapes, apples, mandarins, yogurt in small quantities. It was worth it and it was possible to consume it without refrigeration. Okay, I had to hurry up a bit.

Many tourists on Crete like the market hall in nearby Chania (see my post). It has a wonderful architecture, there are some nice places to sit down and eat small dishes. But it has transformed over time and the availability of local flavors has decreased. I had more fun at the Rethimno market as it represented to me more of Crete “authenticity” or at least what I believe it to be. The market was not fully of street food stalls, just a few pies were available, enough to get a taste, while not having the feeling ot be at a food court.

And despite the rain I had a good time. What do I want more?

All in all: a traditional Mediterranean outdoor market keeping up a great local experience in the middle of a tourist region.

A little link list:

• A short post with a map on other markets on Crete Island
• Another culinary must see in Rethimno: one of the last hand made filo dough makers
• A nice overview on the different Cretan cheeses with pictures & names
• And a little hint from the BBC on foods not to miss on Crete

The post Traditional in the city – Thursday market in Rethimno, Crete / Greece appeared first on Food & Farmers' Markets.

Scroll down for the map including directions

Business was done, the sun was shining, I needed a walk to refresh before heading back to the airport. I had been told that the visit of the fairly new Fresh Market in Bratislava is a must for any serious market and food lover.

Architecture

So I walked down a very busy road with my luggage which kind of swallowed the annoying sounds of the wheels of my trolley case. I arrived in a commercial neighborhood, an area where one mainly come with a car, and yes underground parking was widely available. A rather unusual place for a market hall but making it easier to established new architecture. This market hall has an industrial look: high ceilings, large glass fronts, concrete floors and columns, chip boards as temporary separators. The spacious feeling is accentuated with a large plaza on the ground floor and wide, a wide stairway leads to the upper floor. A generous setup.

The plaza on the ground floor is reserved for the vegetables, fruit, pickles (it is autumn) and the like. Big wooden boxes placed on pallets cover the floor adding even more to the industrial flair. There is no clear separation between the different traders, it is not even clear if they are independent ones or employees of the market hall. So I am not sure how a relationship between individual traders and customers are being built up. Nevertheless the choice is wide.

Next to these movable structures the shops on the ground floor form kind of two circles. The setup reminds a bit a mall, the structures are standardized and allow a quick change in case a new shop needs to replace an old one. The signs with the shop name are all standardized in terms of size and colors, no extravaganza, individualism is expressed in font and name.

The upper floor which is reached through the wide stairway or elevator, is basically a food court. It allows to easily look down at the market scenery while eating and drinking. The large glass front provides a lot of sunshine, the artistically arranged neon lights add to it.

So there is generous space to present all the goodness of this area and the planet in this market hall.

Hipster place?

After having tried to decipher the architecture I focused a bit more on the content, meaning food. The Fresh Market has been described by my friends as a hipster place, well I would not get that far but there is certainly more than good coffee and a great selection of craft beer. And since I do not know where to write about it in this post, I’ll do it here: in the market hall there is also a Bitcoin ATM (see photo gallery). I have never seen it before, I don’t know how it works, but I think it is not only hip but also very interesting. For any hints please: https://twitter.com/askans.

International orientation

I was also told that the market is probably one of the most internationally oriented food places in the city. And indeed, Turkey, Croatia, France, Indian, Thais, Arab, Italian and more are well represented, not only in the food court part. In the produce section there is clearly an orientation towards quality, also organic. Be it cheese, meat, sausages, vegetables or some processed food.

The coffee shop showed solid barista skills and quality, and of course I could not resist the craft beer shop. The owner was very helpful in finding me some very good local craft beer and explaining me a bit about the beer situation in Slovakia. The raspberry and lime gose from Unorthodox Brewing was particularly well balanced and worth more than one bottle.

A little confusion came up when passing by a stall looking at a familiar cheese, not from Slovakia, but from Croatia. It was the Paški Sir, a truly good Croatian cheese I had bought at the Dolac market hall in Zagreb. I looked up, and it was indeed a stall full of Croatian goodies. I was very tempted to buy it, but I was here for the local stuff.

Continuing the walk

As autumn started, lots of pumpkins were on display, but also pickles and fermented vegetables aka sauerkraut. The choice of dried beans was really great. I crossed a few meat, dairy, fish and organic stalls but did not find a noticeable bakery (but there is one, I am sure). Basically it was easy to find a lot of things for good cooking, unfortunately not all suitable for cabin luggage transportation.

My shopping

Before doing my little shopping I ate at the food court. Most stalls were already closed and only a few people had appetite at this time of day. And indeed the whole market hall was not really busy, which surprised me, especially considering the many fans on Facebook. Google is indicates that the main traffic is around lunch, probably coming from the neighboring offices & businesses. And according to one of the vendors, Christmas and Easter are the peak times as well. So I had a free choice for seats and could enjoy my Slovak pulled pork with mashed potatoes in a calm environment.

Just before leaving it was time to do shopping. I got some funny looking organic wheat puffs – my curiosity was bigger than my expectations. Slovak cheeses found a place in my luggage, the organic cow milk one was really good. And I could not resist to get some local salami and bacon. I should rethink a little bit my choices and go beyond cheese and sausage, but it is convenient and most of the times really good.

Epilogue

I have hard times to judge the Bratislava Fresh Market. I am more used to the old fashioned markets not so much to such modern concepts. I have to admit that they cater for fairly good quality produce in a convenient way especially for truly urban people. It is certainly easier this way to do some good marketing and attract crowds who feel uncomfortable at old fashion markets. Still this market hall needs a bit more time to get what I would call a soul and personality to become a true urban public space. Nevertheless it seems there is a trend towards such market halls or food halls as the New York Times can observe it in the US.

All in all: The Fresh Market in Bratislava embraces local and international produce and food in a modern concept, a contrast to old fashion markets.

A little link list:

• The original website of the market
• On Facebook and Instagram
• A nice Youtube video
• My other posts on Bratislava markets
• A collection of Bratislava markets from The Culture Trip

The post Food mall – Fresh Market in Bratislava / Slovakia appeared first on Food & Farmers' Markets.

The three sections of Dolac market

Dolac market is the most famous one in Zagreb and consists of three sections:

• the outdoor market – see post
• the fish market – see post
• and the “underground” market which is situated below the outdoor market and is basically a market hall

To my embarrassment I missed the “underground” section of the market which is indeed a market hall. I only got to know about it as I watched a documentary on Dolac. The entrance is indeed not obvious enough for me, but the many customers show that this is not a true barrier.

The market hall is a bit dark when you enter it giving it a slightly spooky touch. While the outdoor market above is more focused on fresh produce, in the market hall meat and cheese lovers will find here all the Croatian specialties. Still fresh produce and pickles are available as well.

The offering

The offering is focused on the local population but culinary tourists can make discoveries as well and bring back home some goodies.

The many butchers offer mainly pork cuts and adhere to the nose to tail philosophy. Besides traditional cuts whole pork heads are available, dried/smoked pig ears etc. Fat is not seen as unnecessary bi-product but is presented in many ways to be used for cooking. Popular is the Čvarci, basically pork fat crisps with a very pleasant taste – certainly not the healthiest food but good to bring back home. All the meat makes you feel that it is easy to survive a cold winter, with hearty tasteful dishes.

The cheeses are mainly fresh or harder cheeses, soft cheeses are not really available. There is a lot of sheep and cow milk cheeses available, I had not seen goat milk ones. One stall sells an award winning sheep cheese from the Island of Pag sold as Paški sir (see also photo gallery above). As this cheese is available vacuumed packages of different sizes, I can only recommend to bring it back home as a souvenir or to eat it on the go. Fortunately enough some vendors speak English and are willing to share their knowledge.

Next to the fresh produce were the pickles as they may be found elsewhere in central Europe, e.g. in Bratislava or Tirana. Those are always great to look at and it would have been worth to grab a portion and eat them on the spot. The pickles were made out of any kind of veggies: peppers, cauliflower, onion, cucumbers and more, often mixed all together. I was very much impressed by the fermented cabbage leaves which are put together to make them look almost like whole heads of cabbage.

All in all: A nice market hall to discover ingredients of the hearty part of the Croatian cuisine and to get culinary souvenirs.

A little link list:

• How to make Croatian Čvarci
• The markets in Zagreb – in Croatian but easy to grasp
• Comments welcome on Twitter

The post Dolac underground market, Zagreb / Croatia appeared first on Food & Farmers' Markets.

I love lists, all sorts of lists, no idea why. And I like good blog posts on food & farmers’ markets. An ideal combination to publish a list of the European capitals and their markets. Why European capitals? Well, I live on this continent and this way I get to know it a bit better.

This list will grow and get better over time. I am happy about any suggestion or hint – contact me on Twitter: @askans

Enjoy!

The European countries, their capitals & markets

Albania – Tirana

• I did not find a lot, therefore I have to promote my own post: the new Bazaar in Tirana – I was impressed that they were selling open tobacco just like any veggie

Andorra – Andorra la Vella

• Not yet

Austria – Vienna

• The Naschmarkt on this site during daytime & nighttime – during the day for shopping at night for entertainment and dining – a cool combination
• The Naschmarkt by epicures with lots of pictures- a little bit of history and a wide choice of produce and artisan products – from exotic to local
• The official English website
• The Rochus Market which has a great wine pub at night

Belarus – Minsk

• The Komarovski – market hall seems to be the place of attraction. The post from food.artkopilka.ru is in Cyrillic but has many good pictures. Like in many Eastern European countries there is clear structure and order in this market hall.

Belgium – Brussels

• Why waste annual leave, the blog with an overview on the Brussels weekend markets
• ottsworld.com gives a portrait of the Midi market, which has lots of Arabic influences – incl. a video

Bosnia & Herzegovina – Sarajevo

• From adventures in Bosnia an overview on food & markets in Sarajevo
• And here a short post on the Markale market & market hall from greengopost.com

Bulgaria – Sofia

• A panaroma picture from 360cities.net
• The Women’s market (Jenski Pazar) by Sofia Travel Guide

Croatia – Zagreb

• The markets of Zagreb are very well organized and have almost a “branded” appearance as they all use standardized umbrellas etc. The Dolac market is the most known one and has also a great fish market.
• Dolac market, the Dolac fish market, Kvatric market and the Trešnjevka one on this site
• Dutched Pinay travels a lot and takes nice pictures from markets – in this case Dolac market
• tatjanapasalic.com is a well known personality in Croatia: model, TV presenter & more – here she blogged on Kvatric market

Cyprus – Nicosia

• An overview with nice pictures on farmers’ markets in Cyprus incl. Nicosia by Afrodites kitchen

Czech Republic – Prague

• In the the touristic city of Prague farmers’ markets are supposed to be on the rise.
• An overview of the markets from prague.tv
• Past, present & future of the big Holešovice market from expats.cz
• My own post

Denmark – Copenhagen

• From eatyourcity.ca an introduction & pictures on the Torvehallerne & Israels Plads markets
• An introduction for tourists to the Torvehallerne food market by a food awakening
• The official site of the Tervehallerne market

Estonia – Talinn

• A list of the markets in the city from @VisitTallinn

Finland – Helsinki

• Pearlspotting describes the Market Square by the sea and the old Market Hall
• Dutched Pinay is always a good source – Kauppatori Market Square – Hietalahti Market Square – Hakaniemi Market Square

France – Paris

• There is one favourite source for me: Marjorie R. Williams, who wrote a book on the Paris markets and blogs about them
• A nice post on the famous wholesale market Rungis International Market by Cody C. Delistraty

Germany – Berlin

• The past, current status and future of the Berlin Market Halls by @slowberlin. They also posted on the very popular Markthalle IX
• A listing of the Berlin markets by angloinfo.com

Greece – Athens

• As an introduction my post on the Central Market – A must see for meat & fish lovers
• Matt Barrett has written several picture intense posts – The Central Market – an overview on some markets

Hungary – Budapest

• My post on the Central Market Hall, which has a splendid architecture
• A post on the Central Market Hall with many pictures from alwaystravelicious.com

Iceland – Reykjavík

• Not yet

Ireland – Dublin

• The Dublin Diary has a post on the Honest 2 Goodness Farmers Market
• And here my post on the Moore Street Market

Italy – Rome

• A blog specialized on the markets of Rome alone: marketsofrome.com
• The post yourguidetoitaly.com gives an overview in pictures of the markets in Rome
• Forbestravelguide.com is more decriptive

Kosovo – Pristina

• Not yet

Latvia – Riga

•  From Paris Paysanne a nice little post on the Riga Central Market
• And here a big fan of the Riga central market on Pinterest

Lichtenstein – Vaduz

• Not yet

Lithuania – Vilnius

• A little post with pictures on the Kalvarijų turgus market from Ravinder Sehgal

Luxembourg – Luxembourg

• My post
• A list of farmers’ markets

Macedonia – Skopje

• From Macedonia in 91 days a post with tons of pictures and a video giving great insights on the Bit Pazar

Malta – Valletta

•  The Ta’ Qali farmer’s market by Kristin Winet

Moldova – Chișinău

• Moldovan Life describes the Piata Centrala – the main market
• Foodperestroika, a great blog with focus on Central and Eastern European food & cuisine is highly recommended – also the post on Moldovan food

Monaco – Monaco

• Not yet

Montenegro – Podgorica

• A tiny friendly post on Podgorica’s Green Market from Wandering Educators

Netherlands – The Hague

• My own post on the Haagse Markt
• It is supposed to be the largest outdoor market in Europe with 500 stalls: the Haagse Markt as per Theleidener.com
• Local Heart, Global Soul finds the Haagse Markt impressive as well

Norway – Oslo

• From Nordic Nibbler a friendly introduction into the Bondens Marked
• And Oslo has also a market hall – Mathallen – the post from soldrom.com

Poland – Warsaw

• Warsaw’s Saturday Market in Zoliborz by My Travelling Joys
• A short overview on the Hale Mirowskie – the central market hall – from polandculinaryvacations.com

Portugal – Lisbon

• travel.sketch.write posts about the Mercado da Ribeira, which seems to be the most famous market in Lisbon
• The Mercado de Campo de Ourique is described by Portugal confidential as hip and urban

Romania – Bucharest

• My post on the Piata Domenii market
• Beautiful pictures from Oana Hogrefe on a unknown market

Russia – Moscow

• A nice introduction into the Moscow markets by The Moscovore
• A photo essay in Russian on Preobrazhensky Rynok farmers market by DaryaDarya – courtesy of where.cheap-moscow.com

San Marino – San Marino

• Not yet

Serbia – Belgrade

• A small post with nice pictures on a farmer’s market from Stellar Perspectives
• The Belgrade Green Market by Serbian Culture Shock
• Nataša von Wunderland made an extensive photo tour of the markets in Belgrade

Slovakia – Bratislava

• I had the chance to visit 2 markets: the Trhovisko Miletičova central market & the Nová Tržnica market hall
• Basic information about the markets in Bratislava from bratislava.info
• A post from daytripper.sk which characterizes the market hall very well
• A post with many pictures from 52 weeks in Slovakia
• Different: a fashion shooting at the market from Donna Iveh Fashion Blog

Slovenia – Ljubljana

• The Farmers Market on the Vodnik Square by photojoseph.com
• Meet the Ljubljana market enthusiast on Twitter: @JanaSvenska

Spain – Madrid

• Mercamadrid is the second largest fish market in the world and the largest and the biggest perishable foods market in Europe according to spanishsabores.com She writes also on the Cámera Agraria farmer’s market
• From Citylife Madrid a quick overview on the markets in Madrid
• Wanderwings has some nice pictures on the known Mercado de San Miguel

Sweden – Stockholm

• An overview on the market halls in Stockholm by Real Scandinavia
• A small post on a farmer’s market by Bunny in Stockholm

Switzerland – Bern

• The markets and their opening times by the City of Bern
• From Swiss Mirabelle an overview and some pictures

UK – London

• Of course: Borough market is leading the pack and there is a fairly large number of posts on this market. My current favourite is kind of a love letter to the market from Eat Out of the Box
• A good overview on the London farmers’ markets from the organization called London farmers’ markets
• An overview on the markets in general by the Londonist
• From WhatAWonderfulWorld a nice one on a small market: Maltby Street Market
• Westminster News Online promotes the Food Market at Southbank

Ukraine – Kiev

• From Life in Kiev a nice post on the Besarabsky Market Hall
• From akihart an extensive photo post on Besarabsky market hall
• An extensive overview on the markets by BestOfUkraine

That should be it Europe!?

The post Food & farmers’ markets of the European capitals appeared first on Food & Farmers' Markets.

Grey winter day

Is it a good idea on a grey winter day to visit the market? Not sure, but it is a good excuse to get some fresh air when in the office the whole day.

Surprising structures

The central market of Bratislava (Trhovisko Miletičova – Miletička) at Miletičova street is fairly large (see map below). It consists of many permanent structures for bakeries, butchers, cheese mongers etc., a roof structure covering the produce stalls and some random pop-up tables for people with small offerings.

The permanent structures, all wooden huts, usually had small windows where the customers could make their orders from the outside. This reminded me of shops in areas where theft is abundant. So I was wondering how customers were seen here. In some cases customers could enter the stall through narrow doors, which was more welcoming.

The slightly run down roof structure would give a very nice shade on a hot sunny day, but on a grey winter day it might somber you mood a bit. At least until you meet the friendly vendors. They had no problem letting me take pictures of their beautiful merchandise. And indeed they piled up vegetables with care and sense for beauty which looked a more inviting and more diverse than the one at the Nová Tržnica market hall. Indeed the merchandise under the roof was the most interesting one in the market and no small window separated the clientele from the vendor.

The pop-up dealers had a very limited offer, one product category only, be it pumpkin seeds, bread, bakery goods or so. Several of these vendors were old ladies who looked like they needed to add some Euros to their pensions.

The discoveries

It seemed that the market was in peak season for pumpkin seeds and pickles. The variety was impressive.

The pumpkin seeds came roasted, salted, unsalted, with paprika powder and more. The roasted ones are especially good for tourists, ready to  nibble, without the need to spit hulls. Strangely enough the vendor selling me those was from Hungary. No idea why he had to come to Bratislava for his small business. He made clear that he preferred the Budapest markets over this one. Make the comparison yourself when reading my post on the central market hall in Budapest.

The pickles were really amazing to look at. Besides the sauerkraut, all kinds of vegetables were pickled the home made way. They were sold out of large buckets, like the stuffed cucumbers and peppers or in little plastic jars. Those were layered with care and a sense of colourful beauty (see the picture gallery). The home made horseradish and other preserves gave an impression on what the local cuisine likes.

The vegetables, more or less of the season, were arranged beautifully, lush but without wasteful presentation. Cabbages, cauliflower, peppers, tomatoes, zucchinis, broccoli, radishes in different varieties, beans … all were there, enough to create a nice variety of winter dishes. Inspiring.

A few things I did not figure out. What do you need 15 cm large paper thin wafers for? They break so easily. Then there is this long bread dumpling which is so light, without real taste. I ate it once, basically it is good for dipping into rich sauces, but …

The butchers had simple choices of meat and especially dried sausages (good to bring home). I was most impressed by the variety of fatback offered, clearly abundant – looks like hearty cooking in the region. The typical Slovak smoked cheese was also available, unfortunately it has never been one of my favourites, despite being offered with nice patterns on the thin rind.

When you are hungry on the spot

Some stalls offer ready made food like Lángos (a deep fried flat bread), potato pancake, and local hearty dishes with or without meat. Even though I am addicted to Lángos, I did not eat anything, so no possibility to give a recommendation.

All in all: When looking for what Slovaks buy for cooking and for local discoveries, probably the place to be in Bratislava.

A little link list:

• The facebook page of the market with pictures, videos and other information
• Small post at spottedbylocals.com
• A post with many pictures from 52 weeks in Slovakia
• Different: a fashion shooting at the market from Donna Iveh Fashion Blog
• More pictures on my photo site

The post Central market, Bratislava / Slovakia appeared first on Food & Farmers' Markets.

Don’t go there, they will rip you off because they want to make a quick buck with lower quality products. Take care of your wallet, it might get pick pocketed.

Well those were the advices I got, but I did not listen. And it was to my advantage.

The Nová Tržnica (market hall) in Bratislava is a fairly large concrete building dating from the socialist area (1981). On the ground floor there is mainly stalls for produce and a few pubs, whereas upstairs it looks a bit more like a mall without the glittery part. The inside architecture shows concrete, large pipes, large stairs as well as large windows which try to create a grand ambiance. This grand ambiance was contrasted by the not so large stalls with vendors dealing in retail, not in wholesale. And the bright colours of some stalls, pipes etc. created some nice contrast.

Unfortunately it was a bit late when I had the chance to tour the market hall. The market serves local people rather than tourists with daily food, drinks and a few other items. Pubs, little restaurants are to be found on both floors all with a basic charm which may be called authentic.

Besides fruits, vegetables, flowers there is also local cheeses & meats available. In Slovakia smoked cheeses are quite common and so they are to be found here as well, often as string cheese. And it is not only cow milk which is being used, but also sheep or goat milk. Bryndza a creamy sheep milk cheese, available as well, serves as the main ingredient of Bryndzové halušky a national Slovak dish. Besides Bryndza it consists of gnocchi like potato dumplings and bacon.

The dried sausages I bought were quite hearty and nicely spiced, a winner. The smoked pork belly fat should have been worth a trial as well.

A unique stall was the one which filled three different type of wines from tap into all kinds of bottles, plastic and other ones. Good recycling of bottles I guess.

All in all: as daytripper.sk put it: it is a good place to look for if you do not need glamour and hipness.

A little link list:

• Pictures of the building in Wikipedia Commons
• Basic information about the markets in Bratislava from bratislava.info
• A post from daytripper.sk which characterizes the market very well

The post Nová Tržnica market hall in Bratislava / Slovakia appeared first on Food & Farmers' Markets.