Few visitors to Barcelona miss the colourful market of Sant Josep, also known as La Boquería, right on La Rambla, but there are many other gems tucked away throughout the Catalan capital.

Barcelona, with its fabulous Gothic quarter, impressively sprawling Sagrada Familia cathedral and more Gaudíesque buildings than you can throw a Dalí at, is attracting more than its fair share of visitors. From a culinary perspective it’s a treasure trove of everything from rustic Catalan cooking and Basque tapas – currently all the rage – to mouth-wateringly tasty paellas and sparkling cavas. To get a real feel for the city, its culture and cuisine, there’s nowhere better to get to grips with it all than local markets.

Market culture is very much alive here, with people nipping in to do their daily shopping, having a bit of a haggle over lunch, swapping news, or just catching up on local gossip. La Boquería, Barcelona’s best known market, is quite a showpiece; shocks of brightly coloured fruits expertly piled, seafood so fresh it’s virtually still twitching on the ice trays, sausages and hams of all shapes and sizes, from the enormous pata negra, to tiny botifarras. With such splendours on display, it’s no wonder it’s attracting as many photographers as it is shoppers. Although a market not to be missed, for quieter experiences it’s best to head a bit more off the beaten track.

Each neighbourhood is blessed with at least one covered market area, some selling solely the bare essentials, but most catering to all your culinary needs. If starting out from La Rambla on a market tour of the inner city, a short walk to the west, through the rough and ready area of El Raval, takes you to Sant Antoni market. This is a good time to visit, as this market place inaugurated back in 1882, is due for a major overhaul next year. For now it’s retaining its old-world charm and operates as a sort of “three-in-one” market, selling food, clothes and other items on a daily basis, while part of it turns into a book fair on Sundays. This is also where people come to exchange collectables, such as images of their favourite football stars, at the weekends, giving it a certain buzz reminiscent of a small auction.

Markets are excellent places for getting a basic grasp on the local language, Catalan, or practising your Spanish, as pretty much everyone speaks both. Bantering and bartering in markets are also good ways to find out about local prices and the general mentality of a city. Catalans can be quite reserved, but in markets people open up more – even though there are customers who shop here on a daily basis, there’s a constant flow of people, making a visitor feel less like a tourist and more part of the city...

 
Read the full article in our September 2008 edition.

Words: Anna Maria Espsäter