More for your money at the market

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Posted at 1:00PM, 14 March 2011 by Katy Greenwood - Food writer

When was the last time you went to the market for your weekly food shop? These days supermarkets are so convenient and so enormous that they seem to be taking over our lives and totally dictating where we shop and what we buy. But in most towns there's a local market , whether it's on everyday or at the weekends, that just shouldn't be overlooked.

You're not paying for any branding, advertising or packaging at the market; what you see is what you get

Though the market can't offer you a BOGOF on fish fingers, there are bargains to be had. After all, you're not paying for any branding, advertising or packaging at the market; what you see is what you get and it is usually fresh local produce. I love shopping at markets and though I live in London and have brilliant markets like Borough on my doorstep, my favourite market is Doncaster market.

The market in Doncaster is big. You can get pretty much anything there that you can get in a supermarket (and lots of things that you can't too). The best part of the market for me though is the fish section. Even Borough only has a couple of fish stalls, but here there are 15 stalls selling only seafood. The choice is astounding and best of all the majority is caught locally on the East Coast (but if not it is always British) and all really fresh. The stallholders love to chat and know exactly where and when their fish was caught and are always ready to give advice on how best to cook your choice. It's great to be able to browse to see who has the best salmon at the best price, which stall has the biggest crabs, and there's always something seasonal or special to see - even live langoustines occasionally make an appearance. And if there's something you particularly want for a recipe they're always happy to source it for you if you get in touch with them a few days in advance.

This is what really makes markets special for me, that the people selling the food know where it came from and actually care about it. Plus, you're not limited in your choice at all. Unlike the supermarket, at the market you don't have to have that expensive piece of lamb because it's the only one left on the shelf; here you can browse the meat stalls and find the piece you want at the price you want. I can't think of one supermarket where I would get this kind of choice or service.

What do you think? Do you use your local market and if so do you have a favourite stall, or is there something that makes your market particularly special? Or are you a die-hard supermarket shopper?

Comments

StormyRaincloud

14 March 2011, 2:48PM
StormyRaincloud

I would love to shop at our local market more often, but unfortunately where I live (Lancashire) they are few and far between and only once a month and I just don't have the money to bulk shop. I grew up on a farm and we never supermarket shopped, so I know the difference in taste and quality but it seems that I am outnumbered round here.

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tordis

15 March 2011, 10:50AM
tordis

I must confess that I don't shop at my local market frequently - but then I do most of my shopping online to save time. I do, however, shop at the market next to where I work (Leather Lane) almost every day - there's a good choice of fresh fruit and veg.

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Gaz

15 March 2011, 11:18AM
Gaz

Living in Doncaster I don't use the market as much as I would like. Sadly the local Council seem to be doing there best in dissuading people from parking in the town!

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Beth

15 March 2011, 3:22PM
Beth

When I lived in Liverpool there was a great fruit and veg mini market at the bottom of my road and I shopped there a lot as I was an impoverished student. Unfortunately we don't have any cheap markets near us where we live in Wimbledon, though when I worked on Northcote road I made a lot of the street stalls there.

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mabaker

15 March 2011, 9:26PM
mabaker

In Ireland we have Country Markets, which are very different to Farmers markets. All the produce is made or grown within a ten mile radius of the market, so there are very few miles of any kind (air or road). The baking is all done the day before so everything is very fresh, our kitchens are all inspected regularly, the veg, whatever is in season, is pulled a few hours before the market is on. As well as all this, we have Crafts of every kind, plants and flowers, free range eggs, and much much more. Our branch North Wicklow Country Market celebrated 40 years last year, so when in Ireland, if you see a "Country Market" sign, pay them a visit, you wont be disappointed,

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Jersey Cotillard

15 March 2011, 9:57PM
Jersey Cotillard

There is no way that you get more for your money at the market here in Jersey. At farmer's markets you get the freshness and quality but you pay through the nose for it. I sometimes use a small farm stall but only when we go for a long walk at the weekend in the Winter or a trip to the beach in the Summer as it is on the North West coast and as far from town/home as you can get on this island!

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GJ

20 March 2011, 12:45AM
GJ

The last time I shopped at a market in the UK (admittedly many years ago) I was deeply disappointed by the experience. I'm used to being able to touch the produce, which wasn't allowed by the stallholder. I asked for some of the very fresh looking mushrooms on display. He filled them up from a crate behind the display and popped them in a paper bag. When I got home, I found they were old and horrible, not at all like the ones he'd displayed out front. I'm sure they're not all like that, but it really put me off. Here in Singapore I shop at the market, and it's generally a very good experience. There's a wide range of fruit, vegetables and seafood. The market butchers aren't very good though - you get better prepared meat either at the supermarket or a specialty shop.

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Ellie Reade

21 March 2011, 1:19PM
Ellie Reade

I still buy at our local market - however, have noticed it disappearing week by week. With the removal of parking for customers and the stall rent being increased by the local council, stalls are giving up each week. Soon there will be no Wolverhampton market. It was never the best market in the world, but you could get some good produce and interesting ingredients especially with the variety in asian and european stalls. I will go as long as there is a market - but fear it may not be for much longer.

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yummy

22 March 2011, 8:05PM
yummy

My daughter lives in Cairns and one of the highlights of my stay with her was wandering round Rusty's market, you could buy so much delicious and diverse fruit, veg, fish, local coffee the list goes on. Not so excited by Northampton Market!

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miniminx

1 April 2011, 1:55PM
miniminx

we have a fabulous market in belfast - st george's - and i do our main fish, meat and fruit/veg shops here. however, as much as i'd like it to be true, it is NOT cheaper than the supermarket. nor should it be......i'd rather pay more for great quality food that i know the origins of!

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