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| With my new friend Ricardo at La Merced |
It seems that just about any day of the week is ripe for being turned into some arbitrary (albeit alliterative) food-related post: Travel Tuesdays, Wordless Wednesdays, French Fridays ... so I figure why not Mercado (Market) Mondays?
And so in this, the first - and I'm being honest, likely the last - Mercado Monday, I'd like to share some images of Mexico City's vast produce markets. I'll begin with the city's largest retail market, La Merced - and in a city with a population of over 20 million, that's saying a lot.
But before you peruse the photos, to get a sense of the market's sheer scale, check out this awesome video that Poppa Trix put together from footage he shot. (Yes, that's me in the black dress.) It's super fun, and features one of my favorite mambos, "Mambo Lupita" by the incomparable Pedro Perez. I dare you to sit still!
Honestly, the amount of product here is so overwhelming I don't know how I would ever stay focused enough to be able to get my shopping done:
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| Dried fish |
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| Cleaning nopales, or cactus paddles |
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| Hot pepper |
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| Food temptation is everywhere |
Not nearly as huge as La Merced, the market in the beautiful Coyoacan neighborhood still felt vast:
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| Coyoacan means coyote |
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| You can't walk 3 yards without stumbling upon something good to eat |
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| Sugar skulls! |
Poppa and I love to check out supermarkets, and my favorite thing about Chedraui were these huge bins of dried peppers in the produce section.
The smell was incredible, as you can imagine.
There you have it - some of the visual highlights of Mexico City markets . . . thanks for joining me for the first (and last) ever Mercado Monday. Until next time - buen provecho!
My husband thinks its odd that I insist on browsing the markets and supermarkets in whatever country we are visiting. For me it is one of my favorite things to do. I loved living vicariously though your trek thanks to Poppa's video wizardry. Good job!
ReplyDeleteAnd I love Mercado Monday and hope that you can keep it going. I once tried Lactointolerant Thursdays but it never got off the ground, probably for lack of alliteration appeal.
I think saccharine-free Saturdays might catch on?
DeleteThis looks like the biggest food market ever! I could spend hours as well as a lot of money on such great produce. The video really sets the mood-Poppa Trix did an amazing job.
ReplyDeleteNow you have me wondering where I can trek to around here. Sadly the last time I went to the Dallas Farmers market I was not impressed. Just the thought of hosting Mercado or Food Market Mondays does sound like a lot of fun. Great post!
Thank you Tina!
DeleteI would so lose my mind there (in a good way.) The videos is great!
ReplyDeleteholy cow what a market ... amazing!
ReplyDeleteHow I love food markets… this one looks fantastic. And the video was lots of fun but you never speak… ?
ReplyDeleteFrank to tell you the truth, when it comes to video I am camera shy! Believe it or not.
DeleteAmazing! And you're so right...I couldn't sit still! I don't know how you could walk so quickly (okay, I'm sure the video was just highlights...but I wanted you to stop so I could see this and that, lol) through with temptation every inch of the way. I think it would take me hours to explore! Markets are one of my absolute favorite ways to become acquainted with a certain area. Thanks so much for this fun tour! And yes, the smell of dried chiles is hands-down one of my favorite smells on earth :D.
ReplyDeleteHoly Moly Mother of Mary - I think I would still be in there, it would take Mary Magdalene herself to get me out of there.... hope you bought back some of those peppers - great vid Papa, like the mash a lot.... now I want to go there for sure, it has been way too long and you saw and did so many things I did not... my trips are always more cultural (boring) museums and places tour books send you...
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing market. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSo how many days did you spend just there? Wow that cactus paddle tower is impressive. I was just in Toronto this weekend and went to the market there too. The stores are fun but the produce section was an utter disappoinment. Glad I have my my Montreal markets.
ReplyDeleteLooks like an almost overwhelming food experience, thanks for sharing your photos. Sounds like you had a great time and I'm sure brought home the inspiration straight into your kitchen;-)
ReplyDeleteLove the video Poppa Trix! What an incredible market, and yes it does look a bit overwhelming with all of the things available. I would suspect you could spend days versus hours and never even begin to touch on what is available.
ReplyDeleteHope you are having a fantastic weekend!
I read this post and watched the video last week from my Google Reader. But I forgot to come tell you how much I loved them both. What I wouldn't do for some fresh nopales, and to be able to walk into a market with piles and piles of chiles. I hope you do more Mercado Mondays:)
ReplyDeleteThe stores are fun but the produce section was an utter disappointment.
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