Mercado Municipal

Selection of fish and shellfish at the Mercado Municipal in Marbella

After almost three years of living her, I'm ashamed to admit that I had never been to Marbella's main market, the Mercado Municipal, so when the opportunity to go on a mini-tour with Victor Taborda, the chef of La Veranda by Martin Berasategui, I jumped at the chance.

The market is conveniently located in the Casco Antiguo (old town) right above a parking building with direct access by lift into the main market hall. Although the market is not in a period building like Barcelona's La Boqueria or London's Borough Market, it is quite clean and organized with the seafood stalls and butchers on the outer ring and the fruit and vegetable and spices located in the inner ring.

Chilis - fresh and dried, Bacalao (salt cod), pulses and assorted spices

There were many stalls with an excellent selection of fresh fish and seafood as well as a complete selection of fresh meat (veal, lamb and Iberian pork), poultry (corn-fed chickens, pigeons and quail) and even game (rabbit). Fresh fruits and vegetables were also available along with a few specialty stalls - one with an array of spices, another with all sorts of pulses and grains and even one fresh pastas and Italian ingredients including a large wheel of fresh Parmigiano Reggiano.

Unfortunately, I wasn't prepared to do my shopping and didn't bring my wheelie bag or enough cash but I will definitely be back very soon to try some of the fresh produce that they have available. I'm especially loking forward to buying some local shellfish like the mussels from Malaga for a big bowl of moules frites.