Mercado Central Mendoza

No matter where we travel we go to see the markets. Public markets, farmers markets or grocery stores will tell you more about a people and their customs than most anything else. These pictures were taken on a Sunday morning which was nice because it was rather slow. We visited here the Friday before and it was so incredibly busy it was almost impossible to move from stall to stall.

The main entrance to the market. Notice the food court has free wifi.

Beautifully fresh and clean looking tripe, sweetbreads, kidneys, hearts etc. this was the first stall inside.

Then came the nuts, herbs, dried fruits and vegetables

Then the dried mate.

Pantry items were next with liters of local olive oil and cured olives. Mountain jams and preserved fruits and vegetables.

And of course bakery goods both savory and sweet. Note that many of these regional pastry specialities are made with lard or beef fat. This is after all Argentina.

Food Court Break

The pizza here is a pan pizza that is sold for $18 pesos for 2 slices and a small soda (about $1.80 US). It is crispy and buttery on the bottom and light and airy throughout; sort of like a triangular Sicilian slice. It is covered with a silky jack-like cheese and a thin slice of ham; garnished with sweet pepper and an olive. This is pretty much the reason we went back on Sunday.

Tucked away in the back corner is the fresh fruit and vegetable stall. This makes sense because as the products are quite fresh and delicious, this part of the meal is not hugely popular within the parameters of the Argentine diet.

Across from the fruits and veg and adjacent to the back entrance/exit of the market is a much busier counter; the one that sells handmade Chorizo and chivito (baby goat) for the asado.