Mercado de Colón is a market just outside the city centre and is a must see. This market is not a traditional food market, but you can go here for a drink or to grab a bite. You can find the Mercado de Colon in Pla del Remei neighbourhood. This is on the south side of the city centre.
Where it started
Mercado Colon used to be a gas factory. In 1914 Francisco Mora Berenguer designed the market. Because of his architecture study he learned about the Catalans Modernism and got to know more about the famous Gaudí. In Valencia you also have the Mercado Central and the Mercado Ruzafa, so people had to convince the mayor that they needed another market in their neighbourhood. After a while, Franscisco could finally begin with the building. Two years later (1916), on Christmas Eve the grand opening took place. The merchants of the Mercado de Colon walked in a festive parade from Plaza the Toros to Mercado de Colon with music. Unfortunately, at the end of the 20th century the market deteriorated, and a lot of the merchants retired or closed their stall.In 2003 they restored the Colon Market and there was a reopening. Unfortunately, it was not a traditional market anymore, but nowadays it is a market with all kind of restaurants and bars. There are two floors, both of them with drinks and food. It is an open market with a great atmosphere where all the locals come for a drink, breakfast or the typical Valencian drink, horchata.
The best places to go in Mercado de Colon
The Mercado de Colon is always full of life and there is always something to do. It is the place where people come together for a drink, a bite or maybe a business meeting. Of course, we have some favourite places to go in de Mercado Colon. Our favourites are:
Mi cub
Mi cub is a restaurant in the corner of the Colon Market. They have an outside terrace and serve great tapas. The service is great and the waiters are friendly. They are happy to help you with your choice and they are very polite. You can go here for a typical Spanish drink like sangria. We also recommend the French fries (patatas Fritas)
Bocados
Bocados has a stylish establishment, which you will find halfway in the Mercado Colon. The lounge chairs and the fancy lights make this a good place to relax. You can go here for a healthy smoothies or grab a bite. They have a great club sandwich or we can also really recommend the chicken wrap at Bocados.
Opening hours
Monday to Sunday:8.00–23.00 hour
Website
Horchatería Daniel
A typical Valencian drink is Horchata. This drink looks like milk and is made out of almonds, water and sugar. In the Mercado de Colon you will find Daniel. At this Horchataría you can try this home made popular drink. A traditional snack to eat with the horchata is Furton. This is kind of sweet bread that you need to dip in the milk.
Traditional mosaic
The Colon Market is gorgeous on the outside and charming on the inside. The market has some special Spanish details on the inside. On the side of Calle Jorge Juan you will find mosaic with the typical Valencian oranges and other pictures from mosaic. In the Mercado de Colon there are some really special pillars with ‘trencadís’. This is a form of mosaic where they break the tiles and use them to fill up empty spots. The Mercado de Colon has a surface of 3.500 m2. The high ceilings make the places very special!
