Melbourne has no lack of markets for you to visit. While I was not impressed by Queen Victoria Market and its touristy wares, I was actually rather enamoured by South Melbourne Market. Established in 1867, South Melbourne Market is described as the quintessential village market.
While we actually visited this market last year during our babymoon, I couldn’t eat most of the food that was either too raw or too strong-smelling. It left me with not much choices, which was rather disappointing.
Hence, We decided to visit again and see if we could finally get around to trying something at the market.
I was feeling a little thirsty and noticed this small shop selling matcha, so I decided to give it a try:
I ordered the Milo Banana Matcha, which sounded odd but promising. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a pretty underwhelming drink that tasted really bland. Oh well.
Naturally, a market offers fruit and vegetable stalls where you can purchase fresh fare.
I might be a little biased here but everything really looked so colourful and delicious! I was initially planning to buy fruits here for our baby to eat, but didn’t get around to doing it because the prices were a little steep.
These food stalls were what we were really here for:
There were quite a number of stalls selling very affordably-priced poultry and seafood that we would have bought for sure if we had somewhere to cook. A pity!
There were also little craft & gift shops within the market, where you can buy trinkets, clothes, baby stuff, and more. Other than a cute book that I bought for my baby, I also ended up buying a bread lamp from a Japanese gift shop. Yes, you read that right. A lamp made with real, preserved bread.
Many people also come to South Melbourne Market to buy dried goods like nuts, nougats, and honey. I overheard some tourists encouraging one another to buy these because they’re very affordable!
I took these photos last year so I’m not sure if the prices have changed. The variety of snacks available for sale is really very impressive though!
I didn’t catch the florist stall this year but I saw these gorgeous blooms last year. Not sure if they are considered reasonably priced but seems ok to me.
For brunch, we had our eyes on the lobster rolls from this restaurant called Smithburg. It’s located at the entrance of the market so it’s pretty hard to miss.
I ordered the Garlic Bread Lobster Roll (AUD 32) but was told they ran out of garlic or something… anyway I settled for an alternative ingredient and got this.
The portions were smaller than I expected, but I had to admit that the lobster was good. Like really really good.
Unfortunately for the price, I still think that the Lobster Roll at Pinchy’s Lobster & Champagne Bar is much better value with a good serving of fries. And just as delicious. They also offer quite a substantial amount of lobster meat so I did feel that the one offered by Smithburg paled a little in comparison.
Is it worth visiting South Melbourne Market?
While some people may think that visiting such local markets is a very touristy thing to do (not wrong, since some shops really seem to be catered towards tourists), I did feel that South Melbourne Market was an exception. You can tell that the locals do come here for grocery shopping, buying fresh poultry and seafood, and also having a hearty meal at some of the restaurants around the market.
Unfortunately I did find it a bit hard to manage a baby here because baby facilities are limited. No parents’ rooms, no diaper changing stations, and no high chairs even at the restaurants. I do feel that it gets easier if your kids are older, so I’m definitely coming back again in future!
DIRECTIONS
Address: 322-326 Coventry St, South Melbourne VIC 3205, Australia
Open Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 8am.
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- Melbourne Zoo: wildlife in the heart of the city
- Melbourne Food Guide – Cafés, Restaurants, Bars etc.
- The Rose Street Artists’ Market: weekend market for crafty finds
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