Gecko Towers
The summer is a wonderful time in Marbella, the humming of the jet ski’s and the clicking of the grasshoppers welcomes a period of not only splendid weather – typically high 20’s degrees C – but also of tourist drivers and commensurately fuller favourite bars and restaurants. It is a small price to pay to live in such a desirable holiday location.
Summer mornings in Marbella is surprisingly full with bustling activity. Given the number of visitors during the summer it makes a lot of sense to get out as early as possible. Today is not for a visit to the “regular” shops, as invariably they don’t open until after 9.00 am, no, my mission is to visit one of the two Municipal Markets in Marbella to identify some tasty treats for the evening’s dinner table.
Like most families we are confronted not only with Pescatarians, Vegetarians and Carnivores but this year we have an additional dietary requirement, Glutton Intolerance. Surprisingly, several of our favourite local restaurants have already invested heavily in developing different menu options to embrace food preference and/or intolerance. Who knew that pimenton (milled red pepper) – as used in stunning Gambas Pil Pil delicious, spicy and garlic prawns – contained flour causing it to be a no-no for Celiacs?
Usually my first port of call, on the corner of Calle Jacinto Benavente and Calle Francisco de Quevedo, sits an unimpressive looking concrete white building – Marbella’s Municipal Market – El Mercado Central. It has car parking on the lower floors rubbing cheek by jowl with frantically busy bars serving coffees and breakfast to locals and visitors alike. Access is via a wide esplanade entrance that is a little too grand or via one of two doors on the lower level and up a flight of stairs. Whichever way you enter it opens into an Aladdin’s Cave of wonder.
Fruit and veg on wide green grocer’s stalls, all beautifully displayed and loyal to the season. The fruit is astonishing both in quality and variety making a summertime visit an absolute must. Dry beans, preserved fruit, nuts and rows of fresh herbs arranged in a traditional English sweet-shop style. You can chose as much or as little as you need.
Shellfish of all varieties and wet fish from simple bouquerones (anchovies). Fresh not the sticky salty version from a pizza nor as used in a Cesar Salad dressing, that needs to be tossed in salted flour and deep fried. Rodabaillo (Turbot), the King of Fish, to be lovingly serviced in a Cava Sauce. The biggest Tuna you have ever seen. Sashimi – certainly – or better still flash fry a steak and serve with a tangy soya and sesame sauce – superb.
The Meat is well presented and carefully butchered. Fillet steak, a spatchcock chicken or a wonderful Chuleton – basically a rib-eye/small rib joint with a bone – all cook perfectly on the barbecue.
You will find amazing herb and spice stalls where you can buy loose or pre packed to accompany all manner of dishes. Teas/infusions for an encyclopedia of ailments. They impart a general air of exotica to the market. Tins of saffron crocus stamens at, apparently at very reasonable prices, along with a host of different olive oils and white wine vinegars. These stalls give the visitor the chance to secure some original souvenirs that the recipient will adore.
I don’t know about you but I am, I confess, addicted to olives (aceitunas) in all their many flavours and textures – it’s not just green or black! The offer in the Market is simply breathtaking and many are locally prepared with garlic, herbs and spicy red pepper.
Given all this gastronomy it’s of no surprise that standing a little incongruously near the main entrance to the market is a stall selling and sharpening kitchen knives, called “Cuchilleria Jesus” (“Jesus’ Knife shop”). I have several and return when the blades dull after a couple of years of use.
Depending on the time of day there are coffee bars within the main market hall as well as well stocked wine bars for tasting and selling – a great way to discover new favourites. There are also a couple of fish stalls that have combined to allow patrons to buy at their counter and then watch as their purchases are prepared into selected dishes, enjoyed with a glass of Verdejo (dry white wine).
I cannot encourage you enough to make the trip to the Marbella Municipal Market but make sure you bring a reasonably thick wallet for your visit as fresh food of this quality – check if anything is frozen unlikely but make sure – doesn’t come cheaply.
The Municipal Market is open everyday except Sundays and Festival days from 8.00 am to 15.00h and much of the produce is local having been grown on or in the fertile land of this beautiful region or plucked from the sea.
If you chose to become a Marbella resident, during regular visits to the market throughout the year, you will notice a rhythm to the produce available that chimes with the seasons. It ensures that you get to enjoy Nisperos (Loquats) – a fruit that doesn’t travel – its flesh bruises very easily – but is simply delicious for about a month in Spring. Strawberry’s for a few months of wonderful flavour and quality. The best Asparagus in late Spring into the Summer. Mushrooms in the Autumn. “Picotas” – a less sweet and less juicy cherry – that precedes the full Cherry crop. “Brevas” – a drier fig – that acts as the advance guard for the late Fig crop in August and September. The variety is literally endless.
I was recently encouraged to visit another Marbella Municipal Market where, I was told, some “locals” prefer to buy their fresh produce. It is called the Mercado “Divina Pastora” in Calle Jose Chacon, near Marbella’s recently demolished and soon to be rebuilt football stadium, located towards the beach on the edge of Marbella’s Casco Antiguo (Old Town). It has the same opening hours as the El Mercado Central.
In the interests of broadening my Marbella journey an early morning visit seemed essential. A smaller, more intimate and homely feel of this market is matched by an overwhelming fish offer. There are a few butchery stalls, a knife shop and some fruit vendors but this is seems to be where those involved in catching and processing all manner of wonderful sea-fresh fish offer their catches to public.
The shellfish, including Lobster (“Bogavante”) and beautiful prawns in all manner of shapes and sizes – destined to be cooked, peeled and served with cool avocado and Marie Rose sauce or in a tempting omelette of “Camerones” – are matched by the plentiful Acedilla (a small sole), Sardines (“Sardinas”), Monkfish (“Rape”), Swordfish (“Pez Espada”) and Tuna (“Atun”).
The bounty of the seas is not limitless and there is quite some debate at this market about sustainability. There are several EU branded posters that highlight this key issue for us all, particularly given the dependence of the economy of this region on the fruits of the sea. Alongside are some religious icons celebrating the “Virgin del Carmen” – The Patron Saint of Sailors – dedicated to protecting the fishing fleet and its crews. The hope being, of course, to ensure that the supply of great seafood will be protected for years to come.
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