For farm-fresh produce, vintage finds or homespun arts and crafts, check out our ultimate guide to the best markets in Sydney
Sydney is back. Weekends are back. Life is back. And with this great resurgence of good times, we are also welcoming back one of our most beloved cultural institutions - the humble weekend market.
Snaffling fried brunchy fare on the grass, hanging with dogs, uncovering a mint condition leather jacket beneath some dusty leggings, jiving to a live saxaphone player before 10am - all these myriad of delights are available at pretty much any Sydney market, and the good news is that now, you get to experience it too.
Whether farm fresh produce, locally and sustainably made goods or antique treasures are your thang, we have you covered on where to go, where to look, and when to do it.
Go here for: fashion, baby – vintage, second hand and new desgner finds – and cool knick-knacks
There are rows upon rows of eccentric and colourful vintage clothes, alongside hand-crafted jewellery, accessories and new clothing designed by locals. There are vintage stalls scattered all around the market, but the smaller section just off Derby Lane at the back of the school is a goldmine and a slightly quieter place to scour through racks and try things on.
Go here for: vintage clothes, books, rugs, eco food wraps to healing crystals, rice bread and tarot reading.
Pick up a paper lunch bag filled with sweet, mini plums and stop by Brooklyn Boy Bagels for a poppy seed dough with cream cheese, lox, dill and caper schmear. Head over on Sundays from 9am at the Addison Road Centre.
Go here for: a utopia of pre-loved finds, record crates, antique jewellery, crafts and gozleme
The schoolyard of the Rozelle Public School has been a hive of weekend crate-digging for more than 20 years, and while some stalls have almost earned long service leave, there are always newcomers keen to swap their good and chattel for some cold hard cash. On Saturdays, you can find pre-loved bargains for less than you’d spend on a coffee – it’s all about the chase. On Sundays, you can stock up on fresh produce with the 'Farmers and Collectors' edition.
Go here for: knick knacks you wouldn't find anywhere else
The second Sunday of every month sees the art, design and fashion iteration of Kirribilli’s historic markets, centred on the weather-proof location of the Burton Street Tunnel right under Milsons Point Train station. Then, if you're feelin' it – every fourth Saturday, you can head down to the green bowlo and find a little bit of everything, from local food to luxury fashion.
Go here for: beach-ready snacks, organic produce, retro hauls and backpacker-chic giftware
You can pick up Hass avocados, lush green veggies like broccoli, leeks, fennel and spinach, plus earthy Dutch cream potatoes and boxes of free range eggs. Locally made homewares, fashion and vintage stalls cluster together only 50 metres away from one of Sydney's most beloved beaches.
Go here for: environmentally-focussed food, produce, colourful blooms and trinkets
There’s a new sustainable, environmentally-focused market joining the mix of Sydney’s regular shopping events. The Flour Mill Markets, which come from the fresh minds behind the Erskineville Farmers’ Market, are dedicated to fresh produce, dairy-based goods, locally crafted pottery and more every first and third Sunday of the month.
Go here for: the biggest selection of fresh produce and arts and crafts in Sydney – and pony rides
The Entertainment Quarter has been home to a fresh produce and arts and crafts market for 20 years, and in 2018 market experts Madelienne Anderson and Rebecca Fox took over the show, adding EQ to their list of market spaces around Sydney, from Watsons Bay to Cronulla. Every Wednesday and Saturday, there are up to 70 stallholders peddling gourmet cheeses, ripe cherry tomatoes and piping hot gozleme.
Go here for: embarking on a vegan food and drink crawl and stocking up on crystals and essential oils
On the third Sunday of every month, Sydney Vegan Market brings together more than 100 stalls selling 100 per cent plant-based food and drink, homewares, fashion, art and cosmetics from some of the biggest names in cruelty-free shopping. The set up at the Entertainment Quarter in Moore Park offers a full day of eating, shopping, activism and education.
Go here for: Bowen's bacon and egg rolls, Flour and Stone's lemon cake, condiments, small goods and fresh produce
You’re spoilt for choice for truss tomatoes, plump berries, technicolour capsicums and leafy greens. The popularity of the bacon and egg rolls from Bowen’s has reached celebrity status, with queues long enough to make you think Bieber is signing autographs at the end of the line.
Go here for: the freshest produce
Snaking through the seemingly small parklet on the northern CBD’s fringe, this bimonthly produce fair brings stallholders peddling orbs of creamy burrata, blood sausages, double-fist-sized heirloom tomatoes, salted caramel meringues, fresh egg pasta, free range eggs and soda bread.
Go here for: breakfast pho, fresh produce, and the trendiest foodie finds in town
It’s imperative that you do not eat before you visit the Carriageworks Farmers Markets. You’ll want to save maximum belly space for your personal version of The Bachelorette where you decide who gets your dollars and what delicious produce gets to come home with you.
Go here for: kitsch bric-à-brac, art, design, bohemain flair and vegan cookies
Many of the stallholders return week on week, like the elderly Japanese couple selling Bonsai trees and the Spanish shoemakers selling espadrilles. It’s predominantly an art, clothing and design market – and alongside the kitsch bric-à-brac and Australiana-print tea towels, leather satchels, beach photography prints and patterned baby rompers are two a penny.
Go here for: brunching delights, handmade finds, juicy produce and pop-up yoga
If Bondi Markets were a person, they would a) be very healthy, and b) wearing two (organic) hats. Each weekend, Bondi Public School plays host to two different markets, with the Saturday edition bringing the Bondi Farmer's Market, and the Sunday bringing general marketware, fashion and vintage goods.
The 150-year-old institution spans two locations – Haymarket and Flemington – and as well as the usual food, fashion and bric-a-brac, Paddy’s stallholders hawk knock-offs, tourist tat and so many mobile phone covers.
Get up early and catch the noisy wholesale fish auctions: they start at 5.30am, with tours for public starting at 6.40am (dependent on restrictions). It’s the largest market of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, and you won’t find more varieties of fish on sale anywhere outside Japan – it trades more than 100 species a day and over 1,400 tonnes of fish a year.
It’ll be an early morning trip – it opens in the dark hours and you wanna be an early bird – but if you can get yourself up then the effort is more than worth it. Flower shopping is about seeing what’s on offer and buying the most divine blooms on the day.
Discover Time Out original video
Â
