The market of Santiago is the second most frequented place in the city, second only to the cathedral. It is one of the most lively places in Compostela, a special meeting place between pilgrims and visitors and the local population that, in addition, offers the pilgrim or tourist the possibility of experiencing Galicia through their taste buds.
Along with a huge variety of fresh products from farming, fishing and seafood from Galicia, the market also offers a rich variety of handicraft products, as well as numerous possibilities for tasting food and drink in the cafés, bars and restaurants that surround it. There are also restaurants that offer a kitchen service for those who wish to buy food products and do not have a place of their own to cook them.
The architecture of the market has a double artistic value: that of its own buildings and the setting in which it stands . The market has been in its current location since the year 1870, when all the stalls scattered about the town were brought together into one centralized space. To the north it is flanked by the square and church of San Agustín and, to the south, by the medieval church of San Fiz de Solovio and the plaza of the University with its monumental faculty of Geography and History.
The current edifice with its granite pavilions has largely replaced the original structures of the nineteenth century, which did not allow the stallholders to protect their wares from the rain. The current pavilions were designed by the architect Joaquín Vaquero Palacios around 1937, the project was completed in 1941, the year in which the market was launched as we know it today. In recent years its facilities have been the subject of various improvements and restorations.
