There’s no place I’d rather spend a Saturday. London’s markets are truly special – they bring together people from all walks of life and highlight neighborhoods that you might not explore otherwise.

Broadway Market is located in NE London in the Borough of Hackney and is absolutely worth a visit. It is a fairly wide street (unlike Maltby), so you can ride your bike, bring a pram, etc. without any worries.

What I love most about Broadway is the mix of stalls with brick and mortar stores. The stores are open the entire week, whereas the market only runs on Saturdays. You get such a mix, there’s something for everyone – fresh seafood, vinyl records, pork roasts, handmade leather goods, decadent brownies, fresh pastries, locally sourced baby clothes – literally, everyone can find something to enjoy here.

In the middle of the market is a pub called The Dove, it’s quintessential ‘London’ and a perfect place to grab a pint on a balmy day. It has that pub smell (a good thing in my book!), dark wood, candles on the tables, couches throughout and dim lighting – you could spend hours here. Outside the pub there’s always a performer, today it was a man doing covers of Frank Sinatra – just so quaint.

Bring your appetite when you come, there are so many amazing stalls for hot food – but make sure to save some room for dessert, they have one of the best dessert spreads I’ve seen in London. Today, I went to the Fin & Flounder station and got lobster cakes over quinoa while my husband went for the roasted hog roll (topped with crackling). We then got fresh hot chocolate and tried a rainbow-colored meringue, all so delicious!

You can easily spend a few hours here, so make sure you give yourself time to really explore! The closest tube stop is Bethnal Green (Central Line), but I actually prefer to walk (or ride your bike) along Regents Canal by the houseboats to get here. It takes a bit more time, but is so pretty and worth the extra time if you have it – you could easily make it here from Angel Islington in 30 minutes or so.

Put this on your list – it’s such an enjoyable way to spend an afternoon in London!

Cheers!

CHH