The foodie set in Lima, particularly Gaston Acurio, has been pushing for special status of this market in Surquillo, a few blocks from Parque Kennedy in Miraflores. Products from around the country can be found here: fruits from the Amazon, chiles and potatoes and buckets of quinoa from the Andes, fresh seafood from the coast. You can buy kitchen utensils. I spent the equivalent of $10 a year ago on wooden spoons and other handmade tools. If I picked up the same items in the States, I would have spent $100 easily. Other things I’ve found here include a beautiful 2kg octopus for a backyard grilling, a bottle of cumari peppers from the jungle, and Andean potatoes that are far too rare for the Supermarkets. The market is expected to eventually undergo a massive renovation, spearheaded by Acurio, which will keep the produce on the ground floor, but add a food court and cooking school on the second and third floors.

While every neighborhood in Lima has its small version of a market with fresh meat and produce, this is the only market of this size anywhere in Lima with such a range of ingredients. Wong is OK too, but if you want the real farm to table experience in Lima this is it.

Mercado de Surquillo
Paseo de la Republica