Mercat del Lleó — Girona's Central Food Market
Housed in a handsome 1920s Modernista iron-and-glass building on Plaça Calvet i Rubalcaba, the Mercat del Lleó is where Girona's chefs, home cooks and food obsessives shop every morning. It's a vivid, fragrant snapshot of Catalan gastronomy — wild mushrooms from the Pyrenees, salt cod, artisanal charcuterie and the freshest catch from the Costa Brava.
What to Buy and Taste
The market's strength is in its local producers. Look for botifarra sausages made to Girona-province recipes, creamy Garrotxa goat's cheese with its distinctive grey rind, and seasonal rovellons (saffron milk cap mushrooms) in autumn. The fish counters in the centre of the hall are theatrical — whole sea bass, razor clams and red prawns from Palamós, the Costa Brava's prized crustacean.
Several stalls sell ready-to-eat food: pick up a coca de recapte (a flat Catalan pastry topped with escalivada and anchovies) or a wedge of truita de patates (potato omelette) for a perfect market breakfast.
Making the Most of Your Visit
The market is at its liveliest and best-stocked between 8am and 1pm Tuesday to Saturday. Friday morning is the busiest and most atmospheric session, when stall holders bring the widest range of seasonal produce.
The surrounding streets — particularly Carrer de l'Argenteria and the Rambla de la Llibertat — are lined with small bars where you can take your market haul and order a glass of cava or a café amb llet to accompany it.
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