Mercado de Abastos
Tucked behind the old town's southern edge, the Mercado de Abastos is the beating culinary heart of Santiago — a 19th-century stone market where Galician fisherwomen in aprons sell percebes, spider crabs and whole turbot straight from the Rías Baixas. It is the best single place in the city to understand what Galician food is really about.
Navigating the Stalls
The market occupies a series of granite arcaded buildings around a central courtyard, with fish and seafood in the inner halls and vegetables, cheese and meat around the perimeter. Arrive before 11:00 on a Saturday to see it at full throttle — stalls piled with gleaming octopus, razor clams, sea urchins and the prized nécora (velvet crab).
Look out for the women known as peixeiras who have sold fish here for generations, often the same families occupying the same stalls their grandmothers worked. Chatting to them (a little Spanish or Galician goes a long way) is as much a part of the experience as the produce itself.
Eat Inside the Market
Several small bars and restaurants operate inside the market, and the local custom is to buy your raw seafood from a fishmonger and have a nearby bar cook it for a small fee — typically €2–4 per kilo on top of the purchase price. This is the most economical and authentic way to eat percebes or grilled razor clams in Santiago.
The market also sells excellent Galician cheeses — particularly tetilla and San Simón da Costa — alongside empanada gallega baked fresh each morning. A slice of tuna or chorizo empanada with a glass of Albariño from a market bar is the definitive Galician mid-morning snack.
Practical Tips
The market is open Tuesday to Saturday, 07:30–14:30, and is closed on Sundays and Mondays. Saturday is the liveliest day; Tuesday is the quietest if you prefer a calmer browse.
A small but excellent deli section near the main entrance sells vacuum-packed Galician products — tetilla cheese, chorizo cular and tinned seafood — ideal for edible souvenirs that travel well.
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