Weekend Market in Makati

Whether you live in Manila or are visiting the city, going to a weekend market is definitely a fun way to spend your time here. Salcedo Saturday Market and Legazpi Sunday Market in Makati are a good place to start with for newbies. The markets take place every weekend except for a few special holidays.

If you are to spend your precious weekend morning with your family and kids or you have one weekend in Manila and you want to make sure you spend it right, you probably want to know what to expect prior to going there. I hope this post will help you. Salcedo Saturday Market and Legazpi Sunday Market are like a food and merchandize fair with products and produce made in the Philippines. My friend called the markets “hipster” markets, which I agree. You will find awesome items in one place and the experience of shopping is special as you get to meet the vendors. The atmosphere is very friendly, vibrant, positive and welcoming.

Great For Locals As Well As Travelers

If you want to experience a local scene and find something from here to take home for your family and friends, you can hit two birds with one stone at the weekend markets. You can have local experience (I like to pretend like I’m local when I travel) while you safely enjoy the various selections of food both local and international at outdoor stalls. The food stalls have great looking food whose smell will make your mouth water. There are many food stalls where you would find a variety of cuisines. Some tables and chairs under a tent are available for you to sit and eat the food you purchased. I highly recommend going there for lunch and do some shopping before or after.

It was our friends who brought us to them. My American friend, the one who introduced me to the stylish, The Alley at Karrivin, took us to the Legazpi Market. For the Salcedo Market, my friend whom I met in Jakarta and who is an awesome blogger, the Undiplomatic Wife, invited us to go there with her. She is the one who gave me great tips and introduced us to some of the vendors that she liked. It is always so nice to have a resourceful local friend!

Salcedo Community Market

Salcedo Market in takes place every Saturday at the Jaime Velasquez Park of Salcedo village in Makati City, Manila. Their opening hours are from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. According to my local friend, you have to get there before noon in order for you to get the food from the popular vendors. Otherwise, some food will be sold out by the time you arrive! Try to get there in the morning so that you won’t miss out on some good stuff!

Legazpi Market

Legazpi Market is held on Sundays from 7:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. at Legazpi Car Park in Makati City, Manila. Founded in 2005, it started as an organic market in a nearby shopping mall called Greenbelt 1, in Makati, Manila. It is still known for its organic focus produce and products. I have not been able to try too many things yet, but I will feature some of the stalls that we have visited and liked.

I also recommend you read this One Day Guide for Legazpi Market on Philippine Primer.

Legazpi Sunday Market Facebook Fan Page

Maryland ChickAn

My husband heard about Maryland ChickAn from his friends prior to going to the market. One of the co-founders, Fred Corder, is a comic book writer. When we were walking around, the popcorn chicken drew our attention and then we soon realized it was the stall for Maryland ChickAn. Since Fred was there and it wasn’t too crowded, we had a chance to chat with him a bit. It was so interesting to hear his story of how he ended up with Maryland ChickAn. If you are interested, instead of retelling the story here, I put a recommended read under “More About Maryland ChickAn”.

More About Maryland ChickAn

A Taste of Maryland Chickan in Makati

Try This: Maryland ChickAn’s Deep-Fried Watermelon is a Surprisingly Tasty Treat

(I find Pepper an awesome source for the food scene in the Philippines.)

 

We also tried their well-known fried watermelon. Our first experience with it and to our surprise, it was tasty. The combination of juicy water melon, deep-fried batter and sweet frosting on top is unique and something you probably never tasted before.

 
Ritual & Yakang Yaka

I have already seen Ritual’s liquid hand soaps at many of my expat friends’ homes. I have two at my place, too!

 

Stanford Shaw Ginger Ale

Stanford Shaw’s ginger ale is well known among locals. We were recommended to try it and found that it is very tasty and refreshing. You can find the same ginger ale at Salcedo Market as well. During the process of making the ginger ale, the natural alcohol is produced. Therefore, it has a small content of alcohol in it. We didn’t realize this fact and let all of our kids have some. My youngest liked it a lot. (Should I be alarmed?) My oldest later told me she tasted it. Note to ourselves!!!

 

If you are wondering and unsure about them, I hope this post will push you a bit to check out Salcedo and Legazpi Markets yourselves over a weekend!

Happy Weekend To You all!