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Viktualienmarkt: How to Explore Munich Historic Food Market
Just off Marienplatz, Munich daily food market has traded for more than two centuries. A guide to its stalls, its beer garden and how to visit.
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A few steps south of Marienplatz, the Viktualienmarkt is Munich open-air food market and one of the most enjoyable places in the city to spend an unstructured hour. It grew out of a farmers market that outgrew the main square in the early nineteenth century and was moved to its present site, and it has traded almost every day since.
The market is a permanent arrangement of stalls rather than a weekly event. Traders sell Bavarian and international produce: seasonal fruit and vegetables, cheeses, cured meats and sausages, fresh fish, breads, honey, herbs and spices, and cut flowers. Several small stands serve food to eat on the spot, from a warm Leberkassemmel to soups, oysters and fresh juices, which makes the market a good and inexpensive place for lunch.
At its centre stands a maypole and a beer garden shaded by chestnut trees. In keeping with a long-standing Munich custom, the beer garden rotates which of the city major breweries it serves, and visitors are traditionally allowed to bring their own food to the tables while buying their drinks on site. It is an easy, sociable place to rest.
The market is open from Monday to Saturday, with individual stalls setting their own hours; most trade through the morning and afternoon and wind down by early evening, and everything is closed on Sundays and public holidays. Prices reflect the quality and central location, so it is worth carrying some cash for smaller purchases even though card payment is increasingly common.
The Viktualienmarkt sits within a short walk of many of Munich central sights, so it fits neatly into a day exploring the old town. Combining a wander through the stalls with a plate of local food and a drink under the chestnut trees is one of the simplest and most authentic experiences the city centre offers.