The Mercato di Mezzo in Bologna is the city’s oldest, with roots going back to medieval times, when the ‘Quadrilatero’ area where it’s located was the city’s commercial center. The old streets are lined with shops selling produce, meat, cheese and more.
Even the names of the streets recall the old guilds whose business was conducted there; the picture above is from Via Pescherie Vecchie, or ‘old fishermen’s street;’ others nearby reflect goldsmiths, drapers, etc.
Today, the market is almost back-to-back with a very different sort of food market, a large branch of the gourmet store Eataly.
