Food Tours · Tour

La Merced and the Witchcraft Market, with People Raised There

The guides on this tour grew up in these markets. Not near them: in them, selling, helping, buying, eating and celebrating, which is why no two of these tours are the same and why the stalls they take you to are the ones their families use. La Merced is the second largest market in Mexico and among the largest anywhere. It is loud, enormous and does not particularly want your attention, and walking it with somebody who knows every corner is the difference between an experience and a headache. Around eight artisanal antojito stands, freshly squeezed juices, and humble fondas serving pozole, pancita, tacos, seasonal fruit and pre-Hispanic ingredients most visitors will never have eaten. Mercado de Sonora is the other half, and it is famous for a reason: it is the market for witchcraft and herbal medicine, and the shops sell things that have nothing to do with food and everything to do with what people here still believe. The tour ends at a small local coffee shop, deliberately, to put money into an independent business, with a coffee or a pan dulce, though you will probably be too full. Four hours, ten people at most, in English. Comfortable clothes and shoes. Bring a bag that zips. No professional cameras and no pets. Not recommended if you have a heart condition.