Chester Market – Shop Local, Eat Global

There was a time when a trip to Chester Market meant arriving with a shopping list. You might need meat for Sunday lunch, fresh fish, fruit and vegetables, or something you could not easily find elsewhere in the city.

You can still shop that way at Chester Market, but the modern market offers considerably more. You might arrive for fresh produce and stay for Mexican street food, Bangladeshi dishes, Thai food, pizza, fresh pasta, pastries, speciality coffee or a drink with friends.

Chester Market’s motto sums it up nicely: Shop Local. Eat Global.

The new Chester Market opened in Exchange Square in November 2022, continuing a trading tradition in Chester stretching back centuries. Today, traditional market traders share the building with independent shops, cafés, street food kitchens, personal services and a central bar.

For visitors, its location also makes it an easy addition to a day exploring Chester city centre.

Chester Market – Shop Local, Eat Global - Chester Taxi Services

A New Home For An Old Chester Tradition

Calling it the “new” Chester Market only tells half the story.

Goods have been traded in Chester for more than 2,000 years, while the city’s market charter dates back to 1159. Trading originally took place around the streets, Rows and Market Square before eventually moving into permanent market buildings.

The Exchange arrived in 1692, followed by Chester’s Victorian Market Hall in the nineteenth century. The Forum became home to the market in 1967 and remained so until traders moved into Exchange Square in 2022.

We have covered the story in greater detail in our Chester Markets History & Heritage, including the old Market Square, medieval trading, the Exchange, Victorian Market Hall and the move into the modern era.

Today’s market looks very different from its predecessors, but the basic idea remains familiar. Independent traders come together under one roof, and Chester comes to them.

Chester Market At A Glance

The mix of independent businesses is one reason Chester Market is worth visiting, even if you haven’t arrived with a particular purchase or meal in mind.

Traditional produce traders sit beside street food kitchens, cafés, specialist shops and personal services. Here is a good taste of what you can find inside.

Category	Trader	What You’ll Find
Fresh Produce	Chester Market Fishmongers	Fresh fish and seafood from a fishmonger with more than 20 years of trading in Chester Market.
Fresh Produce	Geoff Hughes Family Butchers	Traditional family butcher established in Chester Market in 1996.
Bakery, Coffee & Treats	Crustum	Brunches, artisan bread, homemade cakes, coffee and tea.
	Pastry Pédaleur	French-inspired handcrafted pastries and desserts.
	Sam Joseph Handmade Chocolates	A wide range of handcrafted chocolates from husband-and-wife team Sam and Claire.
	Bean & Cole	Speciality espresso and filter coffee from Chester coffee specialists.
	The Ice Cream & Pudding Parlour	Ice cream, milkshakes, sundaes and puddings made on a farm just outside Chester.
Food & Drink	Big Lola Taqueria	Mexican street food from one of the market’s independent kitchens.
	Guroma	Bangladeshi food with an emphasis on authentic flavours.
	Thai by Thai	Thai and oriental street food from an established Chester Market trader.
	Mercato Pizza Co	Freshly prepared pizza from an independent pizzeria.
	The Fresh Pasta Kitchen	Pasta dishes to eat in the market, plus pasta and sauces to take home.
	The Sandbar Seafood Shack	Seafood dishes influenced by chef Martin Taylor’s restaurant experience and travels.
	Vegan House	Plant-based dishes from a trader that made the move from Chester’s Old Market.
	Cheezy Bandits	Cheese-themed street food with a menu built around all things cheesy.
	Sandwich’d	A food stall dedicated to sandwiches and generously filled creations.
	MRKT Café	A traditional English café during the day with Mediterranean food in the evening.
	Lockwood & Co.	The market’s central bar, operated by an experienced Chester-based hospitality team.
Shopping & Gifts	Cheshire Home Store	Country-inspired homeware, gifts and tableware.
	Purely Pots	Houseplants ranging from familiar favourites to unusual and exotic varieties.
	Sheng Hai Oriental Supermarket	Asian food, drinks, fresh ingredients and produce from the city centre’s first oriental supermarket.
	Moonshine Prints	Novelty prints and greeting cards inspired by television, films, memes and popular culture.
	The Crystal Hut	Crystals and a broad selection of spiritual gifts.
	Digby & Champ	Independent dog care products inspired by founder Will Mason’s two Labradors.
	Chester Zoo	Chester Zoo’s first retail outlet away from its main site in Upton.
Services & Personal Care	Pop Specs	Prescription glasses and eyewear with an emphasis on choice and speedy service.
	Chester Phone Repair	Phone and gadget repairs from an established trader who moved from the old market.
	Otis Barbershop	Independent barbering from Jed and his team.
	Ruby Hair & Beauty	Hairdressing and beauty treatments from an experienced hairdresser and beauty therapist.
	Chester Dog Groomers	Dog grooming for small, medium and large dogs across a range of breeds.

The gives a good idea of just how varied the market has become. You could arrive for fresh fish or meat, stop for coffee and a pastry, browse plants and gifts, get your hair cut, have a phone repaired, and finish with Thai, Mexican, Bangladeshi, pasta, pizza, or seafood.

Shopping Local Still Matters

With so much attention given to the food, a first-time visitor could easily assume Chester Market is mainly a modern food hall.

It isn’t.

Chester Market Fishmongers continues the traditional fresh fish counter, with Steven Cartridge having traded in the old market for more than 20 years before moving into the new building. Geoff Hughes has an even longer association with the market, having worked there from the age of 14 before establishing Geoff Hughes Family Butchers with his wife Debbie in 1996.

Those businesses provide an important connection between the old and new markets. You can still come into town specifically to visit the butcher or fishmonger, just as generations of Chester shoppers have done.

Sheng Hai Oriental Supermarket broadens the choice considerably, stocking Asian packaged foods and drinks as well as fresh ingredients and produce. Elsewhere, Purely Pots caters for plant lovers, Cheshire Home Store offers homeware and gifts, and The Crystal Hut stocks crystals and spiritual gifts.

Then there are some less expected additions. Moonshine Prints creates novelty prints and greeting cards influenced by popular culture, while Chester Zoo has its first retail outlet away from the zoo itself right here in the market.

It means shopping at Chester Market can be wonderfully unpredictable. You may go in for something specific and find yourself wandering around the rest of the traders before you leave.

Eating Your Way Around The World

Then there is the “Eat Global” half of the equation.

One of the biggest differences between the modern Chester Market and the traditional image of a market hall is that eating is no longer something squeezed between shopping. Food has become one of the main reasons people visit.

Big Lola Taqueria brings Mexican street food to Chester, while Guroma concentrates on Bangladeshi food. Thai by Thai has built a following for Thai and oriental street food, and Mercato Pizza Co provides the pizza.

The Fresh Pasta Kitchen offers another nice combination of eating and shopping. You can order a pasta dish to eat there or visit its deli-style counter for pasta and sauces to cook at home.

Seafood fans can head towards The Sandbar Seafood Shack, while Vegan House demonstrates how varied plant-based food can be. Cheezy Bandits takes a rather different approach with a menu inspired by a love of cheese, and Sandwich’d does exactly what its name suggests.

The result is particularly handy when several people are eating together.

One person can order Mexican, someone else can have Thai, and another can choose pizza or pasta. Nobody has to compromise on a restaurant so that everyone can sit at the same table.

Coffee, Cakes and Something Sweet

Not every visit needs to involve a full meal.

Bean & Cole has expanded its Chester coffee business into the market with a speciality espresso and filter coffee bar. At the same time, Crustum serves brunches, artisan bread, homemade cakes, coffee and tea. Crustum is another trader with roots in the previous Chester Market, having first opened there in 2018.

Pastry Pédaleur also moved from the old market. Its French-inspired handcrafted pastries and desserts make it a particularly tempting place to stop if you intend to have “just a coffee”.

For chocolates to take home, Sam Joseph Handmade Chocolates offers handcrafted creations from husband-and-wife team Sam and Claire.

Then there is The Ice Cream & Pudding Parlour. Its scoops, milkshakes, sundaes and puddings are made on a farm just outside Chester, bringing another local connection to the Market’s food offering.

So even if lunch is not on the agenda, there are plenty of excuses to stop.

More Than Somewhere For Lunch

Communal seating is a big part of the modern Chester Market experience.

Rather than every food trader operating as a separate restaurant, you can order from different kitchens and come back together at the table. This creates a more relaxed arrangement for groups and lets the market change character naturally as the day progresses.

Morning visitors might stop for coffee, breakfast, or fresh produce. Lunchtime brings shoppers, workers, and visitors into the food area, while later hours shift toward dinner, drinks, and meeting friends.

MRKT Café is a good example of that change. Run by Ray Moriss and his family since opening in the old market in 2002, it operates as a traditional English café by day before offering Mediterranean cuisine in the evening.

Lockwood & Co., the market’s bar, gives visitors somewhere to have a drink without leaving the building. A Chester-based team operates it alongside other established venues in the city.

All of this means Chester Market works for very different visits. You can pop in for a coffee, spend an hour shopping, meet friends for dinner or use it as the starting point for a night in Chester.

An Easy Choice For Groups

Anyone who has tried organising a meal for a group knows that choosing the restaurant can sometimes take longer than eating the meal.

Someone wants pizza. Someone wants something spicy. Another person fancies seafood. There may also be vegetarian or vegan preferences to consider.

Chester Market largely removes that problem.

Everyone can order from different traders and still eat together, making it particularly useful for groups of friends, family get-togethers, and casual celebrations where a formal restaurant booking isn’t really necessary.

Getting everybody into Chester can be kept simple too. Chester Taxi Services operates 8 seater minibuses in Chester, allowing groups to travel together rather than arranging several cars and working out who will be driving home.

Bring The Family

The same freedom of choice makes Chester Market a handy stop with children.

Instead of trying to find a restaurant where everybody likes the menu, family members can choose food from different traders before sitting down together. Something sweet afterwards is unlikely to be difficult to arrange either.

Its central position also means the market fits comfortably into a wider family day in Chester.

You could walk part of the city walls in the morning, visit the market for lunch and then continue towards Chester Cathedral, the Rows, Grosvenor Museum or the river.

Our simple way to enjoy more of Chester follows a similar idea. Choose a few places you genuinely want to enjoy rather than trying to squeeze every Chester attraction into a single exhausting itinerary.

For local families travelling with Chester Taxi Services, local children travel free as part of our effort to help families in the area.

There Is More Than Food and Shopping

Another reason the market feels different from a conventional food hall is the range of services tucked between the traders.

Need a haircut? Otis Barbershop is based towards the rear of the market, while Ruby Hair & Beauty provides hairdressing and beauty treatments.

Chester Phone Repair moved from the old market and continues to repair phones and gadgets. Pop Specs brings eyewear into the mix, while Chester Dog Groomers provides grooming for dogs of different sizes and breeds.

Pet owners can also visit Digby & Champ for dog care products. Will Mason founded the business in 2022 and named it after his Labradors, Digby and Champ.

These businesses help retain the everyday usefulness traditionally associated with a local market. You do not necessarily have to be sightseeing or going out for dinner to have a reason to visit.

A Handy Stop On A Rainy Chester Day

Nobody plans a day out around the possibility of rain, but Chester occasionally has other ideas.

Fortunately, the market gives you a covered place to shop, eat, have a coffee, and spend some time without abandoning your plans altogether.

Its city centre position means you can combine it with other sheltered places nearby, including the Rows, shops and Storyhouse. Our ideas for spending a rainy day in Chester can help if the weather decides your original plans need changing.

There is also something rather satisfying about sitting down with hot food and a coffee while the rain does its worst outside.

An Accessible City Centre Market

The modern Chester Market is arranged on one level, with automatic-door access from Exchange Square and Princess Street. This makes it easier for wheelchair users, people with limited mobility, and families travelling with pushchairs.

Historic Chester itself can sometimes present more challenges. Cobbles, older streets, and changes in level are part of the city’s character, but they aren’t equally convenient for everyone.

Our wheelchair-friendly Chester attractions include more ideas for accessible places around the city.

Chester Taxi Services also provides wheelchair-friendly taxis and minibuses. Passengers can provide wheelchair dimensions when booking so we can arrange an appropriate vehicle.

Make A Day Of Northgate

Chester Market sits in Exchange Square within the Northgate area, putting plenty more within easy reach.

Chester Cathedral, the Town Hall, Northgate Street and the Rows are nearby, while Storyhouse is only a short walk away. Head further through the centre, and you can reach Eastgate Street, Eastgate Clock, the city walls and many of Chester’s best-known historic sights.

That makes the market particularly useful as a midday stop rather than the main event.

Spend the morning sightseeing, stop for lunch, browse the traders and then continue through Chester during the afternoon.

Alternatively, arrive later and start your evening at Chester Market.

Food Before Storyhouse

Storyhouse’s proximity makes this another easy option.

If you have tickets for a performance, meeting at Chester Market beforehand means everyone can choose their own food without trying to find one restaurant menu that suits the whole group.

You can eat, have a drink and then make the short walk across to Storyhouse.

After the performance, arranging a taxi means you are not tied to bus timetables or the question of who has to drive. Our getting home after an evening at Storyhouse has more ideas for planning the night.

Chester Market After Dark

Evening opening has helped Chester Market become part of Chester’s social scene rather than somewhere that closes once the daytime shopping finishes.

As some of the produce, retail, and service traders finish for the day, attention shifts to food, drinks, and the communal seating.

Meet friends at the market, order whatever takes your fancy, have a drink and decide where the evening goes from there.

You are already in the heart of Chester, with pubs, bars, restaurants, Storyhouse and other city centre venues nearby.

If the evening includes a few drinks, arranging a taxi for a night out in Chester also means nobody in the group has to volunteer to be the designated driver.

Getting To Chester Market

Chester Market is at Exchange Square, off Northgate Street, Chester, CH1 2AR.

If you are already in the city centre, it is within walking distance of many of Chester’s main attractions and shopping streets.

Visitors driving towards Chester can use the city’s Park & Ride services and continue through the centre on foot.

A taxi can be particularly convenient if you are travelling with children, shopping bags, a larger group or someone with limited mobility. It also removes the need to find city centre parking if you are planning to stay into the evening.

A taxi rank on Princess Street behind Chester Town Hall, very close to the market, makes the journey home straightforward.

Visitors arriving by rail can also take a taxi from Chester Railway Station into the Northgate area, particularly useful if you have luggage, young children or limited mobility.

Opening Times

Chester Market’s standard opening hours are Tuesday to Saturday from 8 am until 10 pm and Sunday from 10 am until 9 pm, with the market normally closed on Mondays.

Bank holidays, Christmas and other seasonal periods can have different arrangements.

Individual traders also keep their own opening hours within the wider market times. Produce, retail and service businesses may finish earlier than the food and drink traders, so it is worth checking before travelling if you are visiting for a particular business.

More Than Chester’s Food Hall

The food understandably attracts plenty of attention, but describing Chester Market simply as a food hall misses much of what makes it work.

It remains a working market.

A butcher and fishmonger sit within the same building as a coffee shop, chocolatier, houseplant seller, Asian supermarket, dog groomer, barber, phone repair business and dozens of places to browse, eat and drink.

Some traders have decades of history in Chester Market. Others are much newer additions. Together they give Exchange Square the mixture of everyday usefulness and social appeal that has allowed Chester’s market tradition to continue in a very different form.

That is why Shop Local. Eat Global. feels like more than a slogan.

You can support independent Chester businesses, pick up something for home and then sit down to food influenced by Mexico, Bangladesh, Thailand and elsewhere.

All without leaving the market.

Your Taxi To Chester Market

Whether you are heading into Chester for lunch, meeting friends for an evening at the market or combining it with shopping and sightseeing, Chester Taxi Services can take care of the journey there and your collection afterwards.

We provide taxis in Chester, black cabs, local and longer journeys, 8-seater minibuses and wheelchair-friendly vehicles throughout Chester and the surrounding areas.

All our drivers are DBS-checked and licensed with Cheshire West and Chester Council. Card payments are available in most of our vehicles, and you can also pay online through our booking system.

Call 01244 421024, book online or use the Chester Taxis app.

Then only one decision remains: shopping first, or food first?

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