From stone fruit to herbs, baked bread to trinkets, Perth’s markets bulge with goods.
By Fleur Bainger
At Perth‘s markets you’ll see locals toting hessian bags and chatting with stallholders as they handle locally grown produce and handmade goods. The producers tend to be surrounding farms, market gardens and small businesses. Often you get to meet the very person who grew the leek, collected the honey or baked the bread you’re buying. It’s impossible to leave empty handed.
Fremantle Markets
Where: South Terrace & Henderson Street, Fremantle
When: Friday, Saturday and Sunday 8am – 6pm
The historic Fremantle Markets have at least 150 stalls selling fresh produce, street food, art, homewares, trinkets and more. Constructed in 1897, the markets are a beautiful mess of colour, smells and keepsakes under one huge roof. While there’s plenty of ephemera, you’ll also find lasting treasures to take home, such as panoramic photographs of Perth’s white sandy beaches, skin soothing emu oil and that hammock you’ve always wanted. Dash in to The Yard at closing time for heavily discounted fruit and vegetables, marketed loudly.
Subi Farmers Market
Where: Subiaco Primary School, 271 Bagot Rd, Subiaco
When: Saturday, 8am – 12pm
Situated in Subiaco, one of Perth’s popular urban villages, the Subi Farmers Market is full of friends catching up as they pick out punnets of strawberries and freshly baked bread or stand in line for a breakfast of shakshuka Moroccan eggs. The market is held in the Subiaco Primary School grounds. Locals love to sit under the big fig tree with a coffee and a bite to eat as their kids play nearby.
Mount Claremont Farmers Market
Where: Mt Claremont Primary School, 103 Alfred Rd, Mt Claremont
When: Saturday, 7:30am – 11:30am
This is one for serious foodies. Top range seasonal produce lines the stalls of specialty meats, handmade cheeses, French pastries and cut flowers at the Mount Claremont Farmers Market, and naturally there are price tags to match. That’s not to say you can’t get a bargain. The lettuce truck, for example, delivers fantastic value greens, from watercress to bunches of coriander and washed baby butter leaf, and always sells out early. The stone fruit at Christmas time is particularly good.
Inglewood Night Markets
Where: 892/894 Beaufort St, Inglewood
When: September to March, Monday, 6pm – 9:30pm
Many cities shut down on Monday nights. But the Perth suburb of Inglewood is well and truly alive, with food trucks lining the long footpath of Beaufort Street, between Sixth and Eleventh avenues, to feed hungry locals. It’s only five kilometres (three miles) from the city centre, and a fun way to pick and choose dinner and enjoy the convivial scene. Bring along a few gold coins for the buskers, who add to the ambience.
Freo Farmers Market
Where: Fremantle College, 79 Lefroy Road Beaconsfield
When: Sunday, 8am – 12pm
The Freo Farmers Market takes place on Sundays in Perth’s southern suburb of Beaconsfield. Stalls are dotted beneath towering eucalypt trees and favour grower direct produce and local creations. You’ll find free range eggs, locally pressed olive oil, organic meats, regional honey and crunchy bread along with jams and fresh flowers. The market is plastic-free, so don’t forget your hessian bags. Live acoustic music adds to the relaxed community atmosphere.
Perth City Farm
Where: 1 City Farm Place, East Perth
When: Saturday, 8am – 12pm
The popular Perth City Farm purveys all things organic, biodynamic, ethical and sustainable. You won’t find any chemical sprays used on the fruit and veg, dairy products, unrefined honey or meats. There is also organic clothing, health foods and body products. The farm sits beside an excellent café that does punchy coffee, creamy scrambled eggs and decadent flourless chocolate and raspberry cake. The market is enclosed and can be hard to find – look for it behind a large asphalt car park along Royal Street in East Perth, or take the train to Claisebrook station and spot it from the pedestrian overpass.
Perth Upmarket
Where: The University of Western Australia’s Winthrop Hall, 35 Stirling Hwy, Crawley
When: Held every three months, listed here.
Independent designer and handmade goods are the hallmark of this specialty market, held four times a year. About 180 artists, craftspeople and food specialists come together for Perth Upmarket, held in Winthrop Hall in the leafy surrounds of the University of Western Australia. The market was created to support Western Australian artists and to encourage buying local, so you’re sure to find items you’ll find nowhere else.
