Haarlem Market

On Saturday mornings the outdoor market at Grote Markt is in full bloom on the main square next to the big church. It’s one of the largest and more lively market squares in all of the Netherlands.

Market day in any European city is generally a lot of fun, where you get a chance to mingle around with locals, have a look at the produce, cheese, fruits, clothing, hardware and miscellaneous items for sale, participating like a resident – and you’ll probably find something good to eat.

A favorite item are the fresh breads, the incredible dark and rich and heavy breads, with lots of varieties, and textures. You will find this kind of good wholesome bread throughout northern Europe – in Germany certainly, and Scandinavia which bears many similarities to the Netherlands.

Some loaves and rolls are actually baked right on the spot – vendors bring along ovens so they can waft that wonderful odor of fresh-baked bread out to lure you in to buy a loaf or two. Pick up some cheese and fruit to go with it and you’ve got yourself an instant meal, maybe a picnic lunch or even dinner.

If you don’t find anything to eat at the market there are a number of cafés all around the market. There’s a beautiful corner bar here with a ringside seat on the action – people kicking back watching the parade of people going by, having a drink or having a meal. It’s a perfect spot for a break before plunging back into the market. But if you order a croquette, the popular deep-fried cheese ball, be careful not to immediately bite, because it might be scorching hot, ouch, it burned my mouth.

The buildings all around the market square are beautiful and historic, mostly dating back to the 1600s. You’ve got the old meat market, the weighing house, archaeology museum, former noble residences, City Hall, and the big church, the Grote Kerk. The Tourist Information Center is here so stop in for some free maps, brochures, touring advice, and if you need a place to stay they can fix you up.

Haarlem has a long history as an important market town as far back as the 14th century when it was in its heyday, trading and collecting tolls on the canals. It was a larger city than Amsterdam, and then later in the 17th century it reached its cultural peak with artists such as Frans Hals living here and creating many great masterpieces, as you you’ll see soon when we visit his museum .

The Netherlands has long been the capital of tulip cultivation with the famous flower fields nearby in Keukenhoff and even today it’s a major producer of a variety of flowers. This country is the world's largest exporter of flowers, responsible for half of global production, earning about 6 billion euro per year.

There is always some kind of opportunity for free samples from market vendors so don’t be shy, they want to give it away to entice you to buy, for example the wonderful olives.

“Where are the olives from?” “From everywhere, from the Mediterranean, variation of 10 countries.” When traveling it’s not always easy to strike up conversations with the locals but on market day everybody is ready to talk, so by all means have some chats with the vendors.

“So what’s going on here?” “This is the market, every Saturday from 9-to-5. We have a lot of stuff here. You can buy fresh flowers, fresh fish, fresh meat, fresh chicken, fresh potatoes. You can have anything you like.

“We have nice vegetables, food you can eat right away. And it’s a good place to work, it’s fun. We have nice buildings around us, and there are nice restaurants, lots of people from all over the world, it’s nice. We have them from America, Canada, Australia, France, from Germany. So it’s a real social place too. A lot of conversations, also yes, strangers meeting, and the people are coming from everywhere. They know this. They come. And it’s right next to the big church. The big church, you can go inside, it’s very nice.

“We’re selling wool from Holland. Yes, Dutch wool. Well we have Dutch winters – but they’re not that cold anymore.” You’ll find clothing for sale as well, and some hardware and other kinds of miscellaneous gadgets including a nice variety of bicycle seats, but nothing is more Dutch than cheese.

“Is this cheese from Holland?”

“Yeah almost everything is from Holland except a few. The rest is from Holland. Every cheese is different. Goat cheese, farmer cheese, 30 kinds of cheese I think. You want some? Maybe a taste.

“We’ve got some cheese from the farm and those are raw, from raw milk handmade by farmers. Not pasteurized. Try it, yes, sure. Not dangerous. Creamy and spicy.”

In America raw milk cheese is legal but not so common. It is required to be aged for 60 days out of some health concerns but many argue that raw milk cheeses are more delicious than pasteurized cheese with a spunkier, more natural and exciting flavor. Located in the middle of Europe and also being very open-minded, the Dutch like cheese from other countries as well from France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, pecorino with truffles.

Of course the heart and soul of any open market is the produce, the vegetables, especially fresh and locally grown – a lot better than frozen food from a supermarket.

“What is this?” “All organic food. We have all vegetables, organic, so very healthy.” “Where is it from?” “All in Holland at the moment. Most of the things are from Holland.’ ‘Is it the Netherlands or do you just say Holland when you talk about your country?” “Netherlands, Nederland.”

One of the most fascinating elements of Dutch culture are the bicycles, they’re everywhere. It seems like everybody has a bicycle, or if you’re a tiny toddler you are on the front seat or the back seat or maybe in a little cart that’s attached to the bicycle.

It’s endlessly entertaining to watch the variety of bicycles go by. Sometimes it’s like little pickup truck with capacity for cargo, two frisky little kids and a baby. Get their shoes on, secure them in place, get ready for the journey and start peddling. One clever lady gives her dog a workout and gets pulled along on a free ride – she’s not pedaling.

Somehow each bicycle is unique, and these carts and carriages seem unusual to visitors from America but this is perfectly normal here. Actually it’s a great way to get around of course. Sometimes there is a front seat for the little girl and a backseat for big brother, and room for freight in the wagon along with a handheld loaf of bread. It’s a normal daily routine.

I have a theory that one reason that Dutch are generally smart and sociable and outgoing and alert is they grew up on the front seat of a bicycle with their eyes open watching the world spin by them, providing a stimulating daily experience instead of being stuck in the backseat of a car as we do in many other cultures.

The typical Dutch bicycle is very efficient, with just a one-speed direct chain drive, with little loss of energy, unlike fancier bikes with multiple gears and derailleurs adding some friction and resistance.

You can see how much fun this market is but you’ve got to be here on a Saturday to catch all of this action. So if you can possibly arrange your schedule, if you’re staying in Amsterdam or spending the night here and you’re around on a weekend, by all means have a walk around the Haarlem market and then see the rest of town.

Main Haarlem page

Haarlem Museums

Haarlem Picture Galleries