It is coming upon my absolute, favorite time of year again where produce stands are overflowing with almost every color and shape vegetable and fruit one`s heart could desire, harvest season! Yes, the official season is not yet here, but local farmers at the weekly farmers market in Luzern already have their pumpkins and butternut squash for sale.
If you have not yet gone to the Luzern Market on a Tuesday or Saturday morning it is a must! Open from 6:00 until 13:00 along the Reussteg down to Unter der Egg as well as along Bahnhofstrasse and Jesuitenplatz (on Saturdays also on Helvetiaplatz) you can browse over 80 stands from farmers offering fresh products from the region and Switzerland as well as those international specialties you’ve been looking for.
For example, buy some organically made bread, or a pick from a great selection of cheeses at Rolf Beeler next to the wooden bridge (who provides cheeses to all the top restaurants in the area) and lovely pasta from Safra’s, produce from the Tessin, Italy and beyond. The Biohof Widacher, a farm located right up the road in Malters, offers tons of organic fruits and vegetables, but also an assortment of organic nuts, dried fruits, teas, seeds, oils, jams, jellies, and even fresh cheese, milk and soy products.
Of course the market is not only about fruits and vegetables, you can buy meat as well. At Unter der Egg you can purchase fresh local fish caught from the Vierwaldstättersee at the Fish Market. You can also find stands with smokes meats, salami and the classics of pork, beef and chicken.
A very nice cookbook has been published in German and English with recipes given out by the stall owners, and the market has it’s own website with information on opening and closing times and any special events.
If the market seems to crowded for you, then there is the satellite market up at the Helvetiaplatz. But for me the hustle and bustle of the market is what gives it its charm. Once you`re done shopping, have a coffee at a coffee shop along the river and watch all the people pass you by. You will see just how international Luzern really is!
