Featured in the iconic training montage in the 1976 film Rocky, the Italian Market (also known as the South 9th Street Curb Market) is an undisputed cultural heritage site. The entire block is visually striking, with bright signs and colorful metal awnings extending over the curb to protect vendors and buyers. Its history, restaurants, and variety of available goods are reasons enough to visit this outdoor market, but the conviviality of the market makes the experience all the more memorable. In wintertime, for example, many vendors set up burn barrels in the street near their stands to keep themselves, and shoppers, warm.

The market is the site of many festivals and events, most notably the annual Italian Market Festival. The market is nestled between two rows of traditional European-style rowhouses, with many restaurants, cafes, and shops occupying the ground floor of the owner-occupied buildings. The market is open year round and every day of the week. The market is a multicultural mecca—along with the abundance of high-quality authentic Italian goods, you will also find Philly cheesesteak joints rubbing shoulders with Mexican taquerias and Vietnamese banh mi stalls. Even though the market is limited to the sidewalk, shoppers can find many places to stop, socialize, and relax.

Dating back more than 100 years, Philly’s Italian Market is one of the largest and oldest outdoor markets in the country. It got its start in 1884 when Italian Immigrants began moving en masse into a designated “immigrant settlement zone” in the city’s South End. Still predominantly Italian but also home to many Asian and Latin American foods and vendors, today the market occupies 10 blocks of 9th street. With more than 100 vendors, including seven meat markets, four dedicated cheese shops, four poultry stores, and more than 40 produce vendors, the Italian Market is a must-visit for foodies and locals alike, and certainly for Italian cuisine buffs. The name “Italian Market” was coined in the 1970s as a response to the influx of supermarkets and chain stores in the area.

Image credits: PrettyKateMachine via Flickr, Jennifer Yin via Flickr, PPS Library

Website: italianmarketphilly.org/

Twitter: @ItalianMarket