The tianguis (open air bazaar) has held a place as the stronghold in Mexico’s trade system since pre-Hispanic times, surviving through the modern day rise of mom-and-pop shops, big box supermarket and department store chains, slick shopping malls and 24-hour convenience stores. Traditional weekly street markets still thrive along Lake Chapala’s north shore, but this ancestral business model is taking a different twist in the fertile ground of the area’s unique expatriate consumer base.
Savvy lakeside shoppers are now flocking to three alternative day markets that began cropping over two years ago. As outlets for both native and foreign part-time merchants, all of the new operations appear to be going strong, each with its particular focus for target buyers.
Monday market
The Mercado de los Lunes caters to folks who want to spend minimal time in the kitchen with a wide array of homemade carry-out dishes and quick-cooking food products. Since its inception nearly one year ago, the Monday market has been housed in the ground floor parking lot of the Hole-in-One golf range/restaurant, located on the highway at the east end of San Antonio Tlayacapan, opposite the Chula Vista Golf Club.
The market revolves around as many as 50 vendors offering an array of familiar comfort foods, gourmet treats and handmade crafts. Look for ready-to-go soups and stews, meat entrees, vegetable sides, sweet treats and even complete box meals. Or purchase homemade pasta, sausages and other basic ingredients for whipping up fast and satisfying dinners at home.
Tuesday market
Lake Chapala Farmers’ Market qualifies as the groundbreaker of alternate weekly shopping hotspots. Spawned two years ago in the garden of a private home as an outlet for the region’s struggling organic farmers, it has gradually evolved and changed location to accommodate a growing association of vendors who produce and sell wholesome foods, natural health care products, garden supplies and handicrafts.
Currently operating every Tuesday at the La Huerta de Serna events center, situated on the western outskirts of Ajijic at Carretera Chapala-Jocotepec 522, this market attracts a steady clientele of health-conscious, green-living shoppers who arrive early for a best selection of seasonal fruits and veggies, meat, poultry and dairy products, homemade bakery goods, gourmet foods and miscellanea. Exotic offerings include varied sorts of nutrient-rich sprouts, succulent home-grown mushrooms, luscious honey and bee hive derivatives. Look for seeds, baby plants and compost to raise a home garden. Many of the handmade native crafts are supplied by women’s cooperatives that help sustain local families.
Friday market
The newest addition on the shopper’s circuit is the Lakeside Artisans Market, billed as an exclusive showcase for a select group that puts out the area’s finest art, crafts and food products. It runs every Friday, also occupying the ample floor at La Huerta events center.
Invited vendors hold something of a personal corner on the kind of hand-crafted goods they produce. Jewelry, clothing, art works and decorative objects tend to be one-of-a-kind items. The cornucopia of fresh-made gourmet foods ranges from freshly churned butter and top quality meat products for the larder to fresh baked quiches, India-style samosas and mouth-watering pies and pastries for immediate consumption.
All of the specialty day markets are open from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Access to free parking spaces is facilitated by hired hands designated to control highway traffic.