Broadway Market
hackney's saturday institution
A buzzing Saturday street market in Hackney, free to wander, lined with food stalls and independents and bookended by London Fields and the Regent's Canal.
Free to visit · Hackney · London Fields · E8 4QJ
Opening: Saturdays · roughly 9am–5pm · some traders Sundays
Broadway Market is one of east London's great Saturday rituals. A short pedestrian-friendly street that fills, once a week, with around a hundred stalls of street food, fresh produce, flowers, books and independent makers, all free to wander and graze your way along.
It has been a market street since Victorian times, fell quiet for decades and was revived in the 2000s into the heaving, slightly hip institution it is now. The food is the obvious draw, but the permanent shops, cafes and a very good pub or two along the street are half the appeal.
Its best feature is what sits at either end. London Fields, a lovely park with a heated lido, is at the top, and the Regent's Canal towpath is at the bottom, so you can buy lunch and walk it off by the water or sprawl on the grass.
Getting there: A short walk from London Fields overground, between the park and the Regent's Canal in Hackney.
Best time to go: Saturday is the day, mid-morning before the lunch crush. Bring cash and an empty stomach.
Insider tip: Grab food from the stalls then carry it down to the Regent's Canal at the bottom of the street and eat by the water, or up to London Fields at the top. Either beats jostling for a spot among the crowds on the market itself.
Official site: https://broadwaymarket.london
Free things to do in London · London Free Guide