After our last food hall experience, Hannah, who learned that I had never been to the North Market downtown, decided we needed to visit. It was a completely different atmosphere but still had its own unique history, dating back to the 1800s!

As we walked into the 145-year-old market, we were greeted by a street performer singing and strumming his guitar. Despite it being a Tuesday afternoon, it was bustling with shoppers and visitors from the convention center just a block away. Vendors lined the walls and filled the middle of the giant warehouse, offering a variety of fresh-made food to eat right away as well as fresh fish, uncooked pasta, cheeses, olive oils, and more! With over 30 independently owned small businesses, the market was filled to the brim with options.

After exploring, Hannah decided she wanted pierogis, so we headed over to Hubert’s Polish Kitchen. The pierogis were handmade and covered in butter, just how we like our comfort food. However, like most of the vendors here, the food is made fresh daily, so they were running out of the most popular items for the day. We found seating on the second level rather than the chilly picnic tables out front.

The building is full of character, and once you step away from all the activity, you can see the cracks in the ceiling paint and the old metal rafters holding it all together. You can almost step back into time when the North Market was a much larger area, used as a gathering place for new arrivals off the trains that brought them to the big city in 1876. Since then, the North Market has hosted many different businesses and continues to thrive. The history is truly amazing, and I’ve included the link below if you want to dive deeper like I did!

Visiting is made slightly easier with a paid (and validated) parking lot out front, and there’s street parking surrounding it. The market is closed only on Mondays, but is open from 9am to 7pm most days. Be prepared for a crowd unless you go at non-peak hours, but it’s a great piece of Columbus history that supports local businesses!