Philadelphia's 9th St. Italian Market

The Italian Market on 9th Street in Philadelphia offers great food for everyone to enjoy year round.  I've been shopping here for a number of years because of the variety of vendors, specialty stores, restaurants & cafes that supply the city with delicious food.  This historic market is one of the oldest open air markets in the country, and although it is primarily Italian, many other purveyors of fine food offer their products from all over the world.  There is so much to choose from and one never tires exploring what's fresh & in season.   

There are traditional bakeries that sell wonderful breads & pastries made from the best ingredients and old world recipes; think cannoli, sfogliatelle, cioccolatini, amaretti, biscotti, panettone and countless others.  If you want to sit down for an espresso ristretto or a caffè macchiato there are a couple of wonderful cafes with outside seating.  These always seem to be teeming with people who either live in the neighborhood or those who happen to be visiting for the first time.  I love the shops which make fresh pasta on a daily basis, because one is always guaranteed good quality.  If you want to get freshly roasted coffees, loose teas, spices & nuts sold in bulk, the Italian Market has a few vendors that specialize in these foodstuffs.  Let's not forget the salumeria merchants that offer endless meats, cheeses, olives, dried pastas, olive oils and vinegars.  I have my favorites.

Speaking of favorites, this is the area which houses my all-time favorite kitchen wares store, Fante's.  I'm going to save that store for its own separate blog post because I think it's worth taking a closer look at.  In the meantime, take a walk with me through the historic 9th St. Italian Market in Philadelphia.

Signs like these are found along the street as one walks down 9th St.. 

Before you actually reach the start of the Italian Market, you'll come across Sarcone's Bakery, located between Fitzwater St. & Christian St..  This place is where everybody goes to buy great Italian bread, but you have to arrive early or else the pickings are quite slim.  By around 10 a.m. restaurateurs, neighbors & numerous patrons have already taken dozens upon dozens of loaves.  They do offer pizza by the slice as well as those traditional multi-colored cookies if you're in the mood for them.  You're going to be tempted by the aromas wafting from the bakery, so make a quick stop and treat yourself to a loaf.

This is the beginning of the market.  I'm standing on the corner of 9th St. & Christian St. and as you can see, Lorenzo's Pizza is where many go to have a slice.

A sidewalk cafe offers traditional cappuccino drinks for everyone who loves coffee.  It's quite early in the day here, but there are already patrons sipping their espresso.

The Spice Corner is a great place for freshly roasted coffees, whole & ground spices, an assortment of nuts, teas & yes, dried fruit.  The ladies love sitting outside on their chairs watching people as they do their shopping.  Everyone knows each other here.

Judy's fruit stand has been around for quite some time and I always love buying a thing or two from her.  She's always friendly to everyone.  Hi Judy!

She also sells plants, potted herbs and flowers if you want to treat yourself while out shopping.

We cannot talk about 9th St. without mentioning Di Bruno Brothers.  They are the salumeria of the Italian Market.  Purveyors of fine-quality imported foodstuffs, many patrons love getting their olive oils, olives and other goods here.  This particular corner store is a deli which specializes in freshly prepared take-out food as well as catering arrangements. 

So many fresh herbs and plants are offered at another fruit stand down the street.  It's a great feast for the eyes walking through here.

Claudio is another store that sells fresh cheeses, olives and oils.  I love getting my parmigiano and pecorino cheeses, along with a variety of olives and other hard to find imported olive oils from this store.  It's great experimenting with extra virgin olive oils from Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Israel and Lebanon.  They're all very good.

This is the actual Di Bruno Brothers salumeria storefront.  I've been told that movies have been filmed here.

Talluto's is a must for fresh cut & stuffed pastas.  They do sell frozen pastas as well if you wish to buy them, but why not take some fresh raviolis home to have for dinner?  You won't be disappointed.

Large Belgioioso Provolone cheeses hang from the storefront window enticing customers.  Do you see those little Nutella tubs in the foreground?  Delicious!

This is a large professional pasta roller & cutter.  It is used every single day at Talluto's and it's nice seeing their expert workers rolling out pasta by the pound. 

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This is just but a small sampling of what this area has to offer. For more information regarding the numerous other vendors of the Italian Market in Philadelphia, click here.  Be sure to visit & explore the area if you love good Italian food.  I know it's one of my favorite places to shop whenever I'm in Center City.  Enjoy!