Pike Place Market was born on August 17, 1907. It was a response to leaps in the cost of produce and initially gathered eight local farmers who were overwhelmed by an estimated 10,000 local shoppers who turned up that first day. Now 100 years later, it sees millions of visitors a year, a mix of both local residents and visitors to Seattle. The area referred to as “the Market” is actually several market buildings located close together around the corners of First Avenue and Pike Street.
There is the actual Pike Place Market, which is now a three-level building with over 100 merchants and shops. Most people stay in the uppermost level which features fresh local produce, flowers and seafood. This is the home of the infamous Pike Place Fish Market, where the vendors will throw the fish you’ve selected to workers behind the counter for cleaning and wrapping. Ever since this company was featured in a Levi’s commercial in the 1990s, there has been a three-deep crowd at their booth, eagerly waiting for someone to buy something so they can take a picture of the flying fish.
Many of the vendors carry organic and seasonal produce, offering fresh samples to passersby and recipe and cooking suggestion to shoppers. Nuts and berries are crops which are abundant in Washington and there are often varieties available year-round. The flower market section is always bursting with color and the selection will change somewhat with the seasons as well. For just five or ten dollars, huge bouquets are available, one of the best deals of the Market.
Coffee-fans can visit the location of the very first Starbucks location right across the street. There’s also the historic Sanitary Public Market next door, the first market location back in the day which banned people from bringing their horses inside. It has some wonderful specialty bakeries and small boutique merchants now.
Taking the stairs or elevators down from the main market will bring you to the waterfront where there are more seafood merchants and the city aquarium. For those who like a touch of street hiking, it’s a fairly flat walk between Pike Place Market and the historic Pioneer Square. There’s also a waterfront cable car for those who like historic transit or who have availed themselves of all the wonderful shopping opportunities.
