Port Louis Central Market

The Central Market of Port Louis is the most authentic and exhilarating public space in Mauritius — a two-storey covered bazaar that has occupied the same block near the waterfront since the 1840s and still functions as the commercial and social heart of the capital for tens of thousands of Mauritians every day.

The ground floor is devoted to food. The fresh produce section is extraordinary — pyramids of tropical fruit, piles of strange vegetables, slabs of fresh tuna and marlin on ice — but the street food stalls are the reason most visitors come. The dholl puri vendors have been perfecting their flatbread since sunrise; the gato piment women fry fresh chilli cakes to order; the briyani pots have been on the heat since dawn. Eating here — standing at a folding table with a paper plate — is one of the genuine pleasures of Mauritius, and the prices are a fraction of anything you'll pay in a tourist restaurant.

The spice section on the periphery of the ground floor has the best prices on the island for saffron, vanilla pods, turmeric, coriander, and the Mauritian curry blends that go into rougaille and massalé. The vendors are honest about quality and will often give you small samples before you buy. Fresh sugarcane juice is pressed to order at several stalls.

The upper floor is textiles, souvenirs, and Mauritian crafts. The quality ranges from tourist trinkets to genuine handmade goods — model pirogues, hand-embroidered tablecloths, hand-painted pottery — and the vendors are generally willing to negotiate. The market is busiest on Saturday morning when it functions as a meeting place for the entire city. Arrive before 9am to see it at full intensity.