Fredericton’s Cultural Food Market Moving Downtown, Expanding Hours
FREDERICTON — Fredericton’s downtown will soon have new options for trying flavours from around the world.
The Cultural Market is expanding to six-days a week as it moves into the former Read’s Newsstand and Café on King Street in mid-March. About nine vendors will offer a variety of dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Manager Dan Taylor said the new spot is “lively” year-round which should lead to an uptick in customers.
“If you look at the weekdays it’s catering to the business clients that are coming in to work in the downtown core,” he said. “So we’ll have everything from completed breakfast right up until their lunch and they can grab a bite to take home on the way at the end of the day.”
The location at 435 King Street puts vendors within a two-minute walk of government and corporate offices, hotels and downtown businesses.
The market was previously held on Saturdays at the Cultural Centre on Saunders Street, but organizers began looking for a new location after renovations began late last year. The move was meant to be temporary until they heard it could be necessary to relocate multiple times.
“We always wanted to be downtown and [the building] was sitting there and we walked in and it’s a perfect location,” Taylor said. “It’s the way that it’s set up.”
Negotiations began in late October for a three-year lease that was signed on Friday.
The building will have an indoor seating area towards the front and an outdoor patio during the summertime.
The market is expecting some new offerings, including a second Café Loka location. Applications are being accepted online for two to three additional vendors.
Taylor said vendors have mixed feelings about the change from only Saturdays to six days. Some were content with operating once a week while others are ready to grow.
“We’re going to that next serious step to help whether it’s a local person or an immigrant to have a location that’s still affordable,” he said. “If they’re looking to open a restaurant they don’t have to have that huge overhead cost to set up.”
The majority of the merchants will be there six days a week, with the possibility of some operating only on certain days.
The new building will allow vendors to be permanently set up. At the Cultural Centre on Saunders Street, equipment had to be taken down and stored when the market was closed.
Organizers are looking at the possibility of making deliveries to offices in the downtown core.
The market is expected to begin on March 15 and will be open Monday to Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
“It looks like people are pretty excited,” Taylor said. “It will certainly bring a different feel to the downtown when it comes to food.”