Mercado Victoria is a food hall comprising 20 small gourmet food and drink stalls. It is a large, open space, roughly 2,000m², with two floors and lots of terraces. When we opened on 1st May 2013, it was actually Andalucía’s first ever food hall! It is bright and fun, and all the stalls are themed and unique within the space. They all specialise in a particular kind of cuisine or beverage: no stall is the same! One of them specialises in Tex Mex, another in Spanish omelette and salmorejo (a local delicacy). One stall is dedicated just to wine and another to beer. One specialises in grilled meat, another in cheese and there’s another that serves up paella and other rice dishes. Another simply serves Iberian cured meats, like cured Iberian pork loin and Iberian chorizo, often locally sourced from La Valle de los Pedroches. There’s Italian, Asian, Argentinian and Halal Arabic cuisine on offer, as well as traditional homemade Spanish food. There’s a fish and seafood stall as well as a champagne and oyster bar, which also serves speciality pickles and smoked fish. There’s a café, a bar called Sojo Mercado which later turns into a nightclub, a space where we put on cooking workshops and tasting events, and El Invernadero, an excellent restaurant where you can get table service.

It’s open from breakfast time, right through to the early hours, where you can finish the night in the nightclub area. We open at 8/8:30 for breakfast and then the stalls get going at 12 for lunch. We run a non-stop kitchen service all day until the stalls shut at around 12/12:30. The nightclub area, Sojo, stays open till about 3 or 4am, depending on the day.

As for our geographical reach, we serve the city of Córdoba and those who come to visit us. We’re happy to say that most of our customers are Córdoba residents. Of course, we’re getting more and more tourists in, but the people of Córdoba are our number one fans!

Mercado Victoria is for absolutely everyone! People of all ages can enjoy themselves here. Grandparents come in for breakfast, their kids come for lunch and then their grandkids come down for dinner or drinks at night. It’s perfect for both national and international customers because of the incredible variety on offer. We serve many local dishes, such as Córdoba’s famous flamenquín (Iberian ham rolled in pork, breaded and deep-fried), bull’s tail, deep-fried aubergines with cane syrup, pastel cordobés (a sweet pumpkin pastry) and Bujalance stuffed potatoes (a recipe from a town in the province). We prize locally sourced and zero-mile produce, selling olive oil from the province, Iberian ham from La Valle los Pedroches and cheese from Zuheros (all local to Córdoba). We showcase what the region has to offer gastronomically.

In Córdoba, we are proud of our produce and local people come to us because they know they’ll be getting great quality and excellent value for money. Not only that, but it means that visitors to Córdoba can try both authentic and original versions of local dishes. The sheer variety on offer means that those with allergies and intolerances are well catered for.

We are seen as a place where you can get everything you need and have a great time. So, whether you come in a big group, with a few friends or with clients, the good thing about Mercado Victoria is that you can find something for everyone. What’s more, it’s also great for any budget because you just pay for what you want to order.

It’s the separate elements of Mercado Victoria being brought together in one place is that makes it truly outstanding. What’s more, we have such a wide range on offer that it just can’t be matched in the city. We serve the freshest chilled oysters, smoked fish platters, champagne and wine sourced from within the province, as well as wine from other autonomous communities and appellations of origin. We offer high quality food and drink, and you get excellent value for money – it’s not expensive to come here at all. We’re five minutes away from both the historic centre and the city centre’s shopping streets. There is ample parking (at both street-level and underground), a taxi rank and bus stops, but it’s also right in the green lung of the city so it’s both attractive and accessible.

With everything we have to offer, Mercado Victoria is an absolute must-visit when you’re in Córdoba. We’re also open for about 18 hours a day, with refreshments available non-stop: right from breakfast through to late-night drinks. When you’re in Mercado Victoria, it’s like you can feel the very pulse of the city