Cold Fish and Hot Frocks in Brixton Market

Fish stall in Brixton Market

Brixton is for me one of those places I’ve only been to a couple of times but through many more back in my teenage years on my way to Brighton riding my James Captain 200 cc motorbike.

Wigs and headgear for all tastes in Brixton Market

At the southern end of the tube’s Victoria Line, the market is just around the corner from the exit and easy to find. As soon as I entered the covered alleyways and streets it comprises of I was taken back to other worlds. The aromas could have been from many South East Asian countries I’ve known but it was much more Afro Caribbean by virtue of the local people.

Women chatting at Brixton Market fruit and veg shop

The market comprises around 80 street traders selling all manner of things and with a huge variety of fish, fruit and vegetables on stalls looking so fresh and inviting, not like the tired looking versions covered in shrink-wrapped plastic in supermarkets we have got so used to.

Japanese okonomiyaki restaurant in Brixton Market

Being a very multi-cultural area, the cafes and bijou restaurants offer a wide range of catering for many tastes.

Charlie Chaplin poster outside The Ritzy Cinema in Coldharbour Lane Brixton

When you tire of the colours, aromas and sights of the market, head over to Bookmongers in Coldharbour Lane next to the Ritzy Cinema which has great posters of film stars adorning the wall, including one of Charlie Chaplin who was born not far from here in East Street in 1889.

Bookmongers secondhand bookshop in Coldharbour Lane, Brixton

Bookmongers is a wonderful second-hand bookshop is where you can spend some time to recover your calm after the sights, sounds and aromas of the market before heading back home.

Colourful frocks in Brixton Market

Brixton Market is a good place to witness the sights and feel the spirit of London today in all its multi-racial ethnic diversity, something that makes it the best city in the world bar none.