Punta Gorda Market

Mestizo culture and culinary influences are very much part of Toledo’s culture. Although there are no purely Mestizo restaurants you will find the influences in many of the dishes you will taste in Toledo. One of the best places to sample the Mestizo cuisine is at Punta Gorda market where all the cultures come together.

The Kekchi and Mopan Maya (two different but related indigenous ethnic groups), the Gariganu, Latinos, East Indians and Creoles – all speaking their separate languages make Punta Gorda and especially the market a tiny and vibrant melting pot. P.G. is a town, small enough to easily stroll through on foot. Locals and visitors circulate freely through its 5 narrow streets on foot, bicycle, scooters and cars.

There is always a lot of going on in and around the market-streets, but the place is especially lively on the official market days which are Monday, Wednesday and Friday when fishermen bring in their catch at the docks. Maya women throng the streets hawking fruits, vegetables and traditional Maya artifacts such as bracelets, JippiJappa art, paintings, wood and stone carvings and other items such as bracelets, pendants, and ear rings.
The side streets around Front and Middle Streets near the main park are lined with hole-in-the wall shops offering items from neighboring Guatemala including clothing, shoes, kitchenware, and native shawls and hammocks in all colors and sizes.

There is an abundance of all kinds of restaurants as well and the Mestizo cuisine especially is hard to avoid here. This is the place to find great Belizean tamales. Tamales are squares of cornmeal stuffed with chicken, pork or beans, along with green peas, onion and chunks of tomato. Unlike the typical Mexican tamales, Belizean tamales are not wrapped in cornhusks but are instead wrapped in plantain or banana leaves. Of course, you’ll find other typical Belizean food here as well. Check out the chirmole (black colored soup with roots in Maya and Mestizo cultures) or the sere, a fish soup that consists of plantains, cassava, coconut and fried fish. If that’s not to your liking, there is always the well-known rice and beans dish with a tasty piece of chicken to enjoy.

Opening times ; market is always open from 5 am till sundown. Market days: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays