Love Brisbane: Farm-to-City Fair - Brisbane City Markets

Updated: 23 March 2022

Brisbane City Markets creates country connections for self-described city girl Annabel Davis. 

Brisbane City Markets is a bona fide mid-week treat. 

The authentic farmers market held in the heart of The City every Wednesday from 8am to 6pm has become a beloved ritual for office workers and a delightful surprise for interstate and international visitors. 

Around 65 stallholders bring a selection of fresh produce, gourmet provisions and homemade arts and crafts every week for people to browse in an outdoor marketplace located at Reddacliff Place at the top of Queen Street Mall. 

Market manager Annabel Davis has the enviable job of curating the handpicked lineup of stalls to deliver a farm-fresh selection that ranges from seasonal fruit and vegetables to baked treats, honey and smallgoods plus a selection of tasty meals. 

“I’m definitely a city girl, but I love the concept of bringing the farm to the city,” Annabel enthuses. 

“Brisbane City Markets is where people can find everything they need for the week in the one outdoors marketplace from premium meats and seafood to bread, gourmet provisions and arts and crafts,” she says. 

Starting at 3.30am to help the farmers and producers set up, Annabel loves connecting with the stallholders and learning about the stories of their farms, harvesting processes and unique products. 

“It’s really rewarding to learn where everything has come from, hearing the stallholders’ backstories about their produce and products and just being there and being part of it all.” 

“So much effort goes into a stallholder actually being on-site at a market on any given Wednesday.” 

“Each stallholder is unique and has exclusive produce or products to sell, so it’s a very different shopping experience to be able to meet the farmers and producers and know where your food comes from.” 

While Brisbane City Markets continued to trade throughout the COVID pandemic as an essential service, albeit with a reduced number of stalls, restrictions saw foot traffic plummet from up to 10,000 daily visitors in 2019 to rally at an average of 4,000 people on a good day. 

“The markets really suffered during COVID – obviously there was a big impact on sales and also the foot traffic in The City,” Annabel says. 

“Our stallholders are actual farmers with small businesses and awesome people to work with, so when they go through hardship and suffering I really feel for them as their farms are their livelihoods.” 

“I don’t think we could hit rock bottom any more than we did last year in terms of how bad it was for the stallholders, so (now) we can only move forwards and onwards and upwards.” 

“I’m confident that this year is going to be really good and seeing the stallholders happy and the markets busy and bustling again is something I am very much looking forward to.” 

Now that travel restrictions have lifted and workers return to CBD buildings, Annabel hopes its Brisbane City clientele will rediscover the perks of a mid-week farmers market to source fresh produce and gourmet provisions.

“Brisbane City Markets brings something for office workers to look forward to mid-week and other people coming to The City can make a day of it by going to the markets, looking around the shops and going to the cinemas.”

“I don’t think there are any other farmers markets around that are right there in the city, so Brisbane City Markets is a really special concept with not only one but two CBD markets, including in Cathedral Square on Thursdays.”