Cours Saleya, Nice

Attractive part of Nice, in the Old Town, filled with colourful stalls and lined with pleasant cafe terraces and restaurants. There's a flower, fruit and vegetable and local produce market Tuesday to Sunday and an 'antiques' market on Mondays. A nice place to come and have something to eat in the evening aswell although I think prices might be pushed up slightly higher due to the tourist location.

Traditional staple food over a century, traditional Nicois Socca is something you have to try, if only once. Made from chickpea flour, eat piping hot , designed to refuel the working man's lunchbreak. Theresa is a Nice local character and her stall in the Cours Saleya has been serving Socca for decades. She is an amazing looking woman, who must get up at dawn to put on full make-up, but she always looks the part, and tourists queue for the authentic experience.

Some Nicois specialties are an aquired taste, like Tarte des Blettes - spinach tart dusted with icing sugar - or Salade Nicios - with tuna and anchovy, or a Pain Bagnat - tuna salad roll - and you need to be open-minded and give it a go. Who knows - you might like it. Those who want to delve deeper into "Specialities Nicois" need stronger nerves. Offal and extremities are staple fare - crusted pigs trotters or head, tripes, lambs testicles, need I go on - what next: Mickey Mouse's ears? I am sure they are quite delicious - served blindfolded.

At the far end of the Cours Saleya, in the Place Charles Felix, stands the imposing large yellow-ochre house No1 The Palais Cais de Pierlas.

Dating back to 1782 in Nice's Italianate history, this building finds its way into a thousand tourist photgraphs a day.

For many years the third floor was home to the painter Matisse, whose paintings of the Baie des Anges were of the view from his window there.

The building looks in disrepair and is not open to the public. However the cafe- restaurants either side are, and they make a welcome rest for a cofee or a beer. A seat here offers you one of the finest people-watching spots in all Nice.

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Make sure you take a morning walk through the market area and mix with the locals there to purchase fresh fruits, vegetables, flowers, spices and many other items. Coloerful and lively, it really gives you the feeling of being a Nicoise.

Besides the market, this is also one of the main neighborhoods for dining, with many cafes lining the outdoor market and surrounding streets of the old town.

The market is open seven days a week, with an antique and flea market on Mondays.

This lively market square operates as a flower, fish, and produce market Tuesday through Sunday until noon. On Mondays it is an antique market. Full of color, spirit, and the wonderful aroma of exotic spices, a walk through the stalls will have you buying up in no time!

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This large pedestrianised street is where you'll find a flower and fruit & veg market from Tuesday to Sunday. Try to visit early on a morning to experience the smells & colours of the various stalls. On a Monday there is flea market & antique stalls. Also from Tuesday to Sunday between 1st June & 30th September you'll find Art & Crafts stalls.

In the evening the flowers and fruit & veg stalls are replaced by an undercover seated food area, an ideal place to sit under the stars & have a meal on a warm summer evening. There are plenty of restaurants around the market area that are open all day long too.

The fresh market along the Cours Saleya is amazing!! You can vind anything you are looking for, from fresh fruit and vegetables to spices.. and even some live poultry!!!
Worth the visit simply for the experience!

Part pedestrian walkway, part "almost" street, part city square, Cours Saleya is the focal point of Vieux Nice. This elongated rectangle is home to a cornucopia of ripe produce, sidewalk cafés (including chez Theresa, see my la socca tip), souvenir shops and, most colorfully, on Tuesdays through Sundays, the Nice Flower Market.

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From the old town and parrallel with the Promenade des Anges, one market after the other can be visited. This is Cours Selaya, a place that has been used as market throughout many centuries. Especially famous is the flowermarket near the Opera house, where many colours in various bouquets are offered. Prices are however relatively high, but tha's maybe because I am used to Dutch prices for flowers. Also nice on a warm sunny day is, of course, fruit. This can be sold as well on the weekly market on these squares.

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From early in the morning the market is open to business, for the best impressions go there first thing in the morning, at 7am, you will see the all fresh food (except the fish, the fish market is separate, deeper in town). Cours Saleya is 50 meters from the main road which goes along the Promenade des Anglais. In the afternoon all market vanishes and the place turns to tables packed with people in the evening.