Mercado Central de Santiago, Food market in Santiago, Chile

Mercado Central de Santiago is a food market in Santiago commune, Chile, housed in a metal building with a central pyramidal roof and a domed tower. Eight smaller roofs surround this main area and cover the different sections of the marketplace.

Construction began in 1869 on the site of the Plaza de Abastos, destroyed by fire in 1864. The iron structure was designed by Edward Woods and Charles Henry Driver, cast in Glasgow by Messrs Laidlaw & Sons, and set within a brick perimeter designed by Manuel Aldunate y Avaria. Architect Fermín Vivaceta oversaw the works, completed on 23 August 1872 during the National Exhibition of Arts and Industries, organized by intendant Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna under President Federico Errázuriz Zañartu. A second brick ring followed in 1884, electric light in 1900, and the north front was demolished between 1927 and 1930 for the widening of Ismael Valdés Vergara street.

The market's name comes from its role as Santiago's central food market, and its two floors hold 241 stalls: restaurants, fishmongers, butchers, bakeries, cheese shops, herbalists and craft stands. Its kitchens keep Creole recipes, with specialties such as mariscal, paila marina and fried fish. The telenovela Amores de mercado was filmed and set here in 2001, and a 2024 remake followed.

The market occupies a full block between Ismael Valdés Vergara, 21 de Mayo, San Pablo and Puente streets, with the main entrance on the side facing the wide paved street. It has two floors and 241 premises, so allow time to walk the perimeter and the inner square. The north front was demolished between 1927 and 1930 when Ismael Valdés Vergara street was widened.

The cast-iron roof and supporting framework came from Glasgow and were manufactured by the Scottish firm R Laidlaw & Sons. These parts were shipped to Chile and assembled on site, giving the building its particular architectural character.