On May 1, 1875, a public market opened at the corner of St. Roch Avenue and St. Claude Avenue in New Orleans. Originally known as Washington Market, the open-air building quickly became the commercial heart of the surrounding neighborhood — a place where fishermen, farmers, and families gathered every morning to buy, sell, and connect.
That was 150 years ago. The building still stands. And the community it was built to serve is stronger than ever.
From Open Air to Icon
The market's story is the story of the neighborhood. In its earliest decades, it was a bustling open-air exchange — produce, seafood, and dry goods traded under a simple roof. During the WPA era of the late 1930s, the building received its most significant transformation: the cast iron columns from the demolished 1861 Free Market at the foot of Canal Street were relocated here, giving St. Roch Market the striking architectural identity it carries to this day.
Through the decades that followed, the market evolved with the neighborhood. In the 1970s and '80s, it became Lama's St. Roch Market Seafoods — a beloved neighborhood institution in its own right. Then came Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and the devastation that followed. The market sat empty. The neighborhood struggled.
Rebuilding the Right Way
The market reopened in 2015, reimagined as a food hall — a shared space where independent vendors could build businesses under one roof. It was a model that honored the building's original purpose: a public market, serving the public.
In 2023, Market Staples LLC took over operations with a clear vision: keep it local, keep it independent, keep it rooted in the neighborhood. Today, thirteen independent vendors — every one of them with deep ties to this community — serve dishes that reflect the full breadth of New Orleans' culinary identity. Cuban, Burmese, Japanese, Egyptian, Italian, fresh juice, coffee, oysters, charcuterie, and cocktails. All of it made here, by people who live here.
150 Years and Counting
A century and a half is a long time. St. Roch Market has survived wars, hurricanes, economic downturns, and a global pandemic. It has been an open-air market, a seafood shop, a food hall, and — always — a gathering place. The building has changed. The vendors have changed. But the purpose hasn't: bring the neighborhood together around good food.
We're not done. Here's to the next 150.
St. Roch Market is located at 2381 St. Claude Ave in New Orleans, LA 70117. Open daily — Sunday through Thursday 7am to 9pm, Friday and Saturday 7am to 10pm.
