Kyle Phillips of About.com's Italian Food and Martha Bakerjian of Italy Travel join us for a peek around San Lorenzo. Kyle is always on the lookout for new fish to catalog for his galleria del pesce, gallery of fish, a valuable resource to those who contemplate cooking in Italy (see the last page of this article for links to further resources and tips on ways to exploit this abundant information).
Phillips, a former resident of Florence, explained the evolution of the market. Once a central distribution point for fresh foods, meats and fish, the market went into a decline when supermarkets came on the scene, and folks found easier parking and the squeamish didn't have to look at animal carcases.
Foreign foodies and immigrants eventually changed the atmosphere of the market. Poorer immigrants didn't have cars, and searched for the raw ingredients for their own cuisines, foreign foodies wanted access to the famed foods of Tuscany, especially ones that they couldn't find in their own markets, like boar roasts and cow stomachs.
Eventually the market adjusted, and these days you can taste, buy souvenirs, eat full meals or a sandwich, and even gawk at the fish. Fishmongers are used to visitors and seldom try to discourage tourists from photographing (that doesn't mean you shouldn't be courteous to people trying to make a living by actually selling fish to customers, of course).
