Hispanic Heritage Month
We are proud to celebrate the diversity of Hispanic cultures represented at Essex Market year-round. This month we invite you to learn more about the market’s Hispanic vendors and their contributions to New York City’s food traditions through in-person cooking classes, vendor videos, and family recipes.
A Brief HistoryEssex Market has long reflected the diverse groups that have called the Lower East Side home. In the 1940s, it was large numbers of Puerto Rican families making the move into the surrounding neighborhood, invigorating the market and bringing a new generation of small business owners. These new vendors carried products largely imported from the Spanish Caribbean, including the roots, tubers, tropical fruits and cuts of meat or fish found all throughout Latin American cooking.
Today, Essex Market serves as a vibrant hub for Hispanic communities, offering an array of traditional ingredients and products. Over 30% of Essex Market vendors are Hispanic or Latino, representing countries such as Mexico, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and various South American nations.
In the market’s more recent history, families from all over North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean have opened prepared food stalls where they share their food cultures with market shoppers.
Inside Essex Market (1940)
Featured Event
Chef María Bído guides a cooking demonstration at Essex Kitchen
Lifetime Loisaida resident María Bído acquired a taste for traditional Puerto Rican dishes through her grandmother. The authentic cuisine included many combinations of the flavors of Sofrito and Adobo, coupled with intricate varieties of plates that would make for perfect holiday meals.
Some of these recipes and the history they represent are becoming an endangered cultural art, as traditions and customs are not always transferred to younger generations.
Join chef María for La Cocina De Loisaida, a series of hands-on cooking demos exploring special Puerto Rican dishes celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.
Featured Vendors
Essex Squeeze
Friends since they were kids, Essex Squeeze co-owners Cedric Hernandez and Charles De La Cruz had dreams of becoming fruit vendors on the Lower East Side.
Essex Squeeze is a playful twist on their childhood entrepreneurial dream. They provide healthy options for people in the neighborhood at an affordable price with their refreshing smoothies, juices and toasts.
Don Ceviche
Don Ceviche owner Lenin Costas first learned to make traditional Peruvian ceviche as a child helping his Abuela Adela at her restaurant in Lima, Peru—a skill he would take with him when he moved to New York City as a teenager.
Don Ceviche found a permanent home at Essex Market in 2019, bringing Peruvian flavors to the market along with a yearly Peruvian Independence Day celebration on the mezzanine.
Luis Meats
Juan Luis Rodriguez and Ramona Rodriguez, owners of Luis Meat Market, have been married for 45 years and live a mere few blocks from the market.
Luis first learned his butcher skills at Dean and Deluca, and in 1998 he got the chance to open his own shop at Essex Market.
Now you can find Luis’ brother and other extended family members working behind the never-ending butcher counter.
Dominican Cravings
Emmanuel “Manny” Diaz worked in kitchens at renowned restaurants like ABC Cocina and Salvation Burger, all the while dreaming of venturing out on his own.
In 2018 he opened his own business at Essex Market focusing on cuisine from his home country, the Dominican Republic.
Today Manny serves up traditional Dominican dishes, like empanadas and patacon, with a modern twist.
Puebla Mexican Food
In 2000, Irma Marin took over her brother-in-law’s decades-old Mexican restaurant in the East Village. She ran the beloved spot on 1st Avenue until 2015 when she was forced to close due to a rent hike. The community gathered support for Puebla to find a new home at Essex Market where Irma and her family frequently shopped.
Now Irma runs her stall selling authentic Mexican food native to her hometown of Puebla with son Jose and daughter Mary Beth, who both grew up on the Lower East Side.
Luna Brothers Fruit Plaza
Luna Brother’s co-owner Luis Vargas grew up in the Dominican Republic and worked in agriculture since he was eight years old.
After moving to New York at age 28, he began saving money with the dream of one day opening his own business. In 2014 his hard work paid off and he opened Luna Brothers Fruit Plaza.
Today he co-owns the business with Francisco. You can find them both working seven days a week at their Spanish grocery specializing in tropical produce and imported products.
Viva Fruits & Vegetables
Owner Jose De La Cruz, originally from the Dominican Republic, moved to the Lower East Side as a young man and worked in local bodegas before starting his own wholesale food business. In 2000 he opened Viva Fruits and Vegetables at Essex Market, the family’s second brick-and-mortar grocery.
Today you’ll see Jose, his daughter Sobeida and their extended family not only working hard but chatting and laughing with their longtime customers.