By eight in the morning, the stalls under the iron canopy on Old Quay are stacked high. There are crates of knobbly squash in four colours, bunches of cavolo nero taller than a child, sacks of potatoes still dusty from Asher Valley fields and trays of apples sold by variety rather than colour. It is the busiest stretch of the year for the weekend market, and the best time to shop it.
Rory McAllister has sold vegetables from the same corner pitch for 19 years. He points first to the leeks, which he says are only now at their sweetest. "The summer ones look smart but they are watery," he said. "Wait for a cold night or two and they come in thick and full of flavour. Same with parsnips. Frost turns the starch to sugar."
From the stall to the stove
Sanne Visser, who runs a small restaurant on Ropewalk Lane and does most of her buying here, suggests treating squash as a base rather than a side. She roasts wedges with garlic and chilli, then folds them through lentils with a handful of torn kale and a spoon of yoghurt. For the plums, which are in their final weeks, she bakes them halved with honey and serves them with oats toasted in butter.
Buy whatever there is most of, because that is what is at its best and its cheapest.
That is Ms Visser's one rule for the market, and the prices bear it out. Squash was selling at €1.80 a kilo last weekend, roughly half its early-season price, and a large bag of mixed apples cost €3.
Best this week: leeks, squash, kale, beetroot, apples and pears.
Ending soon: plums, runner beans and the last outdoor tomatoes.
Arriving next: celeriac, sprouts and forced rhubarb later in the winter.
The fish stalls at the harbour end have mussels back in good supply now the water has cooled, and several traders will scrub and debeard them for you if you ask. Steam them with leeks and a splash of cider for a quick supper that costs less than a takeaway.
Ask the traders, too: most are happy to say which crop came in that morning and which has been sitting in a cold store.
The market runs every weekend from seven until two. Shoppers who arrive in the last hour often find traders cutting prices to avoid carrying stock home.