Member guide

Markets and food in Cambridge: where to shop, snack and eat

The daily market on Market Hill, the Saturday craft market, Mill Road's independent shops, Fitzbillies' Chelsea buns and the rituals of college dining.

By the Cambridge Society editorial desk · Updated 14 September 2026

A fruit stall on Market Square with Great St Mary's behind

Cambridge eats in a small space. The daily market sits in the middle of the historic centre, a century-old bakery stands near the Fitzwilliam Museum, and beyond Parker's Piece, Mill Road runs east with independent shops along its length. This guide covers where to buy food and crafts, what to try, and how food works inside the colleges.

At a glance

Place	What it is	When
Cambridge Market, Market Square	street food, produce, crafts and more	every day, 10am to 4pm
All Saints Garden market, Trinity Street	handmade arts and crafts	Saturdays, 10am to 4pm
Mill Road	independent shops, cafés and places of worship	every day; Winter Fair on the first Saturday in December
Fitzbillies	bakery-cafés known for Chelsea buns	Trumpington Street, Bridge Street and King's Parade

Cambridge Market on Market Square

Market Square, also called Market Hill, has been a marketplace since Saxon times, and a daily outdoor market with stalls still runs there. Great St Mary's, the University Church, stands on its west side and the Guildhall on its south.

Rows of striped market stall awnings on Market Square with Great St Mary's Church behind — Stalls on Market Square, with Great St Mary's beyond. Photo: Richard Humphrey, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).

When to go. The market opens every day from 10am to 4pm, except on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day.

What you will find. Cambridge City Council, which runs it, lists street food and ingredients from a wide range of cuisines, as well as art, plants, clothes, jewellery, books and music. The council says it supports around 200 independent traders across its city-centre markets.

Getting there. The nearest car park is the Grand Arcade. There are covered cycle parks at Grand Arcade, Queen Anne Terrace and Park Street car parks, and Park & Ride buses run into the centre.

A little history. The square was once largely filled with buildings and was only cleared after a major fire in 1849. From 1614 a branch of Hobson's Conduit brought fresh water to a fountain in the market place. During the Peasants' Revolt of 1381, a crowd led by the Mayor of Cambridge destroyed the university's ledgers here. See our A–Z entry on Market Square.

All Saints Garden market

On Saturdays, a second market runs in All Saints Garden on Trinity Street, a short walk north of Market Square. It is an arts and crafts market, and everything sold is handmade: art, jewellery, pottery and sculpture, photography, paintings and prints, and clothing. It opens from 10am to 4pm.

Mill Road

Mill Road runs southeast from near Parker's Piece, crosses the main railway line and links to the city's ring road. It is a busy road full of independent businesses, with churches, a hospital and Cambridge Central Mosque along its length.

The road was once a quiet country lane named after a windmill. The railway changed it. Because the university repeatedly blocked plans for a more central station, the city grew east instead, and the population of the Mill Road area rose from 252 in 1801 to 25,091 in 1891. The two halves of the road, Petersfield west of the railway bridge and Romsey Town east of it, developed differently. Romsey, built largely for railway workers, earned the local nicknames "Red Romsey" and "Little Russia" for its socialist politics.

Mill Road Winter Fair. On the first Saturday in December, part of the road, including the bridge, closes to traffic for the Mill Road Winter Fair. It began in 2005 with 10,000 visitors and had at least 20,000 by 2009. Expect live music, folk dancing, a shop-window competition, a local history walk and open days at the road's churches, temple and mosque.

What to look for. David Parr House, a terraced house decorated in the Arts and Crafts style, is close to the junction with Gwydir Street. The Gateway from India, a temple archway hand-carved in Rajasthan, now stands in the public gardens at Ditchburn Place.

Fitzbillies and the Chelsea bun

Fitzbillies is known above all for its Chelsea buns. The bakery was founded in November 1920 on Trumpington Street and named after its neighbour, the Fitzwilliam Museum.

A tray of glazed Chelsea buns in a Fitzbillies display — Chelsea buns at Fitzbillies. Photo: bryan, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Fitzbillies has survived two bankruptcies, in 1980 and 2011, and a fire in 1998 that partly closed it for two years. After the 2011 collapse, a public appeal by Stephen Fry, a Cambridge alumnus, encouraged the restaurateur Tim Hayward to buy and reopen it. It has since grown to three bakery-cafés: the original on Trumpington Street, Bridge Street (opened 2016) and King's Parade (opened 2023).

The blue shopfront of Fitzbillies on Trumpington Street with a chalkboard advertising Chelsea buns — The original Fitzbillies on Trumpington Street, during its centenary. Photo: Colin Smith, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Eating and drinking with a story

The Eagle, Bene't Street. On 28 February 1953 Francis Crick interrupted lunchtime at the pub to announce that he and James Watson had "discovered the secret of life". A blue plaque by the entrance marks it, and airmen's wartime graffiti still covers the ceiling of the rear bar. See our cultural weekend guide.
The Orchard, Grantchester. Tea has been served under the apple trees since 1897, when Cambridge students persuaded the owner of Orchard House to serve them there. Walk out through Grantchester Meadows; see our parks and green spaces guide.
Cambridge Beer Festival, Jesus Green. The festival has been held on Jesus Green every May since 2001.

Food inside the colleges: formal hall

The colleges have their own food culture, and its best-known ritual is formal hall, often shortened to "formal": a served evening dinner in a college dining hall, eaten in gowns and opened and closed with ceremony. At Queens', diners stand in silence at the first gong while the Latin grace is said, and stand again for the English grace as the Fellows leave. At Jesus, formal hall is a three-course candlelit dinner, with suit and tie or cocktail dress, and academic gowns for students and Fellows.

Formal hall is booked by members of the college, who can bring guests: at Queens', a member can book up to six tickets, for themselves and five guests. Each college sets its own rules on gowns, dress code and guests. If you are invited, reply promptly, dress to the stated code and follow your host's lead. See our A–Z entry on formal hall.

Frequently asked questions

When is Cambridge market open?

The market on Market Square opens every day from 10am to 4pm, except on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day. A separate handmade arts and crafts market runs in All Saints Garden on Trinity Street on Saturdays, also from 10am to 4pm.

What food is Cambridge known for?

Fitzbillies, a bakery founded in 1920 on Trumpington Street, is known for its Chelsea buns. The daily market on Market Square sells street food and ingredients from many cuisines.

Where is Mill Road and why is it popular?

Mill Road runs southeast from near Parker's Piece, across the railway line. It is a busy street of independent businesses, with churches, a mosque and a temple archway along it, and it hosts the Mill Road Winter Fair on the first Saturday in December.

Can visitors eat at formal hall in a Cambridge college?

Formal hall is booked by college members, who can bring guests, so visitors attend when a member invites them. At Queens', a member can book for up to five guests. Each college sets its own rules on gowns, dress code and bringing guests.

Glossary

Cambridge terms used in this article. Each links to its entry in our Cambridge A–Z.

Parker's Piece: A large open common in central Cambridge, used for games and events, where the Cambridge University Football Club laws were first used.
College: One of 31 self-governing communities that make up the collegiate University alongside its faculties and departments.
Market Square: The open square in the centre of Cambridge, also called Market Hill, where an outdoor market has traded from stalls since Saxon times.
Formal hall: A served formal dinner in a College hall, with gowns, a dress code and traditional ceremony.
Gown: Academical dress: undergraduates wear their College gown, graduates the gown of their degree.

Sources

Join the Society

This is an independent member's guide compiled by Cambridge Society. We are not affiliated with the venues and institutions mentioned; opening arrangements change, so always confirm details on the official websites before making plans.

← Back to Articles