high prices are not scary. Queues to eat at the stands

PORDENONE – Closing without a bang last night for the three days of the European Market which invaded the city center. We didn’t see the crowds of previous years, when it was difficult to even walk along the lanes created by street vendors. But there were people, mostly coming from nearby towns, because this type of demonstration has now taken root in every provincial capital. Once again, food acted as a catalyst, in all its variations: dozens of stalls offering dishes from different countries, in front of which there were long queues. Families, young and old willing to wait a long time to taste Argentine specialties rather than Greek or Sicilian ones where meat was king.

European market: high prices at the stands

In addition to the smell of the grills, what immediately caught the eye were the high prices. It is well known that the European market did not offer products at a good price and is partly justified by the costs that traders have to bear. But above all it was enough to have a chat with some customers to understand that yesterday the thirty euros didn’t make a difference: the important thing was to spend a day enjoying good food and taking a look at the goods on display, even if not all of them were clearly “made in Europe”. “, given the many oriental products.

Queues, organization and specialties

«Compared to previous years, the organization is better because the stalls have been positioned differently», says a man from Pordenone who was not impressed by the high prices. While Prata’s father, mother and son say that everything costs a bit much, “but the offer is good”. And a grandmother from Sacile also speaks of “a beautiful event” and asks for confirmation from her grandson who grants it to her: “She’s beautiful, yes. I like”. Just move towards Piazza Risorgimento, the undisputed kingdom of meat with packed open-air “restaurants”, to realize that those enormous grills that continuously churn out meat are the real attraction of the European Market. The queue in front of the Argentine cuisine is long, even with the sun beating down. «Of course we queue, willingly – underline two friends aged 36 and 37 from Pordenone -. We wait for this event every year to eat these specialties.” Are the prices a little high? They look at each other, almost amazed. “But, maybe a little.” The price issue therefore does not seem to be a problem for any of the interviewees. Then in Piazza XX Settembre there are two young women who work at the Hotel Moderno, one of Russian origins, the other Czech. «No, the prices are not too high. Just do the math and think about the expenses traders have. They have to pay for travel, staff and products.” And in three days make a profit that justifies these expenditures against incomes that are not always conceivable.

European market 2025

Now we are already thinking about the 2025 edition, ready to queue again to taste the various specialties, trying to forget for a day the noise of the banknotes coming out of the wallet.

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