- By Times’ Junior Journalist Pia Grover
Recently my mum and I went to the Howick Village Market, which was a phenomenal experience.
The live music in the corner of the market created a perfect ambience to chit chat, stroll and shop! Each stall holder seemed to be selling unique and incommensurable items.
To illustrate, I saw the delicious looking Bulla (traditional Finnish sweet bread) that I purchased in three different flavours; pistachio and chocolate, cinnamon and cardamom and almond.
All three of them were mouth-watering, scrumptious and rich in flavour.
The stall holder, Eva, gets up at 3am to make a fresh batch of Bulla in a variety of flavours every Saturday to sell fresh at the market. This absolutely wowed me, as the dedication is exceptional and matchless.
Another stall that caught my attention was the pretzel stall. The owners seemed to have made a variety of exceptional flavours, counting in the traditional rock salt, plain, Nutella almond, very berry, balsamic onion and ham and cheese, classic cheese, Jalapeño and cheese, sweet cinnamon, sweet lemon, and many, many bizarre flavours that you’ve probably never heard of.
A different stall that caught my eye was the popcorn stall called Raglan Kettle Corn. They had mini taster cups with scrumptious popcorn in them.
The popcorn wasn’t the typical butter ones we buy from the theatre before we go to watch a movie.
These are sweet-and-salty-flavoured with a sweet cast enveloping the popcorn that tastes as appetising as it sounds.
A stall holder that won the ‘Outstanding 2025 Food Producer Awards in 1st Place’ was Good Chow NZ, First Brew Soy Sauce.
We bought a variety of different sauces and a few juices from the stall and they were absolutely incredible.
The sauces were sold at great prices, and the quality was top notch. My mum ended up making dumplings that night and the sauce instantly elevated the flavour.
The juice was real fruit juice. There were a variety of different flavours including beetroot, blueberry and blackcurrant, feijoa and peach.
The youngest stall owner was Michael Collins, who’s in year 9 at Howick College and is passionate about 3D printing.
He upskilled himself and is now a growing business owner, selling very interesting pieces. It’s a treat for the little kids and adults. How can I not mention the longest-standing stall-owner, the leather belts stall!
Curated to one’s needs and sold at affordable prices, it is a catch for sure.
I’m certainly hungry after penning all this down, are you? If so, pop on down to the Howick Village Market on any Saturday from 8.30am to 12pm to see these wonderful stalls for yourselves!
- Pia Grover is in year 8.
