Gràcia’s Abaceria Market Reopens Nov. 17 After Years of Works

The renovated Mercat de l’Abaceria Central de Gràcia (the central Abaceria market in Barcelona’s Gràcia district) opens to customers on Tuesday, Nov. 17, closing a renovation that began in 2018. Stallholders serve their last customers at the temporary tent on Passeig de Sant Joan on Saturday, Nov. 14.

The new building has 37 establishments and a public square, and the full project cost 38 million euros, according to El Nacional and betevé.

From a temporary tent to the permanent site

The renovation started in 2018 with the construction of the temporary market on Passeig de Sant Joan. The stallholders moved there in 2019 so the works could begin on the historic site. Betevé reports that the first forecast had the new market ready in 2022, and that delays came largely from asbestos in the roof of the building and from the pandemic.

Construction of the new building began in late October 2023 and was awarded to a contractor. In June 2026, after an agreement between the traders and the Institut Municipal de Mercats de Barcelona (the city’s markets institute), the works to fit out the interior stalls were awarded for 6.2 million euros, described as the last phase. The 38 million euros also covers building and later removing the temporary market and the first works to change the traffic direction of Travessera de Gràcia.

Reports differ on how long the wait lasted. El Nacional speaks of more than seven years of works, while betevé counts 8 years in the temporary tent.

What the new market contains

The ground floor holds the shops, the mezzanines hold offices and multipurpose rooms, and three underground floors hold the supermarket, logistics, loading and unloading, waste and parking for market users.

Thirty stalls are inside. They include 3 fish and seafood shops, 3 butchers, 3 poultry shops, 3 cured fish shops, 3 pulses shops, 2 egg stalls, 2 fruit and vegetable stalls, a bakery and a shop selling Italian pasta. Six stalls face the street on Carrer de Torrijos and Carrer de Puigmartí: 4 sell non-food goods, and 2 are food businesses, a bakery and, at a later date, a wine cellar. The self-service supermarket measures 1,200 square meters.

The structure of the 1892 market was replaced by a replica, according to the sources. Betevé adds that the roof is made of colorful ceramic and includes solar panels. The new building is smaller than the historic one, which left room for a new public square. Raquel Gil, the deputy mayor in charge of markets, said the square is similar in size to Plaça de la Revolució, and that the building also has a basement floor with spaces for neighborhood organizations.

Two tributes to Amaia Arrazola

The market will have two exhibition spaces honoring Amaia Arrazola, an illustrator who painted several murals in Barcelona, including the one on the fence around the market works. She died in 2025 at the age of 41. A glass pavilion in the new square will show part of that mural. On the second mezzanine, vinyl prints of the original design will be visible from the balcony, with the market stalls in the background.

What it means for the neighborhood

Shoppers who have used the tent on Passeig de Sant Joan will find the same traders at the permanent site from Nov. 17. The tent will be dismantled once the stallholders leave, and the city will then assess what to do with the land after years of occupation. The district of Gràcia, through the municipal company BIMSA, has also carried out works on the streets around the market.

Betevé reports that the Ajuntament (city council) will also confirm the change of traffic direction on Travessera de Gràcia, between Carrer del Torrent de l’Olla and Passeig de Sant Joan.

Opening day and the welcome party

The Ajuntament does not plan an official inauguration, because the opening falls during an election campaign, according to El Nacional. That outlet says the traders are preparing a welcome party for Nov. 21, with children’s games, a workshop on castellers (Catalan human towers) and live music. Betevé says the Ajuntament is preparing a day of celebration with various activities on the same Saturday.

Sources: go.eln.cat, El Nacional, betevé