Search "wet market roaming guide" on Xiaohongshu, and you'll find the topic has garnered over 110 million views. Related hashtags such as "love visiting wet markets" have each surpassed 30 million views. According to 2024 data from Dazhong Dianping, searches for "wet markets" in major cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen surged by 180% year-on-year, with users aged 25 to 30 making up 62% of the total. An increasing number of wet markets are developing into "compound public spaces" by integrating leisure, community services and cultural exhibitions, blending daily life with commercial vitality.

Zhang, born in the 1990s, has set a goal of exploring 100 wet markets. She has already checked off more than 30. Sharing her latest Market Walk, she said, "I was first drawn to Guoliubao Wet Market by its name. But once I stepped inside, it felt more like a mini street market. At the entrance there's a breakfast stall, then some clothing shops and massage parlors. The meat and vegetable stalls are more concentrated in the middle section."

"Whenever visiting a new city, wet markets are a must-visit to experience the local culture and lifestyle of different regions." said a college student Cheng, who called himself a "wet market traveler." "I once went to Fengchun Market in Chaozhou with friends, and we tried oyster omelets and fried flat rice noodles," he recalled.

When it comes to wet markets, many people still associate them with dirtiness, disorder, and noise. However, this stereotype is being overturned as markets today undergo aesthetic upgrades and functional transformations. Take Guangzhou as an example, in 2024, the city advanced the upgrading of 119 wet markets and cultivated 16 "five-star" wet markets, exploring innovations in smart technology, service upgrade, and environmental optimization.

这届年轻人立下Flag：要逛100个菜市场

打开小红书，搜索“菜市场漫游指南”，相关话题浏览量高达1.1亿，“爱逛菜市场”等相关话题浏览量均突破3000万。

大众点评2024年数据显示，北上广深“菜市场”搜索量同比激增180%，25-30岁用户占比62%。近年来，越来越多菜市场通过叠加休闲、社区服务、文化展览等业态，成为当代“复合型公共空间”，由此实现民生与商业的共生。

90后的小张给自己制定了一个名为“逛100个菜市”的计划，目前已打卡超过30个。谈及最近一次Market Walk（逛菜市），小张向记者分享：“起初只是被国六宝肉菜市场的名字吸引过去的，进去之后发现，它更像一个小小的街市，先看到早餐店，接着是服装店、按摩店，走到市场中段，肉菜档口才集中些。”

“每到一座新的城市，必去的地方是菜市场，可以感受不同地域的市井文化和生活气息。”大学生阿诚调侃自己为“菜市场游民”，他举例说，“之前去了潮州的枫春市场，和朋友尝试了蚝仔烙、炒粿条。”

提起菜市场，不少人仍联想到脏乱嘈杂，但这一刻板印象正被如今菜市场颜值提升与功能转型所打破。仅以广州为例，2024年，推动119家农贸市场完成提升行动任务，成功培育打造16家“五星”农贸市场，在智慧赋能、服务升级以及环境优化等方面进行了探索。

文、图丨记者 黄颖琳
译丨盛嘉
英文审校丨林佳岱