Cornhill Market- Lincoln — Local services in Lincoln

After 2-3 years of renovation, millions of pounds, months of delay, Lincoln Central Market finally reopens.

Excellent renovation now light and airy (a shame the ugly building tacked on the side). Most of the stalls have been let.

Nonna Juana Deli excellent, but then I expect nothing less. Limited offering compared with their deli on Burton Road.

Fruit and vegetable stall good, though not as good as that run by Steve and Beth before the market closed.

Thai food reasonable. Not as good as a good  Thai restaurant, but better than the Thai takeaways.

Stuffed chips, hotdogs, junk food. Yuk.

Stokes are roasting green beans on their stall. Investment in coffee gear. If thinking of opening a coffee shop and not willing to invest in staff and equipment, then don’t bother.

Ice cream stall, better than will find in Lincoln, though not as good as will find in Athens.

Lacking a cheesemonger a fishmonger and a good deli.

A public piano. Please a sign: No Food. I saw children eating food and banging away at the keys.

Toilets clean. Though for how long?

No display of opening times.

There needs to be cycle racks outside. Cycles were chained to the railings by the steps. Not good for the less able bodied.

Cars parked in the square outside not acceptable.

Lincoln City Council need to give formal written warning to Turtle Bay. If the anti social behaviour impinges on the market, breaches of health and safety, fire regulations, blocking of fire exits, mess in the toilets, failing to keep common areas clean, their lease will be terminated.

The increase in football in Sincil Street, Naked Marshmallow need to be given formal notice to remove their boards and obstructions from the street.

Busy today. It will be interesting to see how busy next week, next month. If not, one by one the traders will be pulling out as the fees are high, the service charge doubles the rent.

Where does the service charge go? Before the market closed, one caretaker, now a team of five. When the bar opens (a very bad idea) there will need to be security on the doors to the market to stop the gangs of drunken yobs that roam the High Street on a late Saturday afternoon from entering the market.

Lincoln City Council should rethink the bar. Open instead a bistro restaurant or a specialty coffee shop.

Overall impression, better than I expected.

--- update ---

Avoid the market on a Saturday. Manic, heaving with people, long queues for the junk food stalls.

£8.9 million redevelopment. The light stones laid in the square have oil stains from the vehicles that should not have been parked in the square on Friday. Traders who parked in the square should be invoiced to clean the stones.

No sign of the stalls Lincolnshire Live reported would be in the square on Saturday.

Mid-afternoon very warm in the market. The sun is beaming in through the glass roof. It is going to be unbearably hot in the market in the summer. Why no electronic screens that can be drawn across the glass? Does the glass have embedded solar cells? The glazed roof great for making the market light and airy, but is going to act like one large greenhouse in the summer (and very cold in the winter).

A coffee off the Stokes stall. It was not good.

For coffee, pay a visit to Coffee Aroma or Vestry Hall.

The corridor leading to the toilets, as I returned to the market hall, nearly bowled over by an idiot who burst out of a door from Turtle Bay. Soonest lease for Turtle Bay...

New review: My original review was written shortly after it opened, and I gave it three stars then, but honestly that was far too generous. I've popped in a couple of times since, and each time there's more and more stalls shut. From what I can gather, the rent is waaaaay too high to be sustainable for the vast majority of traders, and it's very clear what the council wants this to be, an upmarket posh shopping area to cater to students and visitors, not an actual market. An absolute shame.

Original review: The refurbishment work is wonderful, and it's great to see it all reopen, but there just isn't much variety calling me to go back after my initial visit? It's mostly food stalls, with only around 6 shops (and I think around 3 of those were jewelry's), which I don't honestly know how much appeal that'll hold past the initial first few weeks of operation. There's also frankly not enough seats to hold everyone trying to eat and chat, at least on the first Saturday when I visited. Overall, I was expecting for it to be a more traditional market, with a butchers and fishmongers at least, and while I do truly wish everyone trading there the best of luck, I unfortunately cannot see any need for me to go back with the current...

Fantastic renovations done to the market, it's exactly what Lincoln needs.

There's so much good food and drink to enjoy there now with loads of seating. It offers a great central location for people in town to have a relax out of the sun, and has proven to be a great spot to simply sit and catch up with friends.

Highlights for me are Nonna Juana, Banzai, Lincs Mo Mos, Oatz & Co, Corner Farm Kitchen, Stokes, Cup & Dough, and Bella Di Casa. I'm sure the other places will become highlights when I eat at them too, as the food quality in the market is amazing.

Also love to see the stalls there, particularly Bradford Plants and the Fruit and Veg...