London Street Markets

At Broadway Market in east London’s diverse Hackney neighborhood, a chef at the Sporeboys stall sautés gourmet mushrooms for a tasty sandwich. Local business people and residents brought the street’s long-dormant market back to life in 2004, and it quickly became a popular Saturday destination for London shoppers. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)

Sept. 16, 2014 6:46 AM PT

A woman shops for bread at Borough Market near London Bridge. More than 125 vendors pack the sprawling market, which is a favorite destination for the citys foodies. Among the huge variety of offerings are French Basque chorizo, gourmet chocolates, and hundreds of kinds of olive oils, chesses and beers. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)

Browsers and backyard gardeners crowd east London’s Columbia Road Flower Market every Sunday, looking for bargains among the hundreds of plants on sale. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)

Shoppers browse at a stall selling Portuguese products at Exmouth Market in London’s hip Clerkenwell neighborhood. The once-grungy street has become a restaurant and shopping hub. Last year, an outdoor Friday and Saturday market sprang up. Shoppers can find whole hog roasts on a spit, arts and crafts, and other items here. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)

A vendor at the Columbia Road Flower Market shouts for shoppers’ attention. Vendors here offer bargains that improve as the morning wears on. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)

Neal’s Yard Dairy, one of Britain’s top cheese sellers, runs a shop on the edge of Borough Market with cheeses stacked high. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)

A group takes a break outside one of the Columbia Road Flower Market’s many cafes and bakeries. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)

At south London’s Borough Market, Neil Hartland of Mrs. King’s Pies sells Melton Mowbray pork pies, an English classic, along with other pies filled with meats like venison, pheasant, rabbit and pigeon. (Beth Gardiner / LAT)