Chongqing - Minxin Jiayuan is a lively residential community tucked away near Chongqing North Railway Station and a short walk from popular commercial areas, including IKEA and Outlet beside the Airport Road. In 2022, the high level of foot traffic from residents and commuters attracted a large number of street vendors, and the subsequent arrival of celebrity stall owners quickly made the night market an overnight sensation. However, vocal complaints from residents over noise, hygiene, and traffic disruption forced the local neighborhood to temporarily close the market until a practical solution could be devised.

The night market occupies around 2,200 square meters within an open public space in the Minxin Jiayuan neighborhood, surrounded by 55 tall apartment blocks home to around 50,000 residents, with a large colorful sign beckoning passers-by at the roadside. The stalls, numbering 198, are neatly arranged into rows, with some taking up a single berth while larger vendors occupy two. On one side near the road entrance, everyday storefronts are open for business as usual, while at the opposite end, many picnic-style tables and benches have been installed for patrons to sit down and enjoy their choice of delicacies.

In the daytime, the market offers a picture of tranquility as local people go about their daily business, yet come mid-afternoon, vendors lift up the plastic sheeting, set down their bags crammed with ingredients, blend condiments in serving bowls, rig their mobile phones up for live-streaming, and light their stoves in time for the early wave of patrons. Once night falls, the whole market comes to life in a blaze of light and color, with bustling crowds, sizzling grills, and stall owners beckoning visitors through a floating veil of aromatic smoke.

Fried potato cakes become a great hit

Zhang Guangxiao from Guizhou Province runs a popular stall called Soul Potato at the night market, where he sells fried potato cakes sprinkled with chili powder, scallops, and chopped ear root, made according to his own recipe that offers Guizhou flavors tailored for Sichuanese palates for six yuan a piece. Zhang was first attracted to Minxin Jiayuan because of the large flow of patrons, yet the eventual popularity of his stall took him by surprise. At peak times like national holidays, he can sell as many as 800 servings in one evening, while a typical weekday usually averages around 300.

On the day of filming, it was not long until a sizeable queue had built up in front of his stall, as Zhang busily took orders through a WeChat QR payment code on display whilst at the same time cooking a full grill of potato cakes around two inches thick, and cut into 24 even pieces. Every minute or so, he shouts out the fun catchphrase, “Soul Potatoes! Try out our delectable Soul potato cakes,” capturing the interest of patrons as they decide which snack to buy from an unending sea of choices.

Exploring the market row after row, there are options catering to virtually every taste from across China. Popular specialties like sour vegetable pitta bread vie with barbecue meats on skewers, mussels in garlic sauce, traditional dumplings and steamed buns, and Korean odeng, while more adventurous patrons can opt for the ‘Insect Feast’ stall that offers cooked scorpions, grasshoppers, and silkworms. As a result, it is no understatement to say people can buy something completely different on each visit.

Minxin Jiayuan makes a grand comeback

However, the story was far from plane sailing when the market first opened. Although its predecessor had developed organically over time in response to local demand, the market suddenly took off in spectacular fashion when celebrity stall owners with large online audiences came to set up. Following this rapid growth, the market soon became a hotbed of complaints over the noise that continued well into the night, hygiene concerns over improperly discarded waste, fire safety issues due to obstructed access, and traffic congestion in the narrow streets down to a lack of adequate parking. Towards the end of 2022, the local neighborhood finally released a public notice for the night market to cease operations.

In many comparable scenarios, this may well have permanently consigned the market to history. However, the Liangjiang New Area and the Minxin Jiayuan Neighbourhood Committee, under the leadership of Secretary Ma, took this hiatus as a valuable opportunity to formulate a package of solutions that would allow the market to return but in a way that would satisfy the concerns of local residents, stall owners, and urban management alike.

The first step was to identify a public space where the market could operate collectively, with clearly demarcated positions that could be registered as business addresses. The most suitable location they decided on was a market square within the Minxin Jiayuan community, and when the management of the neighboring Huimin Tower agreed to lease additional space for the market and parking for up to 300 vehicles, the formerly chaotic nature, which had brought much disruption to the area was finally resolved.

Building on this foundation, market supervisors came to provide food safety and hygiene training, the neighborhood committee eagerly persuaded vendors and patrons against loudspeakers and producing unnecessary clamor, and traffic wardens were brought in to guide vehicles towards suitable parking spaces. Finally, the market reopened on a trial basis in time for the Chinese Labour Day holiday in May 2023 and has since been given the stamp of approval based on its smooth operations and high popularity to date.

In this video report filmed on the ground at Minxin Jiayuan, we sample the night market atmosphere, try making fried potato cakes with the stall owner Zhang Guangxiao, and converse with local patrons to learn their impressions of the night market. Whether a local resident, commuter, or tourist from out of town, this internet celebrity hot spot has become a top urban port of call for avid foodies!