The minds behind Chicago’s new French Market, the 15,000-square-foot space that opened in the Ogilvie Transportation Center last December, have chosen a rather aspirational name for the venue, enforced by the piped-in soundtrack of Edith Piaf and the Amélie theme.

The space is low-ceilinged and lacking in natural light, with a painted Eiffel Tower-inspired backdrop wrapping around the open dining area in the back. But the daily, year-round market is a boon to workers in the Loop, whether or not it lives up to the promise of its name. Splitting the difference between a mall food court (indifferent lighting, recycled air) and a true European market (piles of produce, flowers, and fresh baked goods) it serves as a lunch oasis in an otherwise barren neighborhood.

A Saigon Sisters’ outpost serves up spring rolls and warm banh mi, including the Vegetarian ($6.50; lemongrass tofu, red and green peppers) and the Frenchman ($7; duck confit, candied kumquat, pickled mustard seeds), while Buen Apetito delivers fresh taqueria fare.

For the detox-minded, Raw offers vegan wraps and pies, and for re-toxing there’s Frietkoten, the hugely popular Belgian fry stand. Canady le Chocolatier sells delicately painted truffles and ganaches, and Sweet Miss Giving’s bakes the perfect cookies-and-milk cookie: chocolate chunk with toffee and pecan ($2), perfectly suffused with burnt caramel flavor and threads of melting chocolate. Sweet Miss Giving’s — the name is a nod to the company’s charitable donations — can be found in niche markets around the city, and online, but the market stand is its first “storefront.”

The same goes for a number of the market’s vendors, including the Necessity Baking Co. The bakery, which formerly offered its bread strictly via online orders and breadshares, sells loaves such as the Popeye Sweet Olive boule ($6.50), a crackling round literally bursting with a thick layer of briny kalamatas.

While good for the lunchtime crowd, the market does less for those looking to bring home dinner fixings. The produce is on par in quality and layout with grocery-store fare, the fish selection isn’t always impressive, and staples such as butter and dry goods are, as of now, missing.

For tired commuters there’s a well-stocked Lavazza stand (including bright heaps of great-looking gelato), but no independent coffee presence, a shame considering the wealth of small coffee bars around the city, as well as the local Metropolis roasting company.

But the frequently mobbed market is invaluable for its role as an umbrella, bringing great lunch options from around the city under one roof.