Question of the Day: Do you live near a farmers' market?
Now that it's spring and it's (supposed to be) getting warmer, do you have a good farmers' market or roadside farmstand that you can take advantage of? If so, where?
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26 Comments:
I have one a couple of blocks from my house, its been there for over a 100 years. It's in a old white building, nothing fancy here. The produce is fabulous, we always stock up for the week. During the summer you always see trucks or trailers at the side of the road, right off the feild. Always, always buy corn on the cob this way. While I live in a city (a tiny one compared to most of my friends here at Serious Eats), the are is very rural. There is a big farming community here, so you can imagine the produce that I can get at the market and at the roadside.
Lilartist at 9:07AM on 04/11/07
i don't know yet. i recently moved into the suburbs of Atlanta. i remember there being roadside stands during the summer with peaches and peanuts from when i lived here before years ago. i have to do some research on possible farmers markets.
there is a great one in Baltimore on sundays under the I-83 bridge (right where 83 starts near presidents street). it's from may to mid december i think and it's pretty fantastic. i used to buy eggs from the nicest couple.
french tart at 9:34AM on 04/11/07
There's a great one about 10 minutes from my house that runs every Saturday from May-November. There's also a fantastic organic farm 15 minutes away, but the farmers' market offers a lot more variety.
segalbraith at 9:36AM on 04/11/07
I moved to a new town in January, so this will be my first summer here. I know there is a farmer's market on Saturday mornings- once I am actually home on a Saturday I'll be able to check it out. There are lots of small farms in the area and I can't wait to see what they have to offer.
I stopped by in late November when I was house hunting, only the die hard people were there- a lady selling eggs and someone selling bison meat. The bison burgers were good.
IronPlatypus at 9:40AM on 04/11/07
I'm lucky enough to be a short train-ride away from the Union Square greenmarket, here in NYC...which is the first one I've found anywhere I've lived that comes close to the selection and quality of the twice-weekly (year-round) farmer's market in my small (40K population) California hometown!
producestories at 9:45AM on 04/11/07
I have one a few streets away that is open on Sundays (Spitalfields Market, London). It's small but nice. I'm also about a twenty minute walk or ten minute bike ride from Burrough Market, which is fantastic, a real mecca for foodies. I only wish there was one that was open every day.
Although after the expose about British farmers markets, I'm obviously a bit wary.
caley at 10:04AM on 04/11/07
We have a really big farmers market in downtown Minneapolis that is amazing. While some of the neighborhoods have smaller ones on saturday mornings.
I can't wait for the nice spring weather to get here so we can start enjoying the markets again... meanwhile, it's snowing this morning.
Alm25 at 10:16AM on 04/11/07
We have small on in Rochester Hills Michigan. There is a much bigger one in Detroit called Eastern Market. I have only been there once but I do plan on going this summer.
ThatGirl153 at 10:25AM on 04/11/07
@french tart: have you been to the Dekalb Farmers Market? Not exactly your traditional farmers' market, but a great shopping experience. I used to shop there regularly when I lived in Atlanta.
Alaina Browne at 10:30AM on 04/11/07
hi alaina, yeah we shop at the dekalb market, and i do love it! but it's not exactly "local". it's great to go to for produce from around the world, cheap (and good) wine, bulk spices.
french tart at 10:35AM on 04/11/07
Here in the Denver / Boulder area there are many farmer's markets from spring through early fall. My favorite is an open air market just south of Brighton on hwy 85 called Palombo's. Great fresh fruits and vegtables. In season local tomatos, onions, usually three types of sweet corn and many more choices. During the early fall chilis are ready and you can pick from mild anahiems, medium big jims or the hot New Mexicos. Best of all you can get them roasted right there. I usually get a bushel roasted then spilt them into qt size zips and freeze them for use through the year. I'm looking foward to them opening for the season. Nothing like fresh local produce!
Colorado Jim at 11:16AM on 04/11/07
Anyone know of a farmer's market in Brooklyn... Brooklyn Heights? Park Slope? Carroll Gardens? or Red Hook?
NSW at 12:06PM on 04/11/07
In Italy we don't have "real" farmer's markets, not at least in the meaning you intend. We have street weekly markets, were you can find high quality fresh produce, but not always local, but at least mainly from Italy (you know, we are small!!!). Sometimes, in the countryside, you can find local fairs were they sell veggy and fruits from local producers...
Normally the street markets are very good and the quality, after looking well at each stands and choosing the right one, is really high!
Sara - Piperita at 12:26PM on 04/11/07
We have a nice one in Palo Alto, CA it runs from May -Oct/Nov. Although the pricing is a bit higher then the grocery store, it is odd how that happens, I can remember going to them for years and always walking away with more then enough goodies for $20 not so much anymore. But it is still fun to go to and I do almost every Saturday it is running.
Sarahrm at 12:38PM on 04/11/07
We don't have "real" farmers markets in Puerto Rico either, but there are roadside stands all over the place that sell local produce, meat, eggs, and more.
And we grow our own bananas, plantains, grapefruit, pineapples, breadfruit, and lots more on our land.
Lou at 1:32PM on 04/11/07
I live on the Eastern Shore of MD and there are farmers markets in just about every town, my fav is Chestertown -plus - tons of roadside farmers stands.
hammondcheese at 2:00PM on 04/11/07
We have a wonderful farmers market in West Seattle. It's located in the Alaska Junction and open Sundays, almost year round. The link below has listings of all the farmers markets in the greater Seattle area. Enjoy. http://www.seattlefarmersmarkets.org/index.php
SeattleGirl at 2:13PM on 04/11/07
Maybe there's one benefit to living in the midwest (eastern Iowa, specifically) - no shortage of farmers' markets. There are farmers' markets operating most days of the week (from May-October) at five or six locations around the area, and come late spring/summer you won't be able to swing a spatula without hitting a roadside stand selling various vegetables.
corycm at 2:17PM on 04/11/07
NSW - there is a farmers market on Saturdays at Grand Army Plaza, and I think another one further down Prospect Park West on Wednesdays in the spring/summer. Check this link:
http://www.prospectpark.org/dest/main.cfm?target=gree
jbrach at 2:32PM on 04/11/07
There are several in northern Westchester County, NY, and I am always looking for new sources. A lady just down the road has started an organic farm, so I must go over and get some eggs and honey from her, and see what else she has. SeattleGirl, I miss Pike Place Market--when I was a kid we used to go there every Saturday to get produce and fresh fish.
The great thing about this question is reading everyone's comments and seeing what a far flung community Serious Eats is--y'all are everywhere!
ride&cook at 4:23PM on 04/11/07
I'm way too spoiled. There is a certified organic market 2 blocks away on Tues. and one 6 blocks away on Sat. But I live 6 blocks away from one of the world's best produce markets, Berkeley Bowl and about a mile from another , Monterey Market. So I rarely go to the farmer's markets, because the other 2 are always there!
granjan at 10:00PM on 04/11/07
I'm right by Union Square in NYC where they have the farmer's market Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays all year round. Life's good :)
femmebot at 11:02PM on 04/11/07
My favorite farmers market in Pittsburgh is so wonderful - and it's in the Strip District, which is like a huge market itself with bread shops, meat shops, fish shops, ethnic food shops ... the farmers market is mostly organic and all sustainably grown, and Slow Food PIttsburgh is there every week. It doesn't get in full swing for another month, but I got some pastured eggs a few weeks ago at a smaller version - I can't wait for the real thing!
Littlebluesiren at 11:06PM on 04/11/07
I'm pretty lucky too...I live near a couple of good farm stands, but also have a farmer's market about 10 minutes away.....so there is always an abundance of homegrown produce once the season kicks in! I get fresh eggs from my dad every week...he has started to raise chickens in his pre-retirement time.
I'm considering a trek once a month or so back into the city on a Saturday to check out the Bidwell Farmers market that sets up....from what I understand it's a great source for sustainable locally grown & raised veggies, & meat all in one location....it may definitely be worth the 20 mile drive back in!
mepolo at 11:05AM on 04/12/07
I guess I'm really lucky: here in the Berkshires, there are a bunch of farmers' markets, in my own town, in the town of my work, and spots in between. Not to mention the dozen or so CSA farms (and poultry farms, berry farms, MELON farms, and beekeepers) along the way....plus a decent variety of artisanal bakers, gourmet grocers and natural foods co-ops stocked with exotic and organic foods.
:::beaming:::
Sadly, the closest Whole Foods is about 45 minutes, but it doesn't seem to matter with our local selection! (That being said: I still love to spend a good, solid couple of hours sauntering around in there.)
à la mode at 11:48AM on 04/12/07
mode: consider yourself lucky. The Whole Foods store locator tells me the nearest one is 1,044.74 miles away.
Lou at 10:51AM on 04/13/07