I'm in my fourth year of membership for this CSA and it's great. I get the freshest veggies and…read morefruit ever (fresher than what I've gotten at the farmers' market!) delivered locally to the Forest Hills Jewish Center. The amount of veggies and fruit delivered is likely too much for a single person like me so I split my share with a friend (or two). What I've loved is learning about new produce and supporting local farmers. I now am pretty expert at cooking with kale (hated it at first), garlic scapes, kohlrabi, celeriac, purslane and so much more. The farm we support believes in producing hearty, healthy, organic veggies and you'll see loads of them in the deliveries each week. The CSA gets produce delivered from Golden Earthworm Organic Farm on LI, fruit and berries from Briermere Farms on LI, grains/four/amazing beans from Cayuga Organics near Ithaca NY and then usually another farm for garlic, cheeses and jams that are offered during the season. Since the pick-ups are at the FHJC, all of the items are kosher. Sign-up is only during March/April and then the season starts just after Memorial Day and runs through the week of Thanksgiving (26 weeks - weekly pick-up). There is also a winter season with root veggies that runs from Dec-March where the pick-ups are every three weeks with more carrots than you might know what to do with (make Carrot Candy -- great recipe from Mark Bittman that I swear by). Overally, a wonderfully run CSA and I'm glad to to be a member. This year, you can pay for your share by PayPal (so I guess they sort of accept credit cards too).

I was wondering: green market vs a CSA? Since the Forest Hills greenmarket and Tuv Ha'Aretz CSA…read moreare in the same location, it really came down to cost and choice. You have to sign up and pay in advance for the whole season, usually in the spring. I emailed tuv@fhjc.org to get on their list and to inquire about availability before my first year as a CSA member. Volunteering is required (help at share pick-ups, newsletter writing, deliver unclaimed shares to the food bank, unload the delivery truck, events, etc.) keeps the costs of the shares down; I have been part of a CSA where volunteering was not required, and it costs over double what I pay at Tuv Ha'Aretz, so it's well worth the pay-back of volunteering for a few hours. In terms of cost, the CSA wins -- at about $25 a week, it's a bargain. For the same amount of vegetables, I can pay about $40 at the greenmarket. In addition, I enjoy playing a version of "Iron Chef" against myself -- use up all the vegetables and fruit we get (after all, wasting the vegetables is a waste of money, too). They're chosen by the farmers, so the delivery is often a surprise and an education when we get things we haven't cooked with or eaten before. I've learned to prep and love purslane, for example. And I've learned that some dishes -- for instance, like spanakopita -- are about anything which can be called "greens" -- chard, herbs, onion tops, turnip tops, carrot leaves, kale, lettuces, etc. -- and not just spinach; so, it's become my go-to for masses of greens and herbs when they are producing heavily. With a CSA, you get a share of what the farmer is growing every week for half the year from June to November. This CSA gets its shares from an organic-certified farm (Golden Earthworm); the fruit is minimally sprayed -- pests make this the reality of trees and fruit bushes in our locale. In contrast, the farmers' market allows you to pick and choose among what's available: organic vs non, choice of produce, etc. My cooking has changed, and I feel more attuned to the seasons since joining this CSA. The separate winter share is, as expected, less exciting and varied, but that's the reality of winter vegetables and I've become more creative and open about how I cook and feed my family and friends throughout the year. For instance, too many squashes? I make ravioli, risotto, potstickers, shepherd's pie, halvah, chili, etc. We live in Queens, considered the most culturally diverse county in the country, so we have a lot of inspiration to use "what's in the box" every week. At ~$25 a week, I can afford to supplement from the greenmarket if there is truly something else I want in my kitchen and table. And I really love that I don't have to garden to get amazingly fresh and vibrant produce.

It was my first time here and I definitely will be back soon. The farm store was very cozy ans…read morereminder me of a long Island farm. I absolutely loved the donuts . I loved in how they had apples that was not mass produced it was apples was from Hudson Valley farm. Their strawberry were very sweet and delicious. I highly recommend coming here.

Enjoyable pumpkin picking experience at Stokes Farm. Enjoyed the tractor ride and the staff were…read morevery friendly/knowledgeable. Small shop inside with fresh vegetables. There's an ice cream section where you can get an apple cider donut and shake. Very good! Small and family run farm. Nice for a quiet fall outing.

I'm wrapping up a second year with this CSA and I'm definitely signing up for another one. I'm a…read morewhole-foods, plant based eater so a CSA that has a large share of organic fruits and vegetables for often time 60-70% of the price of a farmer's market is definitely worth it for me. If you don't eat as many vegetables as me, and it's just one person, I'd recommend the small share or you'll have a very full fridge before you're able to use everything. Also, nice little bonus for environmentalists and people who try to limit food waste, any food left over from the pick-up gets donated to the food shelter at the location where distribution is. They also have a composting bin that you can compost things from home or the parts of your produce you maybe don't want... *ahem* radish leaves *ahem*. Anyway, it's a good CSA!

This CSA is coming to a close for the year. It enjoyed the experience, but I won't be signing up…read moreagain. The produce just wan't that great. It's from Hepworth Farms in NY, which is organic. For whatever reason, the tomatoes were almost always rotten, and other produce went bad much faster than what their counterparts at Whole Foods. In fact, I saw tomatoes on sale at Whole Foods from the same exact farm, and they looked much better. Does Hepworth give the CSA the bottom of the barrel? The shares had very little variation. I frequently found myself at the supermarket buying different vegetables. Also, half shares were not truly half shares - almost every week the full share got veggies not included in the half share. Very frustrating. I cannot stress this enough, there were so many obnoxious emails! In addition to the always-late weekly update, expect non-stop emails harassing you to volunteer. If more volunteers are needed, they should require more than the 2 or 3 days stated, instead of pathetically begging everyone all the time.

Being a member in a CSA has forced me to include vegetables and fruits in my diet, but the best…read morepart is finding new exotic vegetables that I've never seen before! I run home and start googling the vegetable and recipes. So far I've enjoyed, purple potatoes from Peru, Sun artichokes from the mediterranean, purple tomatillos from Mexico and green eggs from special South American chickens! This is a great experience for me and my daughter to learn about delicious and nutritious new foods! Thanks to their success, they now have another CSA, the Einstein CSA, by Eastchester Rd. also in the Bronx.

Great CSA! Delicious fresh produce, well organized coordinators, food scraps get composted,…read moreleftover food goes to a good cause!

I've been a member of the Kew Gardens CSA for three seasons now (and in fair disclosure, also have…read morevolunteer for the 'core' group to help out as well). What I like about the CSA is that it gives you a means to support your local organic farm (in this case, Garden of Eve on Long Island, NY) and an opportunity to meet your friends and neighbors and to build up your community together. I've never been much of the cooking type and can't follow a recipe to save my life -- however, through the CSA I've been able to acquaint myself with new and fresh produce and acquire a much better understanding of how availability can change seasonally and by crop. The variety of food you might get in a share on any given time is pretty incredible. Over the course of a season (Spring / Fall / Winter) you're likely to receive a mixed variety of the following: Tomatoes, carrots, potatoes (Idaho, red, purple), sweet potatoes, cabbage, celeriac, daikon, onions, garlic, butternut squash, cucumbers (regular and "lemon"), basil, brussel sprouts, broccoli, radishes, rutabagas, mesclun lettuce, mizuna, mustards, bok choi, escarole, raddichio, scallions, Swiss chard, collards, mustard and other greens. Of course, if you haven't encountered any of these before in your supermarket, part of the real fun is sharing recipes and cooking tips and learning from your fellow CSA members how to prepare them.

If you want excellent, fresh produce, but have no place within walking distance to buy it and you…read morecan't grow it yourself, then a CSA is right for you! I belong to the Briarwood CSA after being part of the KGCSA and the West Harlem CSA. I get my bag of groceries twice a month. I love everything that I get. Because of CSAs, I eat and cook more fruits and vegetables which have helped me in my battle to lose weight. I've met many neighbors through CSA because we have regular get-togethers and we volunteer to help once a season. I also like knowing the folks who are growing my food. Eve (Garden of Eve farm) and her family are good people. I have gone out to the farm on several occasions. It is a lovely drive out on Long Island's north fork.

I've been a member for years. High quality, variety, delicious flavor, great price for the…read morequantity. I also recently began volunteering beyond regular shifts because everyone is friendly too.

This is our first season with Wash Sq CSA and we love it. Perfect amount for our household (two…read morepeople who cook about five nights a week). Variety every week, always new stuff for us to try (romano beans! scapes!) and some standards we love (cucumbers! butter lettuce!). We picked this CSA because it directly partners with a specific farm for an entire season (unlike fake CSAs that are just middlemen who mark up produce they buy from all over and don't provide any economic security for farmers). We get updates from the farm every week and look forward to the new surprises of eating with the season. Highly recommend.

Very good prices, great local meats and eggs. At a few local farmer markets (Bernardsville winter…read moreand summer farmer markets) Great tallow lip balm

My company and eight sponsors held a corporate event in the Backer Farm greenhouse last week, and…read moreit was a tremendously successful venue. The Backers were the consummate hosts and made everything easy. Even thought we had torrential rains, we were warm, dry, and cozy, especially with a fire in the wood stove.. Even the lighting was great. Parking was convenient for over eighty attendees, and the location was a huge success. And, will now be an annual event. Thank you Backer Farm!