Local Take: A marvelous mid-week mid-day medium sized Farmers Market in the great Northern…read moreSB/"almost" South SLO area.
As some of you who follow me well know, I am totally a fan of all things Farmers Markets or Farm Stands, so it is surprising that I took so long to check this one out. It's direct competitor is also on Weds., but is in the morning in Arroyo Grande at 8AM.
As far as I can tell, this is mostly a local relatively unknown FM by SLO County Standards. It was definitely COVID safety aware, has good spacing between vendors & the open air helps alot. It was not too busy when we went the other week. In terms of relative costs here, they are fair for what you get, especially considering much is fresh picked that very morning.
At least a few of the same Farmers do the AM one in AG, and then drive down to SM to do this one. A marvelous one, from the Central Valley grows quite a few Asian Veggies, which are hard to get, such as Sweet Potato leaves & more pedestrian Bok Choy & such. A newer vendor grows some nice mushrooms, but they are not the kind for "Microdosing". Even though it is close to X-mas, the selection of local Farm Fresh Veggies was impressive.
For those who have not tried beautiful, rare, & yummy Yellow Squash Flowers, they were plenty at one stand. Squash Flowers are delicate & need to be made the same day. Sautés with butter & garlic. Some Italian restaurants ruin the delicate flavor by stuffing & deep frying them.
There are some Mexican Food trucks & stands, crafts, flowers, Honey, Lavender, Swap Meet style goods, & a good selection from various Farmers.
Everyone was in a good mood, vendors & customers were quite friendly, & it was a nice place to stock up on great eats.
All this action takes place in the parking lot on the opposite side of the Central Large Mall in Santa Maria. While it happens in the parking lot, the parking lots next to it, have tons of room to spare, which are next to the Rite Aid in this older outdoor strip mall. This Rite Aid also does COVID & Flu shots...they have a walk in from 2-3PM. There are a few other shops & eateries here as well.
You can take a trip up to the walkway & also check out the main Mall for other shopping needs.
We use a trip to events such as this as an excess to shop at the largest Mexican Supermarkets in the area, which sadly has very little local products...but they do have some harder to find ethnic foods, like Taro.
Demographically, most local Farm Workers really cannot afford even what they pick, let alone the "organic" price premium.
The question is, is it worth the trip? Please check out my pics & see for yourself. Overall, the Veggies here are far fresher, healthier, & cheaper than Whole Paycheck market.
If you happen to driving on the 101 for other reasons, this is a nice diversion, & a great way to load up on all kinds of goodies on a trek North or South.
It is close to the corner of Broadway & Main St.
Please support our local essential Farmers & other small buisness vendors.