Visited: August 1st, Saturday Early Afternoon.
Opens: 8-2, Saturdays, Year Round.
SIZE
Very big! Threads all the way around the little park in the center of Abingdon Square.
VENDORS
Vendors are excited about the food they sell, interesting samples. Once you try a sample, they ask you how you like it.
Samples: Biscotti, Sauteed Green Beans, Greenmarket employee: Tomato and Spinach Salad, Peaches, Smoked Turkey Sausages.
QUALITY OF FOOD
Decadent sausages, fresh spinach. Red Jacket Orchards utilizes Integrative Pest Management Baked goods are organic. Turkey is hormone-free. Angus beef is grass-fed. Cheese is from grass-fed cows.
VARIETY
Vegetables:
Baby Greens, Basil, Chard, Corn, Edamame, Eggplant, Green Beans, Herbs, Kale, Okra, Onions, Peppers (Sweet, Green, Bell), Shisho, Squash, Sweet Potatoes, Zucchini.
Fruit:
Whole: Apples (Fuji, Mutsu, Red Delicious, Empire), Apricots, Blueberries, Cantaloupe, Cherries, Nectarines, Peaches, Plums, Tomatoes (Cherry, Heirloom, Low Acid, Regular).
Fruit Products (Red Jacket Orchards): Assorted Fruit Juices (Strawberry Apple, Apricot Apple, Apple, Raspberry Apple, Rhubarb Apple, Grape Apple), Apple Sauce, Apple Glaze, Apple Butter, Apple Syrup, Canned Peaches & Apples, Dried Apples, Assorted Jams.
Bread Products:
Baked Goods: Biscotti, Brownies, Muffins, Scones, Dog Biscuits, Cakes, Pies, Sandwich Breads, Baguettes, Cookies.
Meat:
Chicken – ½ chicken, whole chicken, Pork – all cuts, Duck – all cuts, Turkey – sausages, all cuts, Angus – all cuts.
Seafood (PE + DD Seafood):
Scallops, Flounder, Tuna, Swordfish, Gray Sole, Bluefish, Mako, Lobster, Conch.
Animal Byproducts:
Eggs
Aged & Fresh Cheeses.
Miscellaneous:
Chocolate Mint Tea
Maple Syrup
Honey
Flowers
SEASONAL CONSISTENCE
The produce in season not found at this farmer’s market on this day was beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, radishes and spinach.
CENYC.org Information for this market
WHAT’S UNIQUE?
My visit to this market was the first time I’ve ever seen sweet potatoes at a farmer’s market. This alternative to regular potatoes is supremely healthy and has a unique flavor that is fun to blend with others in an intricate dish – farms represented at other markets should consider this as a boon to their business. The public demonstration of turkey sausages at the stand at which they’re sold is a smart tool (especially because they are scrumptious) to lure customers to a stand. Lastly, one can find edamame, an easy appetizer for lunch or dinner, at this market and not many others.
PRICING
Good prices.
Chocolate Mint Tea: $1.50/cup.
Flounder: $13.50/lb.
Sweet Pepper: $5.00/lb.
Beef Tenderloin: $28.50/lb.
Muffin: $1.75
ACTUALLY LOCAL?
All farms represented are pretty local, ranging from South Jersey to Geneva, New York.
CONVENIENCE
Great location! Surrounded by small, high-priced restaurants; people in this neighborhood will pay for good food. There is a little idyllic park in the center with benches, so one can pick up a piece of fruit and chat with a friend. Not too many people buying vegetables – more meats, fish and baked goods.
NAVIGATION
Fairly easy to navigate, but hard to decide from which stands to buy because there are multiple per category of food.
EBT STAMPS Not Accepted.
FINAL COMMENTS
This market is fabulous, but the time in which it’s open is not ideal. It is open from 8 AM to 2 PM, which is only 6 hours of business, and only once a week at that. People in the community love the market – the business did not wane for the hour that I stayed there; thus, perhaps the Greenmarket staff should consider opening it more frequently and for a longer period of time. The market at 12th and 8th spices up an otherwise quiet community.
