79th Street Greenmarket

It kind of doesn’t get any better than the 79^th Street Greenmarket. As a Brooklynite, I dig our Grand Army Plaza market, bit it pales in comparison to the size and variet of this extensive cornucopia of awesomeness. Bread, meat, produce, cheese, wine for 3 blocks. Ample space on the extra wide sidewalks to browse and pass. A great neighborhood greenmarket that is large enough to extend past the ubiquitous Migliorelli’s or Red Jackets of the greenmarket world — nice variety and lots of it. A great reason to brave the Natural History Museum on a Sunday.

I have been coming to this farmers market every weekend since I moved to the UWS. It’s great to be able to get outside and see local food at a convenient location and great price. Much of the food is similar in price to what can be found at a grocery store but the quality is substantially better. I’m not sure which vendors I typically choose from but The apples are always to die for and the Jersey peaches are delicious.
This is a great way to pass the time on the weekend while getting your weekly grocery shopping completed.

Fresh produce, heirloom varieties, meats, cheeses, bread, wine. Great location alongside the shaded Theodore Roosevelt Park. Samples too! Great for local folks to stock up for their Sunday brunch and dinner. Epicurean’s delight!

Really cool spot on the weekends. Enough vendors and variety to get make any meal you would like. The only draw back is I couldn’t find any meat that isn’t frozen, I don’t know it might be a health regulation thing. Eh, I guess a seafood stall would be nice too.

Sunday was my first time trying this Farmer’s Market. I usually go to Union Square or to Inwood on Sundays. I woke up too late for the Inwood market and decided to check this one out. Turned out to be great. It’s not as big as Union Square, but big enough to purchase great local organic goodies. The entire Farmer’s Market is sectioned off right behind the Museum of Natural History. It’s right on Columbus Avenue between 80^th and 79^th Streets. They have a beautiful flyer in the entrance so you can’t miss it. In addition, there is a section for any questions customers might have. What’s even better is that this farmer’s market is opened year round. So, if for example, one is too tired to head all the way downtown or miss the uptown markets, this is a perfect medium (as its located on the Upper West Side) for the other two extremes.
My favorite moment was buying Vegan treats. One of the vendors sold entirely vegan goodies. We bought a cranberry scone, a blueberry muffin, and a chocolate chunk cookie. They were perfect! Great balance of flavors. It was sweet enough to satisfy the sweet palate, but just enough that you could also feel the earthiness of the flour and oats used in the treats. I will be coming back again for more vegan treats.
There were also two huge vendors that carried the bulk of the produce sold at the market. They had what’s in season: spinach, Brussels sprouts, orange/​purple/​white cauliflower (which was awesome as I never had any of the other varieties of cauliflower), sweet potatoes, leeks, potatoes, lettuce, cabbage apples and other fruits. The farmer’s were Asian and extremely nice. I noticed that the Farmer’s were speaking to a customer who was inquiring about WIC Checks. Apparently, Farmer’s market accept checks provided to mothers who apply for a nutrition program once they have children. I think this is great and a positive way to encourage people to eat healthier alternatives and provide access to the places where they can acquire these choices. My only criticism is that some of the produce already looked old and the farmers were still selling them. They didn’t look rotten, but just look old. They should try to keep selling the optimum quality produce.
I kept looking for vegan foccacia, but couldn’t find any. There was a man there performing puppetry and children stood around him watching his show. I thought it to be amazing that people are still keeping this art alive and exposing children to it is exactly what will allow them to continue performing. We stood there for a while with our daughter watching the show. Then we headed off to look for an Autumn favorite: Apple cider. I bought a big gallon for us to drink.
We also looked around the vendor that sold soaps and other bath products. The air smelled like lavender. His products seemed reasonable.
This was an awesome day at a good market.

After researching farmers markets on Sundays I came upon this one. After reading some of the reviews we decided to take the trip to the UWS. I am so happy we came here instead of our usual whole foods stroll for fresh meat, fish and veggies/​fruit. A few takeaways from this delightful market: they only accept cash or the market coins which are basically like cash to use at the market. The pickles are amazing! The vendor there has tons of samples of pickles to choose from. I read great things about the eggs, but at $ 10 for a dozen; I’ll just go to Zabars instead. Which by the way is only a few blocks away. (This makes it easy to pick up anything else you need for your shopping list that wasn’t at the market.) I think the lavender satchels may have been one of the best finds! A bunch of onions for $ 2 was also another one. There was a wine stand with free tasting samples (!!) a gluten free stand, as well as a kosher baked goods stand. I see myself going back here for years to come.

Great farmers market! I was most impressed by a few things;
1 the variety (and quantity) of vendors. There are the regular fruit and meat people, but also there’s at least two bakers, there are plant people, there is a fish vendor, a goat cheese vendor, and at least two of everything else.
2 the neighborhood sustains the variety, coupled with a number of tourists too. This makes lots of people engaging others by asking questions and necessitating friendliness.
3 the grape vendor! I have never even had the concept of this; it was such a revelation! The vendor had about 7 varieties of grape, each turning me onto a new dimension of the globe. It was fun to try samples of each.
It makes sense to have this because of our proximity to wine regions, but the question is: why haven’t I seen this before?
4 the flea is nearby, making a Sunday morning of shopping and learning a potentially epic experience.
Throw in a celebrity sighting or two and now I love this market.

I really love this Farmers Market. It has turned into a Sunday routine for me, and has really helped me to eat a little healthier at home. I take my compost to them, and they are very good about teaching you what can go on their compost and what can’t.
Hudson Valley Duck Farm– This is my duck lady, and she keeps me well stocked with smoked duck breast, duck bacon and duck fat. People say that she can be cold, but she has always gone above and beyond. She helps me with my recipe ideas, and always has the best advice on what to pair with my duck.
Ardith Mae has the best Goat Cheese in New York and Pennsylvania.
They have a decent selection of vendors and its the closest Farmers Market to the Upper East Side that’s open on Sunday. The staff are very helpful and if I have questions about other farmers markets in the city they are very good at getting me answers. After the Farmers Market I usually mosey over to the flea market a few blocks away. Always makes for a great Sunday.

Get:
~your groceries here. They’re open year-​round, and there’s a good variety of stands represented at this market. From leafy greens to fresh eggs to seafood to flowers, they’ve got it. In the summer, we like to come here to get huge bunches of basil with the roots still attached for only $ 3 that will last all week! The berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, etc.) tend to be sweeter and more flavorful than the ones at Union Square. We also haven’t been disappointed in the eggs we buy here either.
Prices vary, but in general, you can get some produce here at a better price than at the Union Square Greenmarket. It also makes for a nice destination across the park for those living on the UES. We come here nearly every Sunday, and they will take your compost here until 1pm!