Adams Avenue Farmer's Market

When is too much community participation a bad thing? Recently there was a news story about two Los Angeles art walks that are competing for participants as they have both been scheduled at the same time, meaning in the end both will suffer due to conflicting schedules and ultimately hurting the overall cause since neither will back down or combine the two. Many are focused on just getting these sorts of events off the ground, but with communities becoming saturated with farmer's markets, craft fairs, street festivals, and so on, when can one say enough is enough- there's already a plethora of local pride and anything I do would take away from the already established events?

Thankfully, San Diego has struck a wonderful balance of supply and demand with its farmer's markets, offering at least a handful a day spread across the entire county. Geographically spread out, each market has a similar offering of local produce and prepared foods, and as far as I can tell none conflict with a nearby market with a similar demographic. Some only cater to a few vendors (like Coronado and North Park), while some cause traffic jams and thousands flock by bicycle and Birkenstock with reusable bags (Hillcrest and Little Italy). Some have a large variety of vendors offering not just produce, but local jewelry makers, paper artists, or musicians. Some close down entire streets to handle the crowds, while some are tucked away conveniently into parks and parking lots with perhaps only 20 visitors at a time. One can either get some serious shopping done, or peruse leisurely and perhaps pick up a snack before heading home via their Hybrid vehicle. Whatever your bag is, there's most definitely a market for you... as long as your bag includes no plastic and hopefully some sort of snappy "Save the Whales" slogan.



These week, I decided to try out the Adams Avenue Farmer's Market, held at John Adams Elementary School at 4674 35th Street every Wednesday from 3-7 pm. Reviews of this particular market have been overwhelmingly positive, and as one of the newer additions to the scene it seems to have remarkable potential with its vicinity to MANY celebrated local food haunts with sustainability served up daily such as Viva Pops, Mariposa Ice Cream, Blind Lady Ale House, etc. The entire Adams Avenue corridor is packed with attractive draws for exactly the market-going crowd, so I have a feeling this rookie market will only grow as time goes on.



At first glance, this is one of the smaller markets I've visited and I'm immediately approached by a vendor who I'm unfamiliar with selling a variety of candied nuts. He's extremely interested in my camera and is borderline intrusive with his insistence on pouring handfuls upon handfuls of his wares into my hands. Thankfully, I'm not allergic to nuts, because I'm fairly certain that refusing was not an option. Soon, his next-tent neighbor was offering her figs as a compliment to his nuts, and I had to peel myself away, somewhat unwillingly, to be able to actually observe the scope and variety of the crowd.



There was an obvious emphasis on seasonality, perhaps more so in comparison to others due to the limited number of vendors versus the larger markets with a bigger reach, where seasonality is often a bit more flexible.



The number of produce vendors vastly outweighed the number of prepared food vendors- I could count the number of tents with smoke wafting out from their canopies on one hand. However, despite the lack of readily available hot meals and the relatively small number of actual vendors, the variety of available items were well represented across the entire market and everything that one might need for a basic supply of produce was available and local. Too late in the season for citrus and strawberries (both of which in the summer months remain kings of the fruit stands), but plenty of artichokes, squash, peaches, green beans, and peppers, not to mention colorful gourds and decorative pumpkins lined the tables and bins ripe for rifling through.



One of the more spartan tables was the mushroom man- usually a favorite of mine (as I happen to be a fungus fanatic), but as the single mushroom vendor on Adams, there was a single-digit selection of varieties to choose between. Local yes, seasonal to be sure, but with the bulk made up of generic looking white and brown 'shrooms I was left wanting. However, one of the more exciting finds to tantalize my tastebuds was the discovery of an okra farmer! My Southern roots danced in delight as I discovered the delectable veggie available near the piles of brightly colored peppers. I've only managed to spot pickled okra sporadically at the Hillcrest Farmer's Market, but the fresh thing is generally unavailable and unwanted in this region. Gumbo anyone?







All in all, for what the concentrated Adams Market lacks in size it makes up for in variety and genuine friendliness. For someone interested in keeping their fingers on the pulse of What's Happening In San Diego Food Now, I'd recommend staying tuned for what's next on Adams. Not just in the market- the restaurant scene is taking a page straight from the farmer's book and running with it more than any other neighborhood south of Orange County. Big things are in store for Normal Heights and I for one am glad to be a part of it!