It’s hard to throw a tomato in this town without hitting a summertime farmers’ market, and the North City Farmers’ Market opens its third season tomorrow with a notable smash.
The market, located at 14th and St. Louis streets – right across from Crown Candy Kitchen – kicks off from 9 a.m. to noon with speeches by Margaret Donnelly, Missouri director of health and senior services, and state Sen. Jeff Smith, and performances by R&B singer LeAndra Haynes and the twangy wiseacres of The Dock Ellis Band. Special treats include free French and Spanish lessons for children, free health screenings, and free old-school favorite “brick chicken.” (That’s chicken weighed down in the skillet by a wrapped brick, which makes it both extra-browned and extra-moist.)
New to the market this year are a dedicated booth for children’s activities, its first meat and dairy vendors, sales of food grown next door at the 13th Street Community Garden, and the ability to accept debit, credit and EBT cards. The North City Farmers’ Market is open Saturdays through October.
– Byron Kerman
This article appears in Jun 1-30, 2009.