The Brussel Sprout Emporium

To market, to market, a gallop a trot . . .

I firmly believe that every community deserves a vibrant public market, but with apologies to those who grew up here the Broadway Market isn't it. It hasn't been in the over 30 years I've been aware of it. Whether it ever was as I have been told, or just memories of childhood filtered by the passage of time, I cannot tell. What is certain is that the combination of urban flight and the rise of of the supermarket have combine to eliminate many traditional public markets.



They are not all gone. Cleveland's West Side Market has been around since 1840, and is still going strong. I plan to get there if I am ever in Cleveland when it's neither New Year's nor an event I am cooking for. My favorite, for now, is the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia (Pictured Above). You can get prepared foods here, from Amish to Chinese, and sundries of all types. But, the best stuff is fresh: Meat, Produce, Poultry, and especially the Fish. It is so fresh you can have breakfast mere feet away from a fish counter and smell nothing!

Unfortunately, many places are not so lucky. We cannot even get fish that fresh at local fishmongers.

Still, there is some hope. We do have a variety of smaller farmer's markets in the area. They are only open, at best, a few days a week, but the least of them are worth patronizing.

Our favorite is the North Tonawanda Farmers Market on Robinson Road. It's open Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday from 7 to 1. Saturdays are the best - the most vendors are there. There is a decent array of seasonal fruits and vegetables at fabulous prices. Do browse before buying as prices vary. The photos at right give you an idea of it.

There is just something missing.

Andrew Galarneau did a nice overview of farmers market's in Western New York by county back in the BuffNews back in June, but the article also highlighted local meat producers/purveyors. We have local eggs and poultry, and plenty of dairy products - cheese, yoghurt and more. If we could find a way to entice these good folks to show up at the farmer's markets, I think I'd be one happy pup!