PrintNew Jersey Dispatch: Trenton Farmers' Market at Christmas
My search for the perfect farmers' market is never-ending and ever-changing. Sometimes I just want produce in a local parking lot; then again, I could go for a stand in some rural corner; other times, I look for something a bit more unique. At those moments, the Trenton Farmers' Market fits the bill. The place seems like a relic of another time with a mix of farmers, vendors, and old school snacks.
Why would you want to go to a New Jersey Farmers' market in December? The tomatoes and corn will be gone. The blueberries? Gone. Peppers? They're gone too. What's left are local winter and storage items, providing a relief in both price and taste from the supermarket and a reminder that we live in a state with a rich agricultural bounty. Trenton does something that's unique in New Jersey: It combines local farm produce, mini ethnic markets, gourmet shops, and snack bars under one roof—a concentrated zone of New Jersey food culture minus the Asian influences.
Eastern European is represented by Pulaski Meats with their rye breads, poppyseed cakes, pickles, sausages, and herring products. In fact, while I was waiting to pay for my own cake, the two ladies in front of me on line struck up a friendship while discussing how they both loved something they called "blood tongue," a kind of head cheese.
Vitella and Sons holds up the Italian end of things with the usual: a solid cheese selection, Manhattan Special sodas, panettone, and really fancy pasta. I don't know what it is about that stuff, but these ritzed-up packages from Italy draw me with some sort of evil power. At Everything Nice, a "gourmet" stall a few yards from Vitella, the woman behind the counter told me that those pastas were made with actual Italian wheat instead of wheat that´s exported from Canada to Italy. Her selection of high-end (but reasonably priced) items from around Europe almost hooked me in. Self-control and the power of frugality carried the day though and I didn't buy a spec of pasta.
There wasn't much fancy at El Tepeyaç, the Mexican stall, but if you're cooking real Mex rather than Tex or Cal Mex, this is a nice little place to pick up the ingredients. Of course, I used the money I saved by not buying pasta to buy hot sauce.
Farmers...farmers...oh yeah...this place is called "Farmers' Market." Unlike many other markets, farmers really do make up the majority of vendors here, even in December. At least five farm stands—some of whom don't sell anywhere else—were offering apples, yams, sweet potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, onions, Brussels sprouts, romaine, and at least three varieties of potatoes.
Anything else? Snacks are an adventure. I haven't yet tried the pie shop at the main intersection (the place is laid out in an X shape) and some of the other snack shops are best described as "sad." Grim, rolling hot dogs, steam tables of brown stuff, and wax-y looking pastries didn't inspire confidence, but a good hot cup of coffee from Olsson's, a gourmet shop down in a far corner, kept me from starvin. When I got home, it was time to cook a feast.
The Trenton Farmers' Market
960 Spruce Street, Lawrence Twp., NJ 08648 (map)
thetrentonfarmersmarket.com
Christmas hours are Monday through Saturday, 9 p.m. to 6 p.m.; Sundays and Christmas Eve, 9 p.m. to 3 p.m.
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6 Comments:
I can't believe it's still there - in the same place. I used to go there with my parents when I was a child in the 50's & 60's. That sign looks exactly the same, too. My high school was in Lawrence Township. Thanks for the memories! Were you there just for the market?
You should also try Zern's in Gilbertsville, PA. Interesting place, interesting history, great produce and meats, as well as flea market and auction. It's an experience, not just a shopping trip.
http://www.zerns.com/
PerkyMac at 2:11PM on 12/19/08
Perky:
I would be shocked if the Trenton Market WASN'T there!
It's just timeless. Yes, there are heirloom tomatoes and Yukon Gold potatoes, and the ethnic stalls come and go as Trenton's population shifts, but the format, and the big sign are here to stay. If the original "Planet of the Apes" movie had been filmed in New Jersey, they'd have used the Trenton Farmer's Market sign instead of the Statue of Liberty for the closing scene.
Zern's seems interesting, but we have at least a few similar places here in New Jersey that I haven't written up yet...Come to think of it, I've barely scratched the surface of what's going on here...I mean...I haven't even discussed pizza!
BrianYarvin at 12:31PM on 12/20/08
aw... tomatoes 'so pretty' and 'not so pretty' :)
redzerostar at 12:24AM on 12/21/08
......and half price for not so pretty tomatoes!
@Brian ~ when you leave a hometown and go back years later and it looks the same, you can feel like a kid again. And home is right there where you left it. I love that area of New Jersey. You CAN go home again. :-D
PerkyMac at 10:09AM on 12/21/08
oh and...........hands down, Trenton pizza is THE best on the planet. There truly is nothing as good anywhere. Not in NYC or Philly. Can't be duplicated, I guess. Must visit and do a pizza run of my favorites (both DeLorenzo's, Maruca's, Mike's Steakhouse (which might be Pete's now?) and Freddy's, for starters).
PerkyMac at 10:14AM on 12/21/08
Forgot to mention The Crab Shack, which is part of-but just next to The Trenton Farmers Market. All of the shrimp at The Crab Shack is wild, not farm-raised like that of most supermarkets - Great difference in the taste! Every Sunday, they drop the prices down really low, so you can buy wonderful seafood, such as salmon, halibut, scallops, tilapia at rock bottom prices. The owner is picky, and has a nose for freshness. Visit the website: http://www.trentoncrabshack.yolasite.com
Marte22 at 5:54PM on 09/11/09