A Glorious Market

The heat of last weekend was tamed. There was a breeze. It was bright and sunny. What more could I ask for?

The tomatoes are in full swing. Justin and Ute of Capay had some incredible and huge heirloom monsters. I walked away with four beauties, $11 worth at $2.50 per pound. With all the drugs in the sports news of late, I jokingly asked Ute if these had been tested for steroids. It brought up a related issue. Evidently, Justin has been watching out for what he calls the 'organic pirates'. He has found this especially common at one of the other markets he works (thankfully not my regular market). These are non-certified producers who may or may not actually be following the standards, but say they are. Tsk Tsk...

Robert of Robert Lambert saw my mother of all tomatoes in one of my bags and remarked on its beauty and opulence. His exact comment was, "I could live in there", referring to the tomato. But alas, this 'there' is no more. It was a lovely, simple dinner an hour ago.

There was quite a line at RoliRoti. The chickens were going fast. Thomas and Luis Ricardo were sweating up a storm behind the counter. Evidently, last week Thomas nearly had heat stroke as the air temperature behind the counter was over 130 degrees. Doug of Prather Ranch had to tell him to go home before he hurt himself. Thank goodness he took Doug's advice. Today it was a mere 109 degrees. Thomas' regular customers are quite patient. Once we had a reason, we got to chatting about how much we love his chickens and how we think he is almost a decent guy, even though he is a temperamental Swiss and makes us wait. Of course, I kid.

Doug and Scott were busy next door at Prather. Interestingly, Doug has been busier since he has had help from Scott. He thinks it is because people who might otherwise walk past are stopping instead because there is someone who can help them. This is really terrific. The more people realize that they have options to conventionally raised meats, the more we will support existing producers to go humane and organic. It is safer, healthier, and better tasting. The picture on the left is Scott grabbing something out of the unique Prather freezer trailer.

Well, that is just about it. In the next couple of weeks, I am going to give a colleague of mine who just moved up North a market tour. I am looking forward to it. It can take a while to develop your vendors and learn the ins and outs. While we ultimately will all find our own favorites, it is great to have a head start. In the meantime, enjoy that summer produce!