If you’re ever in need of fresh organic fruits, and don’t know where to find them, farmers markets are the perfect place to start. Locally we have the Temple City market, that occurs every Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. It is a great place for basic grocery needs, such as flowers and produce, but if you are ever looking for more variety, the La Cañada and Pasadena locations offer much more, including fish, tamales and even jewelry.
It can be at most a 25 minute drive to the La Cañada market, while the Pasadena location takes approxiametly 15 minutes. To start off, I went to the second closest market after Temple City’s: the Pasadena farmers market, located at Victory Park, and open Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The market itself is very open, spacious and inviting, which attracts a multitude of shoppers eager to purchase their groceries. However, the layout of the parking lot is cramped and unable to accommodate the large number of people who attend the market. Although I was lucky enough to find a parking spot, I suggest parking on a side street and walking over, or parking in a different area just to make life a little easier.
With three rows of booths all lined up adjacently, there was a lot to see and a lot to sample. Many people walked around with empty bags, ready to buy from organic fruit and veggies booths, to flower stalls and bread booths. Walking around on either side of me were endless vendors of produce, but Ha’s apple farm caught my eye. Not only did it have an abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables, but it also sold cage-free chicken and duck eggs, fresh jam and dried fruit, making it a perfect one-stop shop. I sampled fresh apple pears and peaches, which were sweet, ripe and extremely satisfying amidst the noon heat of a summer day.
The La Cañada farmers market, located across the street from Memorial Park on Foothill, is open every Saturday from 9:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. This farmers market was a bit farther from home, and smaller in size. The overall area was intimately filled with a lot of items similar to these found at the Pasadena Farmers market. The crowd was much smaller as well, and although the parking lot was not super large, parking was accessible and easy to find.
The farmers market took the form of a large rectangular path with a row of booths at the two entrances. The walkways were very spacious and allowed me to take time at each booth, which was shaded and created a calm and cool atmosphere for browsing.
Towards the end of the first row through the farmers market, I encountered an empanada booth. Empanadas are baked breads or pastries with special fillings. There were around six or seven different empanadas available, all priced at $4 each. I sampled the Caprese empanada, its crisp baked bread had just the right amount of crunch to complement the explosion of mozzarella, tomato and basil gracing my tastebuds. Needless to say, it was to die for.
Being an introvert myself, I definitely preferred the La Cañada market because of its accessibility, intimateness, spaciousness and smaller crowd. However, the downside of venturing all the way to La Cañada would be the drive, which might be enough to make the Pasadena Farmers market a more frequent choice for my family’s grocery needs.