Farmers Markets

This month we profile the Dallas Farmers Market…

In my mind the best farmers’ market would be the one where I don’t have to rush out to every Sunday at 7 AM to get the best foods. The same holds true for restaurant cooks, only they have to hit the market earlier.

When I was a cook it always struck me as odd that I would work the night shift and then be expected to get back up a 5AM to go to the market to get the best of the day’s produce.

If I was lucky enough to live in the Dallas area it wouldn’t have been a  problem.

The Dallas Farmers Market, located in the heart of the city has been open since 1941 and has a unique solution to the early morning market trips.

The market hosts a Midnight market (open from Midnight to 7 AM) for the local restaurateurs, chefs or anyone for that matter looking to buy bulk produce typically not available during the day.

The night market has been a huge hit with the local chefs. The nightly event can play host to as many as fifty vendors; Thursday and Fridays are the busiest nights.

Sol Calinao, the Dallas Farmers Market’s Director of  Marketing, tells Screamingfresh.com the Midnight market makes it easier for chefs to find out ahead of time what’s available so they can tailor their menus.

If a vendor doesn’t sell out at the Midnight market, the vendor has the option of staying around till the market reopens in the morning. Regular hours for the market are from 8 AM to 6 PM, seven days a week,
with the exceptions of New Years, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The market ensures freshness and top quality produces by keeping a 150 mile radius on the people allowed to sell at the market, Calinao says. He adds that the market “carries anything you can find in a
grocery store.”

The market in Dallas peaks in March with 120 vendors, but slows down in November, as do most farmers’ markets.

What can you expect to find at the Dallas Farmers Market:
Texas citrus
Pecans
Sweat potatoes
Onions
Tomatoes
Watermelons 5 -7 varieties
peas & beans 5-7 varieties
Squash 5 varieties
peppers 10-15 varieties
Blue berries
black berries
Turnip greens
mustard greens
Beef poultry pork lamb
Barnyard eggs