Trip to a Montreal Market
Hey Market Friends —
A few weeks ago our family journeyed north to Montreal. Our children were thrilled to drive to Canada and, although it was hard to connect with French-speaking children on the playgrounds, Silas would now like to learn French so he can go back and understand.
On the food front, Ben and I were struck by the quality of herbs and fruits and vegetables even in pretty generic grocery stores. There were also so many different percentages of cream for different uses, garlic scape pestos in the refrigerated sections, and other fats and meats and cheeses you would never find on supermarket shelves down here. One breakfast we ate out arrived with a mini-glass of smooth-y and a beautiful sprig of rosemary laid across the scrambled eggs.
Our most fun food journey was to the Jean Tallon Market right in the city. There are incredible bike paths on many of the city streets (better than any other city we’ve ever been to) so we all headed out on our bikes to find this large public market that’s open every day. Overall, the kind of producer-only farmers markets that are the norm here were absent from the city, but this large public market was amazing and overwhelming. I think we walked by every stand, but I’m not sure. Many of the vendors aggregate produce from local farms and from all over the world. We bought some mini-red grapes from vendor who proudly said they were from the USA. Lucky for us, it was still strawberry season in Quebec and the sweet corn was flowing, too.
There was one organic (biologique) stand that 6 farms provided produce to. And beyond produce, there was whole line of meat vendors including a stand with 6-8 different kinds of oysters being sold. Ben kind of fell in love with the market and imagined what it would be like to live in such a bikeable city in close proximity to the kind of market. I, sadly, had the remnants of a stomach bug that day so I had a visual and sensual experience of the day. I loved watching the mostly middle aged and older women with their wheely suitcases full of food.
This week at market: Mary Witt of the O’Tones will be making music for us with a surprise guest on the jazz guitar. You don’t want to miss this duo. Here’s what Mary has to say: Mary Witt and surprise guest (yes, it really is a surprise til that day, but you should come check her out, she is awesome and quite famous!) will be singing and playing a fun mix of music while you shop for food and goodies at the wonderful Tuesday Market behind Thornes by the parking lot.
Carr’s Ciderhouse’s Cider Vinegar and Cider Syrup have been nominated for the 2014 Martha Stewart American Made Awards — Bottled, Jarred and Canned. Martha has good taste. You can share this news on Facebook through our page.
Another reminder that Old Friends Farm Farm-Fancy Dinner is this Sunday, September 14th. You can buy tickets at market for this ginger-themed dinner at their beautiful farm.
Apex Orchards is bringing WRSI/The River back to market for the next 6 weeks. Say hey to Joan Holliday on Tuesday.
See you at market!
Oona
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