The basement of the Lafayette Presbyterian Church may not be the chicest marketplace in town aesthetically speaking, but true foodies will be thrilled with the selection of artisan goods available at Elmwood’s new Wintermarket.
I was in a rush, but managed to pop in for a few minutes this afternoon. The crowd wasn’t huge, but the vendors assured me that they had done a steady business throughout the day.
The always natty Patrick of White Cow Dairy was there with his full line of farmstead dairy products. Not only with the yogurt and custard we’ve all grown to love, but also with a reformulated batch of thick chocolate pudding. He was also displaying a copy of the most recent Bon Appetit magazine in which his fine products are featured.
MAP manned a table displaying their seasonally appropriate chili starter and Chateau Buffalo was sampling their own line of ciders and wines. I was more than happy to buy a loaf of The Artful Table’s new Olive Bread made with organic kalamatas and some of Avenue Boys’ Farmers Sausage. Both will be a perfect addition to the spread I will be offering at a party later this evening.
It was fun to see neighbors and acquaintances out and about. In the winter months we all tend to be a little isolated, and the Wintermarket is a great excuse to get out and bump into people.
I look forward to visiting the Wintermarket regularly, there are more vendors to discover and chat with, more delicious things to taste and take home. But I am most excited to see how this market will evolve. As I mentioned in my post yesterday, I recently had the chance to spend some time talking with market organizer David Setzer (The Artful Table, Slow Food Buffalo). He reminded me of how, when it was in its infancy, people were convinced that The Elmwood-Bidwell Farmers Market would never last and would never be profitable for its vendors. That was a number of years ago, and we all know that the summertime market is not only successful, but home to high quality regional products. The Wintermarket has already got the last half of that equation covered. I’m sure it will only be a matter of weeks before we see people make Wintermarket part of their weekly shopping routine.
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