Eating Fresh in A New Neighborhood

There's a new farmers' market in town, and it might not be where you think. Take this short quiz to see if you might just want to check it out.

1. Are you tired of wondering where to buy your juicy organically grown plums when there are 17 different vendors selling them? Find the nicest farmer, the cheapest fruit, or just choose the closest one the instant your child starts screaming he wants to go home?

2. Has your farmer's market been sullied by juicy greasy sausage, Indian roti and people selling jewelry and soap when you just want some fresh produce?

3. Do you find yourself shoving your way through a crowd to get your green beans and heirloom tomatoes weighed, stepping on dropped orange peels and hoping you have exact change?

4. Is noon just too darn early to get yourself out of bed after a hard night of partying just for the chance to procure some fresh giant nectarines?

If you answered yes to any of those questions (or even if you didn't), do I have the farmers' market for you? Yes, folks, the Farmers' Market of East Palo Alto is now open, and it's a great addition to a struggling town where you can buy Swedish furniture, but the closest grocery store is about 5 miles away. I normally treat a trip to the farmer's market like a casino visit, bring a certain amount of cash, stop at various places where I'm relieved of different dominations of money, and leave when I've run out. At the new EPA farmer's market, for $10 I walked away with two heaping bags of juicy nectarines, peaches and plums, long beans, adorable Japanese sweet potatoes and eggplant, a giant eggplant for tasty parmesan and lots more. I even scored cookbooks on healthy Latino and kid's recipes. But can anyone tell me how to make some fried green tomatoes?

Parking is plentiful, convenient hours from 3 - 6pm, and of course friendly, friendly, people, I've met them. So check out truly local food, in some cases grown by the local high school (all certified, though, don't worry). And if you can't make it over there, continue contributing to this worthy cause, which is not only working towards healthy kids, but feeding hungry seniors as many others as well.