It was a sad day when the 36th and Walnut Farmers’ Market closed for the winter. You savored that last bag of Honeycrisp apples, dreading months of frozen peas. You had loyally purchased local food while the fall harvest was abundant, but dwindling produce supplies and gray winter skies foretold the shortage to come. But despite the freezing temperatures and barren landscape, a surprising number of local options remain.
True, locally-grown produce is less available during the winter, but many local farms grow winter varieties of different fruits and vegetables; Fuji, Gala, and Pink Lady apples, for example, are all harvested during the winter. To find a full variety of winter produce, head to Clark Park Farmer’s Market. You can reward yourself for making the chilly walk by ducking in Green Line Cafe for a cup of hot coffee or buying a $2.50 breakfast taco from the taco cart in the park (they’re delicious, and you will probably want more than one).
Clark Park Farmers’ Market is known for its local meats, cheeses, eggs, milk, yogurt, breads, and other baked goods that never go out of season. 'Local food' is much more than 'local produce;' the variety and quality of locally-produced grocery items is continually improving.
An alternative to traditional farmers markets is Farm to City Winter Harvest Buying Club (farmtocity.org). Winter Harvest carries over 500 products grown or produced in the Philadelphia area, including all of the aforementioned produce and products. To sign up, you simply open an account online, deposit $50, and order your selections for the next two weeks from the posted list of products. Orders are delivered to Penn’s campus every Thursday. There is no minimum order, and if you do not spend the $50 deposit, you will be reimbursed at the end of the buying club season in April.
Eating out in the winter is easy too. Many Philadelphia restaurants serve local food; a list can be found at the Local Food Philly website (www.localfoodphilly.org), which is also a great resource for discovering the variety of local food purveyors in the city. Penn student standbys and West Philly favorites for local food include White Dog (34th and Sansom) and Rx (45th and Spruce). If you catch Greg, the owner of Rx, in house, he will explain the sources of everything on your plate.
Warm summer days and fresh tomato-basil salads may still be far off, but you can continue to find nearby local-food options on even the snowiest of winter days.
