The first time I went to a farmers’ market was when I was in high school in Indiana. I was volunteering for a winter festival children’s event. Tasked with setting up activities and collecting trinkets for a prize basket, I felt a sense of community from the families, vendors and the event coordinators who chose to spend a Saturday together doing something fun.

Later, I went back to the market with a friend to look around and get some goodies. I was ecstatic to see a vendor selling raw milk, something I had never tried before but always wanted to. Smiling from ear to ear, I bought goat and cow milk for a healthy dose of comparison. They were both really good! 

Ever since coming to California, I’ve wanted to visit a local farmers’ market. So after I got into the flow of things at school, I finally had an opening in my schedule on Sunday to visit the California Avenue Farmers’ Market. After a morning at church and a bumpy Marguerite ride, I arrived at noon ready to explore.

Although it was late in the day, there were still plenty of people there: families, some students and a lot of pets. The market was located in the center of a long street, with nail salons, coffee shops and restaurants lining the sides. 

The first vendor I stopped at was the Sun Smiling Valley Farm booth, where they sold Asian fruits and vegetables. Their most popular item was purple Japanese sweet potatoes, a vegetable I rarely see in the grocery store. They also sold okra, which I first had when I visited my grandparents in China. They grew these plants in their backyard and would boil them, revealing an inside full of gooey, slimy seeds.

Wandering down the street, I discovered an ostrich booth selling ostrich meat, ostrich eggs, jerky, quail eggs and more. People around me kept asking if these giant eggs were real, to which the vendor simply nodded their head. They told us that these ostriches were raised on a farm 50 miles from Sacramento, and the birds are processed at a USDA facility before arriving at the market. 

At the Northridge Farms booth, I saw jumbo artichokes, cauliflower and broccoli. Having grown up in Indiana, this was my first time seeing artichokes. I learned from the vendor that these vegetables are eaten by boiling them in water, peeling off the leaves and then enjoying the white pulp with butter or other condiments. According to the vendor, the middle, aka the heart, is the best part.

The next stand I visited was Philosopher Foods, which was selling fermented almonds, cashews, peanuts and pistachios. The vendor proudly proclaimed to me that Stanford conducted nutrition and gut health research using their fermented nuts.

The last vendor I visited was the Roli Roti Gourmet Rotisserie food truck, and I could smell the rich oils from several feet away. As I got into line, they were selling their last chicken! Asking around, I learned that they sell out almost every weekend. My mouth was watering as I observed their glistening chicken roasting on a roller, the oils dripping down on a bed of potatoes beneath. 

The market attracts a fair share of regulars, such as Marie, who comes every weekend. When I met her, she was carrying a bag full of produce from her favorite spots – the strawberry booth and the Winter Fruit Tree booth (selling fruits, nuts, meats and eggs). She also purchased produce and flowers from Fifth Crow Farm but her cheese and avocados from Step Ladder Creamery. She told me that the farmers’ market is always “lively” and the vendors are “personable,” which has brought her back every week. 

It is also not hard to meet faculty, students or alumni from Stanford at the market. While walking the streets, I ran into Alison, who graduated in 2019 but continues to come to the market at least once a month for strawberries, fresh fruits, flowers and the Roli Roti chickens.

This experience visiting the farmers’ market helped me learn more about the locals in California and the place I will be calling home for the next four years. I took home some fresh persimmons, my favorite fruit, which taste better when freshly picked. Everyone at the market was eager to talk and genuinely proud of their products, so I definitely will be going back!