Farmers market season is in full swing! In addition to locally grown fruits and vegetables, you can find a wide variety of locally produced products just perfect for your home and table. We stopped by four of Memphis’ farmers markets to find artisan products that are just as unique and special as the talented folks who grow and create them. From specialty beverages to fresh flowers to out-of-the-ordinary ingredients to cleaning products and more, here are some of our favorite farmers market FINDS.
BEVERAGES
Drink mixers
Jim O’Brien’s drink mixers are crazy good! This talented chef started his Crazy Good® Specialty Foods back in 2013 with his specialty hot sauces and Crazy Mary! Bloody Mary mix. Crazy Rita! Margarita Mix soon followed. The originals are two of the most popular in his line of drink mixers, but if you like a Bloody Mary with a twist, try his Crazy Chipotle Mary! or Crazy Green Mary! Find the Crazy Good® drink mixers at the Memphis Farmers Market for $8 a bottle or $20 for a mix-and-match three-pack.
Kombucha
Replenish Kombucha is Memphis’ only local small-batch kombucha brewery. Replenish offers their unpasteurized, effervescent probiotic beverage in three flavors: sweet ginger, hibiscus berry and lavender love. Pick up a 64-ounce growler of this live, raw and healthy probiotic drink at the Memphis Farmers Market for $26 a growler, or grab a two-bottle pack (12 ounces each) for $8. Bring your growler bottle back the next week for a $20 refill.
Imported tea
Pick up a bag of tea from My Cup of Tea, and know that you will not only be enjoying a delicious cup of aromatic tea, but you’ll also be helping our community. My Cup of Tea is a social enterprise helping the women of the historic Orange Mound community gain vocational training to overcome poverty. Their wide selection of tea blends can be purchased as either loose tea or as tea bags. Available at the Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market, prices start at $8.
FISH
Catfish
Lake’s Catfish is the go-to for local chefs for top-of-the-line catfish worthy of their customers. Not only is it grown sustainably just outside of Tunica, but the quality and flavor of this Mississippi farm-raised catfish is superior to imported catfish. Each Saturday at the Memphis Farmers Market, owner Earl Lake offers his catfish to home cooks interested in buying local. Pick up a one-pound box for $8, a three-pound box for $22, or if you really love catfish, grab a 15-pound box for $90!
Fresh Gulf seafood
Paradise Seafood offers landlocked Memphians fresh seafood straight from the Gulf. Fresh offerings are written daily on the dry boards, but expect to always find fresh Gulf shrimp, red fish, sushi-grade tuna, snapper, grouper and amberjack. Stop by early for some of their house-made specialties like smoked tuna dip and crab-stuffed grouper. Find fresh Gulf shrimp (head-off), starting at $16 per pound, at Paradise Seafood trucks, which can be found every Saturday at the Memphis Farmers Market and Wednesday through Saturday at the Agricenter Farmers Market.
INGREDIENTS
Grits and cornmeal
Located just outside Oxford in Water Valley, Mississippi, the folks at Delta Grind produce stone ground, all-natural grits, cornmeal, masa and polenta. A favorite of local executive chefs, Delta Grind grits and cornmeal are made from yellow corn from local farmers in North Mississippi and are freshly ground on a stone grist mill made by a 115-year-old milling manufacturing company, North Carolina-based Meadows Mills. Available at the Memphis Farmers Market, Delta Grind grits, polenta and stone ground coarse cornmeal are each $8 for a two-pound bag and the stone ground fine cornmeal masa is $5 for a two-pound bag.
Mushrooms
Bluff City Fungi is an urban mushroom farm in the heart of Memphis. Each week, they offer a variety of mushrooms such as Lion’s Mane; shiitake; and blue, gold and pink oyster mushrooms, as well as an oyster mushroom fruiting kit that contains everything you need to grow delicious oyster mushrooms right at home. Find a box of mushrooms for $5 at the Memphis Farmers Market and the Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market.
Farm fresh eggs
Tubby Creek Farm is a certified naturally grown farm in Ashland, Mississippi. They sell farm fresh eggs laid by happy chickens that are raised free-range on a diet of veggies and fruits. And you can taste the difference with these rich, delicious eggs. Find Tubby Creek Farm eggs, $5 for a dozen at the Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market.
Greens
Gracious Garden at New Salem Farm is one of the few farms in town that offers fresh greens and lettuces all summer long. Fresh arugula, spinach, mesclun mix, Russian kale, and baby swiss chard — at $5 per bag — are a few of the leafy green offerings they have weekly at the Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market.
Goat cheese
Jim and Gayle Tanner of Bonnie Blue Farm produce award-winning farmstead cheeses from their herd of Nubian and Saanen dairy goats. Every week, they head to the Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market from Waynesboro, Tennessee to sell a selection of their tasty cheeses. SB Tip: The feta and aged cheeses, like the Tanasi Tomme, are not to be overlooked! The fresh chevre, available in either logs or 5.5-ounce tubs for $6.75 each, is their most popular cheese.
TREATS
Jams and jellies
Juanita Jones has been making her famous jams, jellies and preserves at her family farm for well over a decade. Jones Orchard jams and jellies are made in very small batches from their farm-fresh produce at the peak of ripeness for the best fruit flavor. Choose from flavors such as strawberry, blackberry, peach, apple and blackberry. Pick up your favorite flavor, $5 for an eight-ounce jar, at the Memphis Farmers Market or the Agricenter Farmers Market.
Frozen treats
Mama D’s sells homemade popsicles each week at the Memphis Farmers Market. Look for refreshing and tasty flavors such as strawberry lemonade, chocolate sea salt, Key lime pie and mango. Across town at the Germantown Farm Park Farmers Market on Thursdays, they also offer a selection of their famous Italian Ice to help cool you down. Mama D’s homemade popsicles are $4 each or two for $7.
Popcorn
Wolf River Popcorn makes sweet and salty popcorn snacks that are howlin’ good! They offer classic flavors like caramel corn and white cheddar, as well as a fun Memphis mix with a hint of smoky BBQ seasoning — choose from either mild or spicy. At the Memphis Farmers Market, a one-quart bag is $5.
Bagels
Dave’s Bagels serves up New York-style bagels every Saturday at the Memphis Farmers Market. Founder Dave Scott offers a wide selection that includes plain, everything, poppy seed, sesame, whole wheat and more, as well as Bialys and Pretzels. Get there early! His perfectly made bagels — with a chewy center and a crisp crust — sell out quickly. Find Dave’s New York-style bagels, $8 for a bag of 4, at the Memphis Farmers Market.
FOR THE HOUSE
Plants
Willow Oaks Farms sells everything you need for your home garden. From flowering plants to herbs and vegetables, this Brownsville, Tennessee-based farmer has you covered. Look for their booth every Saturday at The Memphis Farmers Market.
Whitton Farms flowers
Jill Forrestor of Whitton Farms sells some of the most beautiful local flowers alongside their delicious Arkansas-grown produce. Grown only with sun, water, healthy soil and love, Jill’s gorgeous bouquets will make you ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ with their stunning beauty. Find your favorite arrangement, starting at $10, at the Memphis Farmers Market.
Delta Sol flowers
In Midtown at the Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market, Delta Sol Farm is your source for beautiful, locally grown flowers. Brandon Pugh grows a stunning array of flowers on his family farm located in the heart of the rich fertile lands of the Arkansas Delta.
Cleaning products
So Fresh and So Green is a local company making all-natural and organic cleaning products to help keep homes happy and healthy. Their line of non-toxic cleaners includes a citrus-based solution called “Everything” that is perfect for cleaning just about any surface. They also offer a product specifically for cleaning glass and another one just for cleaning stone surfaces. Find So Fresh and So Green products like the Everything solution, one bottle for $6 and two bottles for $10, at the Memphis Farmers Market.
Aprons
Carolyn Dodson-King of Dodson Farms sells the cutest aprons you can find in town. Her lovely aprons are one-of-a-kind creations made with vintage fabric accents. Pick up one for yourself as well as one for a hostess gift. And while you are at her booth at the Memphis Farmers Market, also check out her line of jams and jellies. The mimosa flavor tastes like sunshine!
FOR THE DOG
All-natural treats
And don’t forget Fido! Farm House Barkery sells all-natural dog treats for your favorite pet. Using whole grains, fruits, vegetables and all-natural peanut butter, this line of treats will keep your pup begging for more. Find an eight-ounce bag of Farm House Barkery dog treats for $6 each at the Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market.
Here’s a list of the four largest farmers markets in the Memphis-area:
The Memphis Farmers Market is located at Central Station near the corner of South Front Street at GE Patterson in the Historic South Main District in Downtown Memphis. It is open Saturdays, April through November, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., rain or shine.
The Cooper-Young Community Farmers Market is located at 1000 South Cooper Street in Midtown Memphis in the parking lot of the First Congo Church. It is open Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., year-round.
The Agricenter Farmers Market is located at 7777 Walnut Grove Road in East Memphis. Open six days each week during the peak growing season, May through October. Hours of operation are Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The Germantown Farm Park Farmers Market is located at 2660 Cross Country Drive in Germantown. It is open Thursdays, June through August, 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., rain or shine.
**********
Keep up with even more of our favorite FINDS. Follow us on Instagram at @StyleBlueprintMemphis.
