Good Times at the Rocky Butte Farmers Market

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This past Saturday was the third installation of the 2021 season of the Rocky Butte Farmers Market, located on the Rocky Butte itself. I had attended the first market of the year but was very sick (thanks to adjusting to a new cancer drug) and couldn’t stay long; I was out of town for July’s market. So, I was really happy to be there in August—I had a great time and found some delicious and wonderful things.

Here are some of the tents and their setup in the very large parking lot at Mannahouse. It really helps when it comes to social distancing and good COVID protocols.

One of my favorite booths was Beech Street Community Garden’s. I was enticed by the peaches they were selling from Baird Family Orchard (I got a couple), but also the beautiful plants. I found two chili peppers—a Thai chili pepper (spicy) and a Lemon Drop chili pepper (citrusy)—and could not decide which one to buy. So, I bought them both—being such robust plants, at $5 each they were a steal.

I could not resist the tomatoes at Red Truck Homestead. I made a fantastic Caprese salad with the tomato.

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Two Mexican-food tables I stopped by were Revolución Cafe—cookies and Cafe de Olla coldbrew coffee—and La Comelona—jarred salsas. The coffee is sweetened with piloncillo sugar and there’s cinnamon in it, too. I had it over ice with heavy cream and it was delicious and satisfying. As for the salsa, I bought the Chile Negro, which imparts a pleasantly medium heat. I tried them all—including the Chile de Arbol (mild) and Chile Habanero (spicy)—and each had great flavor.

I also picked up some pumpkin bread and a lemon cake from Bishop & Son’s. They got eaten too quickly, so no photo. But I can tell you—their stuff is gooooood. Also, I was happy that TbeeS Honey had Meadowfoam honey available! If you haven’t had this honey, you are missing out. It has flavors of vanilla and marshmallow—very unique. It’s my absolute favorite.

It really was a nice morning. Everyone was in a good mood, there was a broad variety of offerings, and it felt great to be there. Parking was also super easy. Kudos to the market staff, who managed a very enjoyable market.