The Saturday farmers’ market in Madison, Wisconsin, is pretty famous. Visiting it was one of the highlights of our time there this weekend.
The market is held on the sidewalks of the capitol square. Dane County, where Madison is located, is a highly prosperous agricultural region. I rolled out of bed early Saturday and reached the market around 8, meeting up with our friends.
It was great to go shopping with them, as they know the market well and guided me to the stalls with the most delicious fruits, meats, and cheeses. Pears, apricots, and cherries are beginning to come in. And real home-grown tomatoes, not those fakey hydroponic ones.
While the Chicago markets offer as great a variety of produce (perhaps greater), the Madison market is more beautiful and homey. The crowd circulates around the square in one direction, slowly ambling past the cramped stalls, which are beautifully arranged. The vegetables, fruits, and flowers are lovely, their colors all the more dazzling on a perfect summer day.
As the morning advances, the crowd thickens and slows. There is plenty of time to admire what others have found.
Kids and their parents peel off to play or rest on the capitol grounds.
Across from the square, there are coffeehouses to frequent . . .
and craft vendors to patronize in the vicinity of State Street.
My husband had the foresight to pack a cooler, so we could take some perishables home. I ended up buying many items, including organic bacon and pork chops, apricots, heirloom tomatoes, Madison Sourdough pastries, tiny Brussels sprouts, spinach, and cave-aged cheeses.
Still savoring those market pleasures since our return home!
Harley says
Nice photos! I’ve been to that market, always arriving on the late side, around 11:00 am or so. Yes, by then it is very busy, but it’s so fun too see all the different stalls and items on display……..Mmmmmmmmm, the goodies you brought home sound scrumptious!
Celia says
Thanks for writing in–yes, everyone I know who’s been to this market loves it. The scale is perfect, and the setting is lovely! And last but not least the food is tasty. You find some stuff there that you’d find only in Wisconsin. Like brat patties (which a vendor told me people put right on top of a hamburger!).
Janet says
Yum.
Celia says
Everything was beautiful or delicious, or both.
Celia says
Except cheese curds:
“A cheese curd is an orangish cheese byproduct that feels like Silly Putty but tastes a lot better. It was invented accidentally by UW cheese scientists attempting to create an object of pure cholesterol that would still squeak. Rats who are fed this remarkable food develop an unusual capacity to polka and drink beer.”