Is it better than Soulard's? Yes.

During a recent trip to Kansas City, Missouri, I had a chance to check out their farmer's market and boy, have they got St. Louis beat.  I guess St. Louis could have had a better farmer's market had they kept the large market open, where the Drury used to be downtown.  I know we have the Soulard market, but it pales in comparison to KC's market.

According to the flyer, the City Market of Kansas City was founded in 1857.  This spot was used for everything from trading, farmer's selling goods, horse shows, medicine shows and even circuses.  There are as many as 100 different stalls for people to enjoy at this market.  What I like about this farmer's market, is that the buildings are set up so they can be both indoor and outdoor.  It would be as if the sellers at Soulard's market would open up the doors behind them to allow fresh air and people to come from all sides to purchase their foods and goods.  The City Market has about 10,000 square feet of space for sellers.  The buildings are old, and one side has two stories and the other has one.  So, if you were to walk inside a random building, you would see a large garage door to your right, that opens up to the back of an outside vendor's area.  In the middle is a large walkway and on the left is a store.  It could be described as a strip mall, with a permanent awning and giant garage door on the other side, to allow for more open-air room for stalls.

I enjoyed seeing this large space for vendors and farmers and thought of how St. Louis, or in particular, Soulard cannot accomplish this because it is land-locked into a tight space.  The City Market also has a decent sized parking area.  It would be like building a market in a horse-shoe pattern of buildings and using the space in the middle as parking.  They even had covered walkways for you to access towards your car.

This is an image of this guy who I will refer to as the "Spice Trader.  This man spoke English and Arabic and had to have over 10 pounds of every spice you can think of or not even imagine.  He had whole star anise, cinnamon sticks and curry powder mixes.  He had every spice that you would need or even want for every cuisine imaginable.  Because, whatever his clients need, he gets so he can get their business.  His prices were cheap as well and we stocked up on spices and took them on the trip home.

You can also see by the way that the structure is made, that by that garage door being there, it not only brings in natural light, but also allows for this seller to have more room.  Opposite of his stand, is a store, specializing in dried fruits and also has many Middle Eastern goods and foods.

So, the bottom line, can St. Louis make a market like this so large and easy for people to access?  Yes.  Will they?  No.  I figure that no one wants to make a farmer's market that could compete with Soulard because of its historical significance and the possibility of causing it to close or run out of business.  So, unless people near to the market come up with some ideas to extend it and make it bigger and better without hurting it, St. Louis may always be stuck with a small farmer's market.

What did you miss this past Friday?

This Friday was the first time that there was a food and wine festival/fair at The Market Place in Columbia.  It started as an idea of one of the employees, Kathy, and turned into a great walk, through the store.

It all started with a sample of some chocolate covered strawberries and some wine sampling.

 

Then there was a large buffet set out of snacks and desserts.  They had baklava, mini chocolate eclairs, cheese and crackers, along with toasted ravioli and some savory things as well.

This table has some frozen smoothie mix.  It had no added sugars or even HFCS and the gentleman was giving out these little sample glasses.  I tasted the strawberry smoothie and was great.  They come frozen and can last for several weeks upon opened.  You just add ice and they are ready.  

 

They had some poppyseed dressing and a nice salad for sampling.

Would you like some crab ragoon or toasted ravioli?  It is interesting to note that all of these items are sold at this Market Place store, so everything you can try, you can buy anytime.

Fruit flavored vodkas and chocolate flavored wine.  Let me tell you though, for me, a chocoholic, that chocolate wine tastes like a badly flavored Bailey's Irish Cream.  The chocolate flavor is only slightly there.  If you want the same thing, buy some generic vodka and add 1 tablespoon of chocolate milk.  The chocolate flavor is not rich or even very lasting.

 

Here we have some cookies and some yogurt.  I think the reps were from General Mills and they were happy to give my kids yogurt and even happier when they liked it.

The last table we passed had some sweet beers and wines and overall was delicious.  The things offered at this table could beat the chocovine, out of the water in an instant.

I think the best thing of the night was the chocolate covered strawberries and those pre-frozen smoothies.  The wines were good, cookies were good and the food from the deli, showing off their buffet, was good as well.  It was a highly enjoyable evening and it looked to be a successful one.  I hope there are many more in the future.