Berry's Produce

One of my favorite things about spring is the re-emergence of farmers' markets and roadside vegetable stands!  

Richmond is sorely lacking in this department.  One weekend last summer Dave and I went downtown to the famous 17th Street Farmers' Market and there were like 3 booths there, and only one had vegetables.  Said vegetables had Dole and Chiquita labels on them.  WTF.

Chesterfield Berry Farm is a trek for us, but it is one of the rare places in this town where you can get strawberries in the spring and pumpkins in the fall (even if they also carry Dole and Chiquita "home-grown" products in their markets.  Last weekend, Dave and I hit up their new market in the old Memories Galore (RIP) space at Brandermill.  Dave wanted to find some fresh cilantro and I wanted some strawberries.  We found both, but I was very disappointed in the quality of both.

I didn't take any pictures (you're welcome) of the wilted strawberries with gnats flying all around, or the wilted flowers gracing the sidewalk out front.  Sure, their prices are great!  But, you get what you pay for, I guess.  We won't be back.

So since that was a bust, Sunday morning I headed out to Mechanicsville to my most favorite vegetable stand, Berry's Produce!  They are so friendly, always have a great selection of veggies, and everything looks so fresh, clean, and scrumptious!

I took a lap around the entire place to see what they had before I went crazy picking stuff up!  That was rough! :)  I had a menu planned in my head, so I knew I needed 2 baking potatoes, several small potatoes for a stew, strawberries, and some pecans if they had them.  And they delivered!  All locally grown, none sprayed, and great prices!

Everything is so nice and organized!

These guys tempted me, but I have to remain faithful to my kitchen windowsill variety :)

$2.50 a quart!

89 cents a pound, what?

In addition to their veggies, they have a great selection of herbs, flowers, and yard accessories like flags and rain gauges.  I just love this place.  It's a bit of a distance from south side, but it's worth it to get locally grown vegetables with great customer service.  Plus it's just fun to get in the car and take a road trip with the windows down and music blaring on a lovely, breezy Sunday morning.  That's my church! :)

Check them out on Facebook and visit their website to see the very famous visitor they welcomed last summer. I hope their business booms this year from the publicity of that visit! Love this place and they deserve it! :)