Farm Friday: The market at Riverdale Farm

Name: Friends of Riverdale Farm Farmer’s Market
Location: Riverdale Park West, near the Simpson House
Date & Time: May 18 – Oct. 26, Tuesdays, 3-7
# of Booths: aprox. 25
Contact: 416.961.8787

Upon arriving at the Riverdale Farm Farmers’ Market, the first thing you notice is the shear number of vendors spread out along the path. It’s such a long line that even the volunteers joke about not knowing what’s going on down at the other end. New moms and strollers line the pathways, as well as the grass behind vendors’ booths, and the water park in the playground not far away. But it’s a diverse crowd; young couples, groups of twenty-somethings and older folks with walkers and carts to help them down the long path all their shopping bags with finds pointed out to them by their companions.

Making their way along the tree-lined path from booth to booth, market-goers are welcomed by musicians playing quiet songs, situated at either end of the path. By the time you can no longer hear the guitarist’s tune, you’re welcomed by the smell of berries and the upbeat melody of the violinist. The musicians are familiar from other markets; the guitarist is also known to play regularly at Dufferin Grove and the violinist is a regular at the Brick Works.

Riverdale Farmers’ Market is now in its tenth season and has grown to include an average of 25 vendors a week. With a full 30 on its roster, market days can be quite busy. It’s producer-based, so anyone selling at the market is required to have made 85% of the products on their table. With a focus on organic quality, all farmers and producers are inspected by the market manager and staff before they are accepted into the market, and routinely from year to year. Stall location is based on seniority, allowing returning vendors to choose their spot on market lane. The market also runs a Tasting Fair, basket raffles and cooking demos, not to mention the farm kitchen in the Simpson House, which provides refreshments and snacks baked in the community oven Tuesdays through Sundays, from 10am until 2pm. Also in the Simpson House is the farm’s shop, selling knick knacks and crafts, including some made by local artists.

Vendors such as JK Fries and Passion Popcorn from the Brick Works are in attendance, and if that doesn’t hit the spot for you, Best Baa farms (part of the Ewenity dairy co-op) serves up sheep milk cheese, yogurt, and fresh lamb cuts. Best Baa also sells ice cream, made of course from sheep’s milk, making them a hit at the market.

A unique vendor to Riverdale Farms is Exact Edge knife and tool sharpening. Charging by the size and type of blade, the sign on Denzil Miao’s booth reminds people to bring their knives week after week. Sharpening is done on-site, and Miao’s booth has all the tools needed to sharpen any type of blade.

It’s farmers’ markets like these that make shopping an enjoyable outing. Whether it’s tasting the new berry jam from Forbes’ Wild Foods or picking up a quart of fresh peaches or just chatting with neighbours, one can’t help but be welcomed in by the friendly atmosphere emanating from everyone at the market.

A trip to Riverdale Farms is incomplete without a saunter through the actual farm. Riverdale Farms is home to 7.5 acres of wooded areas, ponds, and animal barracks, housing cows, pigs, a donkey, horses, ducks, goats, and more. The farm itself is open year-round, from 9 am to 5pm, with free admission.