This Market Asks, 'Are You Ready for Some Foosball?'
The Farmer at the Green brings some unique touches to the farmers market scene
Bring on the Sun, This Market’s Ready for Fun
The Farmer at the Green is the brand-new farmers market presented by BMO Bank. It opened Tuesday afternoon in the lovely park adjacent to BMO’s 50-story, two-year-old office tower in Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood.
There are several unique touches for this new entry in our region’s busy farmers market scene. First, the park in which it operates (on Tuesdays from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. through October) brings some much needed green space to the heavily developed area, a block away from Union Station. (The park’s formal name is The Green at 320, referring to its address at 320 S. Canal St.)
Next, if the mood strikes, shoppers can step inside the BMO building to dine or drink at the Canal Street Eatery & Market or Afterbar. And, in an extreme rarity for our area’s farmers markets, attendees will be able to purchase adult beverages in non-glass containers to enjoy while browsing the market.
But what makes this market one of a kind, as far as I’ve experienced, is this…
Yes, The Farmer at the Green is the only farmers market I’ve ever attended that has a foosball table. Oh, and…
… a ping pong table. There is also a basket of blankets for those who want to picnic or bask on the lawn.
Alas, there was no basking for The Farmer at the Green’s opener, a chilly, cloudy day as Chicago’s faux spring has dragged into May. (Take heart, Chicago, the forecast shows temps in the low 60s by tomorrow and pushing 70 over the first market-heavy weekend of the outdoor growing season.)
It is easy to see the market’s potential as a warm-weather gathering spot though. With the market, the park-like setting, musicians scheduled to perform live, the restaurant and bar patios beckoning people to linger, and a commuter-friendly location so near Union Station and Ogilvie Transportation Center — not to mention those foosball and ping pong tables — I’ll venture a prediction that The Farmer at the Green will emerge as a lively scene.
In the meantime, here are some more photos from Day One.
Market Manager Mandy Kochan (left) and public relations rep Liz Kores.
We’re still very early in the local produce season, but familiar market names such as Jacobson Family Farms of Antioch, Illinois (top) and Star Farm Chicago had tables full of good stuff.
Bread lovers could choose from beautiful loaves fresh baked by Canal St. Eatery and bagels or challah loaves from Zeitlin’s Delicatessen (both Chicago).
Here’s what I hauled home: plain and sesame bagels and (be still my New York Jewish heart) a black-and-white cookie from Zeitlin’s; a whole wheat baguette from Canal St. Eatery; potatoes from Jacobson; and asparagus from Lyons Fruit Farm (Fennville, Michigan).