On almost any Monday or Thursday afternoon from May to December you can find healthy food at the Grove Street PATH plaza. You can also find a lot of other stuff, like dancers dancing with ears of corn, or singers performing. But the real treasure is the remarkably wide selection of eatables.
The farmer’s market is a program brought by Historic Downtown Special Improvement District at the Grove Street PATH Plaza. It opened in May 13 and will convene twice a week until Dec. 19, Mondays and Thursdays, 4 to 8 p.m.
The offerings include fruits, vegetables, pickles, olives, flowers, pastas, fresh readymade dinners, jam, honey, olive oil, assorted baked goods, lemonade, vegan specialty foods, empanandas, kettle corn, French pastries, fresh mozzarella, Mexican food, dried fruits and nuts.
Frank Appello of Bounatipasto, came all the way from The Bronx to take part in the Grove Street Farmers Market.
“We love Jersey City,” he said.
Boasting of the best sandwich in the world, Appello is part of this year’s crop of vendors offering their wares to people coming and going from the PATH Station on Grove Street Mondays and Thursdays from 4 to 8 p.m. Like many of the other vendors he started here in May and expects to continue until December.
Michelle Berckes of Busy Bee Organics has a strong local connection to Jersey City through family members, but always found that there seemed to be a scarcity of healthy food choices.
She started her business in May to provide quick but healthy food, made with wholesome ingredients. Some of her wares include things called Buffins, but there are salads and spreads, and honey. She said breakfast spreads sell best.
“I want to provide something that is healthy, but also tastes good,” she said, striving to bring back the flavor of food lost in the ordinary commercial market.
Good food, farmed or not
The term “farmer’s market” is deceptive, since a lot of the products offered are simply well made, such as the products from the Sea Food Shack, which actually started in mid-summer and became an instant hit.
Some booths like Blue Moon were extensions of a store elsewhere in Jersey City, and in this case offered samples of their wares with the hope of luring customers into that Mexican food establishment.
Stella’s Empanadas and Raritan’s Bakery offer baked products, but there are trucks such as the Cinnamon Snail, which apparently comes on Thursdays.
But there are others trucks and venues on both days such Mordi’s Schnitzel, Brooklyn Popcorn, and the Taco Truck.
Some choices are actually from farms such as Stony Hill Farms, which has a presence in many of Jersey City’s markets.
Peace. Love. Pops provides a cool alternative dessert on hot evenings.
For more information call (201) 547-3554 or visit www.jcdowntown.org.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.