Westside Community Market

Fresh spring green onions from Ka Vang Thao

Tender Stalks & Resilient Hearts

What keeps us going? What keeps us growing? 

In these difficult times, a lot of us are asking these kinds of questions. When many of the joys of jumping into summer are subdued, what keeps vibrancy in our lives?

To say we had the answers would be a pile of fertilizer fit for the fields, rather than the market. Yet we see some clues around us each week as we venture out with our masked faces.

Bunches of fresh spring onions and pungent mint cover the table at Ka Vang Thao's booth, tempting the eyes and nose at once. It's something so fresh, that it's worth getting yourself out of the house early on Saturday mornings. 

A few aisles over, a market goer walks away from Emerald Meadows Family Farm with a basil start in hand. That precious little plant baby is off to a new home where a season of tender care will make it grow. It's potential condensed into a three-inch pot, just waiting to prove itself in the...

Maple syrup from Open Kettle Farms

Learning to Adapt Together

Three weeks into the market season and we're so thankful for the response from our customers and supporters. 

It's a different feeling at market this season as we learn to adjust to the new way of doing things. It feels like the first day at a new school, with different routes to learn and rules to follow. Still the good food and plants we come for are there, tasty and beautiful as ever. 

The sunshine on a spring market morning is better than any other day of the week stuck inside. While the masks may hide our smiles, the joy a fresh bag of Murphy Farms cheese curds bring is still clear. A bouquet of Lor Farm tulips is just as beautiful and appreciated, even from six feet apart. 

While we miss sharing some of the social elements of the market this year, we're proud to be open so you can take great food home and enjoy the social time with your household as you savor those tasty market finds. 

On a typical season,...

New mushroom extract offerings from Fungi Farmers

Ready to Get Growing Again

We loved having market ready for Mother's Day weekend. The snow fall on Mother's Day was a little less welcome. 

Thankfully it looks like we're rounding the spring bend here and a string of warm days and nights are headed our way. For all you green thumbs out there, that means it's finally time to get some more plants out into the garden. 

While we're shut away from many of our favorite activities this year, gardening is a great way to get outdoors and be active without a big social element to worry about. The market is here to help you out this season with an array of amazing plant vendors. 

Whether you're looking to pop in a few flowers to brighten things up or are going full bore on a vegetable garden this season, market vendors have you covered. 

Blue Moon Community Farm, Emerald Meadows Family Farm and Urban Gourmet offer a great selection of organic veggie starts to pick from, and if you're looki...

Welcome new vendor Driftless Chocolate, just in time for Mother's Day!

Mother's Day Weekend!

We're so grateful to have market back up and running for Mother's Day weekend. There's no better place to find those gifts you've been looking for to say thanks to the moms in your life. 

For some, the answer is a hanging floral basket to liven up the home space. Our greenhouse growers Emery Horning, Country Bloomer's, Kopke's Greenhouse and Natalie's Garden & Greenhouse are here to serve those needs. 

If bouquets are more in line, we're happy to welcome back Lor Farm this weekend with a lovely selection of spring tulips to share. 

Maybe the mom in your life is Wisconsin through and through and would enjoy a bag of fresh Murphy Farms cheese curds or some tasty goat cheese from Dreamfarm.

The market is great for Mother's Day shopping with so many options to consider. Speaking of options, we're happy to say even more of our vendors are now...

Market Returns This Saturday!

Get your ornamentals for spring planting this weekend!

Running a Safe Market with Your Help

After weeks of preparation, we're finally ready to open our arms back up to our market community. Of course, in the age of COVID-19, those arms will be waving only from at least a six foot distance. 

Before we all return to shopping for our favorites, we have to acknowledge that this is a different and difficult time for farmers' markets. Farmers have lost access to many venues to get their products out there. Many farmers have lost restaurant sales, are facing market delays or closures and with the timeline to return to normal uncertain, planning for the future is difficult. 

Bringing the farmers' market back is key for many farmers to remain viable. It's key for our market community as well, with access to safe, healthy, local food more important than ever. It's that core value that we'll hold onto this season as we adapt to a different atmosphere at the Westside...

May flowers & the beauty to look forward to

 Just a Little More Time in the Oven

As we work towards getting open for the 2020 season, we feel much like the metaphorical roast waiting to be set upon the dinner table. 

We've been working so hard to get all the elements right to lay a delicious feast before our guests. But before we can sit down to eat, it must be cooked through and safe to enjoy. 

That's where we're at with the market season: the table is set, the guests are hungry and all that remains is that final check that'll let us know it's safe to eat. 

Early May is looking to be when the dinner bell will be rung, perhaps as soon as next weekend. We won't get your hopes up with an exact date too soon, but when we're given the all clear, we'll be ready to go. 

While we wait for those finishing details, we encourage you all to be proactive in planning for your 2020 market trips during these changed times. 

Perhaps that means planning out your shopping more than usual this season...

Dreams of morels to come

A Different Season for A Different Age

When we said goodbye to you all at the end of the 2019 market season, we never thought we'd be where we are now. 

Instead of tantalizing you with what you can expect from the opening day of the market season, we must instead tell you that the season is delayed. Rather than catching up with friends, vendors, musicians and more this weekend, we have to delay those happy reunions until we can all come together again in a safe manner. 

The good news is that we've been working hard to get going, despite the unprecedented circumstances keeping us apart for now. It's an age where creativity, compassion and patience are being held in high esteem. Farmers' markets around the country are adapting, we're one of them. 

Right now we're pursuing multiple routes to connect our customers and our vendors. We hope that soon, we'll be able to do that back at our home behind the UW Digestive Health Center. Whether in a safely designed walkab...

 Beautiful winter squash from Happy Valley Farm

One Last Hurrah

Through wind, rain, heat & snow, we've braved all sorts of weather to bring you the best in fresh food, produce and flowers this market season. 

Now we are down to one final market day to load up on our favorites before we put the market to rest for the winter. 

We'll have a smaller group of vendors for the final week, but there's still plenty to take home and stock up on. So load up on Ten Eyck Orchard apples (pictured) or the tasty chicken from JenEhr Family Farm. There's still time to get your favorite cheese from Dreamfarm or some of their wool to keep you busy knitting through the cold months. 

A little snow on the ground is nothing to fret over when the reward is Murphy Farms cottage cheese or fresh fennel from Emerald Meadows Family Farm.  We'll be bundled up, with thoughts of roasted sweet potatoes from Blue Moon Community Farm to give us the inner warmth we need. Thoughts of sweet potato...

Red cabbage beauties from Natalie's Garden & Greenhouse

A Pair of Aces

They say a light frost can make the carrots sweeter. Is there a saying to accompany several inches of snow? We sure could use some uplifting line about now. 

Brushing, or shoveling, aside the crazy weather this week, we're still very pumped to have two more markets to share with everyone before we call it a season.

Two weeks is enough time to load up on the fresh produce, like big daikon radishes from Sai's Garden (pictured). It's enough time to buy a crate of the enormous beets from Happy Valley Farm or so much squash from County Line Plants & Produce that you'll be able to skip that next workout. 

While we still have two weeks today, this Saturday is your last chance to get your fresh and dried cranberries from Wetherby Cranberry Co, as they can't make it for our last market. 

Speaking of last chances, tonight is your last chance to vote for us in Madison Magazine's Best of Madi...

Yang Family Produce has some great fall raspberries

A Trip to Market - All Treats, No Tricks

What a beautiful fall market morning we enjoyed last Saturday!

The brisk morning warmed around us as we grabbed our favorites from our end of season vendors. Munching on Murphy Farms cheese curds and scones from Chris & Lori's Bakehouse, we got to savor the day before us. 

The countdown to the end of the market season seems to make each morning more precious. 

With three markets to go, there's still time for you to load up on your go-to's, like Ten Eyck Orchard apples, or try something new, like duck eggs from Bryant Family Farm. Bonde Bee has a great deal this season for trick-or-treaters, with 50 packs of their honey sticks (pictured) to hand out on Halloween. What a great way to utilize something local, while giving the kids that sugar fix they're hunting for. 

As we wind down the season, we also wanted to remind everyone there's still time to vote f...