Ah, Phoenix-area farmers’ markets in the fall. Fresh produce, locally made goods, hot food, entertainment … and masks, sanitizer stations, and signs reminding you to please stay six feet from others. Our farmers’ markets might look a little different this fall — many are also taking orders in advance for curbside pickup — but they’re open for (socially distanced) strolling and shopping.
Ahwatukee Farmers’ Market
4700 East Warner Road
Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Sundays
The bounty of produce displayed across the tables in the parking lot of the Ahwatukee Community Swim & Tennis Center during the Ahwatukee Farmers’ Market never fails to impress. Beets, bell peppers, heirloom purple sweet potatoes, and kale neighbor lobster mushrooms and locally made jams with foraged ingredients. Frequent vendors include Prickly Pear Tea Co., YoBro Foods, Copper State Bread, and Oasis Gardens Farms.
Anthem Farmers’ Market
41703 North Gavilan Peak Parkway, Anthem
Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays
The setting for the Anthem Farmers’ Market is the lush Anthem Community Park, which is well-known for its veterans’ memorial monument and fishing pond. Arizona vendors including JH Beef, Big Red’s Hot Sauce, Los Muertos Salsa, Pork on a Fork, Desert Willow Botanicals, Pasta Pasta, and Mama’s Cold Brew often set up shop. Visitors can always find plenty of seasonal produce, along with less ubiquitous items like apricots, Asian pears, garlic, and l’itoi onions.
Carefree Farmers’ Market
101 Easy Street, Carefree
Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fridays
Situated at the Sundial in Carefree, the Carefree Farmers’ Market is known for being really cheesy — in the most literal and best possible way. Local purveyors (usually Arizona farms) offer sheep’s milk cheese, goat’s milk cheese, and a cornucopia of garlic-and-something cheese curds (including garlic and dill and garlic and black pepper). Seasonal produce sits alongside goods from local vendors like Carol’s Delectables (homegrown and homemade jams), The Brownie Baker, Flavors of France, and Claudine’s Kitchen.
Chandler Farmers’ Market
3 South Arizona Avenue, Chandler
Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays
Five growers help supply the Chandler Farmers’ Market at Chandler Park with fresh fruits and vegetables: Black Orchard Farms, Community Exchange Table, Kelly Farms, Oasis Gardens Farms, and TigerMountain Foundation. They join a long list of local vendors which includes Southwest Mushrooms, Doctor Hummus, Twin Suns Coffee, Almond Flour Baking Co., Nana’s Homemade Tortillas, Sun Valley Bees, The Juice Kitchen, and Bad Dog Salsa. So yeah, a little bit of everything.
Cosmic Vegans
7145 North 58th Drive, Glendale
Hours: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 10 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 to 10 p.m. Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays
All vegan things are possible at Cosmic Vegans marketplace and restaurant: nachos, BLTs, tuna melts, barbecue, hot wings, and even vegan birria. These are dished out by various Valley food trucks and restaurants, including Trash Panda Vegan, Papi’s Latin Cuisine, and AZ Tacos Veganos. There’s huge diversity among products and vendors, and Cosmic Vegans has become a community hub for many local black-owned businesses, including Projects Roots AZ community gardens. A DJ and dance battles level up the atmosphere.
Gilbert Farmers Market
222 North Ash Street, Gilbert
Hours: 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays
More than 100 vendors fill downtown Gilbert in the fall for the Gilbert Farmers’ Market, where shoppers graze over Arizona goods and produce beneath the town’s iconic water tower and listen to local bands strum along. Frequent farmers and ranchers include Rhiba Farms, Blue Sky Organic Farm, and Double Check Ranch, while a mass of vendors offers everything from beer to waffles. What’s more, a fleet of food trucks is usually parked nearby.
Grandma’s Farm
8888 South 19th Avenue
Hours: 3 to 6 p.m. Wednesdays, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays
Grandma’s Farm is a 15-acre sustainable farm focused on 100-percent organic produce and free-range eggs. Its egg selection includes duck and goose eggs while its chicken egg selection has included white, brown, and even green varieties. Seasonal produce for fall lists 43 different fruits, vegetables, and herbs — from arugula to turnip greens. Honey (regular and raw) and various gourds, seeds, and feathers round out the family farm’s vast offerings.
Greenhouse Gardens
13013 East Chandler Heights Road, Chandler
Hours: 9 a.m. to noon Sundays
The pesticide- and chemical-free crops from Greenhouse Gardens come in a rainbow of colors as bright as the Arizona sun: golden sunflowers, deep-purple eggplant, bright-green zucchini, soft-pink radishes, ruby-red tomatoes, and orange habanero peppers packing heat. Lists of available produce are posted every week on the Greenhouse Gardens Facebook page, along with photos and announcements of non-food vendors.
Farmers’ Market on High Street
Loop 101 and 56th Street, Scottsdale
Hours: 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Sundays
The Farmers’ Market on High Street is kind of like a mini block party wrapped into a micro-market. More than 100 food vendors, goods merchants, and entertainers wrap around the block near Loop 101 and 56th Street in north Scottsdale. Find things like essential oils, small-batch chocolates, pasta sauces, and handmade charcuterie boards.
Mesa Farmers’ Market
526 East Main Street, Mesa
Hours: 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays
The 18-acre Pioneer Park plays host to the Mesa Farmers’ Market every weekend, entertaining hundreds of visitors perusing a bevy of produce from Schnepf Farms in Queen Creek. There’s also hot food from places like What the Cluck, Chilte Tacos, and The Nile vegan café. Pop-up vendors have included artisans like Salt River Rock Design. Pioneer Park’s picnic areas and innovative playgrounds invite families to make it a day at the market.
Old Town Scottsdale Farmers’ Market
3806 North Brown Avenue, Scottsdale
Hours: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays
Now in its 11th year, the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers’ Market brings more than 100 local vendors to the grassy, sculptured lawns near the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art to enjoy freshly baked bread, local citrus, and free-range eggs and beef. Free underground parking is available nearby on Second Street.
Peoria Night Market
9744 West Northern Avenue
Hours: 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesdays
Park West now hosts the weekly Peoria Night Market, a new opportunity for outdoor produce shopping open since early October. Food vendors will include TJ Farms, Cormany Farms, Gary’s Greens, Heart to Home Elderberry, Squarz Pies, Brother’s Jerky, Los Muertos Salsa, and more. Food trucks are also around, including Raimondo’s Catering and Lulu’s Sorbetto.
Power Road Farmers’ Market
4011 South Power Road, Mesa
Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays
In operation for more than 50 years, the Power Road Farmers’ Market has developed strong relationships with local vendors to stock its shelves and bins with the freshest seasonal produce. Think homemade candy, jams, and sauces, and honey.
Roadrunner Park Farmers’ Market
3502 East Cactus Road
Hours: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays
There’s always ample free parking and a lot of activity around the Roadrunner Park Farmers’ Market. The park’s duck pond and huge grassy lawns attract plenty of people and pups, as the farmers’ market is canine-friendly. Starting in 1989, this is one of the oldest neighborhood markets in the Valley, and while there’s rarely room for new vendors, there always seems to be something new at the 100-percent local booths.
Singh Meadows
1490 East Weber Drive, Tempe
Hours: 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Fridays, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays
All the products at Singh Meadows are grown or made in Arizona. Singh Meadows’ honey is usually the star, but recently the farm’s been selling oyster and chanterelle mushrooms to rave reviews. Fresh watercress, broccoli, kale, lettuce, gold potatoes, collard greens, red onions, and apples are just a few of the other organic offerings at this indoor market.
Spaces of Opportunity
1200 West Vineyard Road
Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays
Spaces of Opportunity is a community and urban incubator farm that is a growing presence in one of Phoenix’s former food-desert neighborhoods. Its farmers’ market offers all homemade goods and locally grown produce from small vendors and micro-farmers, including Nana’s Cookies, Project Roots AZ, Busy Bees Raw Wildflower Honey, Desert Marigold, and Anna’s Flowers of Arizona.
Superstition Ranch Farmers’ Market
4755 East Main Street, Mesa
7 North 114th Street, Apache Junction
Hours: 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sundays The Superstition Ranch Farmers’ Market indoor market (and something of a grocery store) have been selling locally grown produce for more than 50 years. The contents of its modest produce sections depend on what’s in season and local but have included pomegranates, cantaloupe, watermelon, three kinds of squash, lettuce, green onions, cucumbers, and apples.
Tempe 6th Street Market
24 East Sixth Street, Tempe
Hours: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sundays
Launched in 2016, the Tempe 6th Street Market serves as a showcase for local artisans and food vendors. Visitors can feast on goods from Indulge Irresponsibly vegan bakery, Jones Family Kitchen, and YUM Allergy-Friendly Bakery, or try samples from Precious Sauces and Artisan Treats. Visitors can also snag takeout dishes from Constantino’s Kitchen, Guac Girl, Maui Wowi Hawaiian, and Pura Vida Grinds.
Tempe Farmers’ Market
805 South Farmer Avenue, Tempe
Hours: 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily
Though known for its coffee bar and smoothies, Tempe Farmers’ Market also has a small selection of local produce and mostly Arizona products via its indoor market. Thinks hot sauces, teas and coffee, and snacks. Plus, there’s a vegan deli boasting burritos, pastas, and salads.I SUPPORT
Uptown Farmers’ Market
5757 North Central Avenue
Hours: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays, 9 a.m. to noon Wednesdays
Twice a week, the parking lot at North Phoenix Baptist Church is transformed into the Uptown Farmers’ Market. The spread hosts more than 60 booths and some of the state’s biggest farms, including McClendon’s Select, Superstition Farm, Double Check Ranch, and TigerMountain Foundation. Some of Phoenix’s best-known artisan food makers are often on hand, like Noble Bread, The Tamale Store, Peanut Butter Americano, Doctor Hummus, and Big Red’s Hot Sauce.
Verrado Community Farmers’ Market
West Main Street and North Market Place, Buckeye
Hours: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays
Sundays in the fall at Verrado Town Square mean it’s time for the Verrado Community Farmers’ Market. The smells of coffee and popcorn kick off a walkabout of vendors offering artisanal bread, fresh seafood, locally grown produce, teas, chocolate, and more.
Written By: NIKI D’ANDREA