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Saturday Visit to Green City Closed Almost Eight Months of Local Food Outside
Green City Market is a leader in the Chicago farmers market community. And by extending its schedule to the first weekend in April through the Saturday before Thanksgiving a couple of years ago, it also has the longest outdoor season among Chicago region markets.
I dropped in on Saturday (November 23) to give myself closure for the outdoor market season, which I will miss waiting for spring to roll around. While the city's weather can deliver just about anything in late November, this Saturday closely matched the season opener back on April 6 : It was chilly, parka-friendly, set among trees that were mostly bare of leaves or heading in that direction.
If you are a regular at Green City Market (as I've been for more than a dozen years), never fear. Their indoor market is returning for its 3rd consecutive year at 3031 N. Rockwell in Chicago's Avondale neighborhood. The market will start on December 7 (8 a.m. to 1 p.m.) with a three-week run of Saturdays, then after a two-week holiday break will return on January 11 and will be open every Saturday through March 22.
In the meantime, here's my last outdoor market haul of 2024. Not surprisingly, it leans heavily into my Thanksgiving cooking plans. Surrounding the cranberries purchased from Ellis Family Farms (Benton Harbor, Michigan) is a lot of stuff — Empire apples, onions, Yukon Gold potatoes, sweet potatoes, parsnips and brussels sprouts — from my friends at Nichols Farm & Orchard (Marengo, Illinois). To the right are tomatoes and parsley from Smits Farms (Chicago Heights, Illinois) and a pork steak from Jake's Country Meats (Cassopolis, Michigan), for when I need a break from poultry.