Issue link: http://www.wacmagazine.com/i/697572
12 | Washington Athletic Club Magazine | JULY / AUGUST 2016 { dining guide } For some people, Sunday is a time of worship; a day to relax; or a time to run errands, finish up chores, and gather friends to watch sports on the flat-screen TV. For me, it's the day I take my socially accepted, eco-friendly grocery bag and explore my local farmers market. FAR M E R S MARKETS Where taste and inspiration meet for a snack Popular Seattle Farmers Markets Snack, shop and sample at farmers markets around town. Here are a few of the best seasonal and year-round greengrocers. Columbia City Neighborhood • Wednesdays; 3–7 pm • Through October 12 • 37th Ave S. & S. Edmunds St. U-District Neighborhood • Saturdays; 9 am–2 pm • Year-round • University Way NE between 50th & 52nd St. Ballard Neighborhood • Sundays; 10 am–3 pm • Year-round • Ballard Ave. NW between Vernon Place & 22nd Ave. NW to 22nd Ave. NW between Ballard Ave. & NW Market St. By Richard G. Delgado, WAC Sous-Chef No matter how many times I go, I feel a buzz in the air every time I arrive. The sounds of customers and vendors jarring about the best deals mix with buskers' instruments and the smell of hot food coming off the grill. Visually, a rainbow of colors peppers the senses. Produce in vibrant greens, reds and orange pop from inside their shaded tents. Beets, leeks, cabbage, scallions, kale, sweet peas, butter lettuce, asparagus, and herbs so fragrant they slice right through the smell of those grilled lamb gyros one stall over. Farmers markets are a community hub and a place to meet friends, bring your children, and get a taste of small-town life in the big city. As you move from vendor to vendor, you feel as if you're being personally invited to a dozen different farms. Here, sustainability isn't a buzzword. It's a way of life. The flavors that come from such love and passion for food are simply unmatched by mainstream grocery stores. The variety of produce is also unequaled. You'd be hard-pressed to find purple cauliflower, stinging nettles, and watermelon radish at a chain grocer. The great thing about all those choices is the inspiration they ignite, inspiration I carry not only into my Sunday dinner but also into the dishes we create here at the WAC. When you know where your food comes from, you care a little bit more about how you cook it. And when you care, it always tastes better.