Eastbank Farmer’s Market

There’s nothing like finding a farmer’s market when you aren’t looking for one. Am I right? Of course I am. I was out for a walk and saw a sign for the Farmer’s Market over on Salmon from 3−7pm. Yes, I went over. I was about to fire up the grill and I thought some fresh veggies could be a good thing to have with beef kilbasa.
As many of you know, this is a smaller market but there were still some good options. Fresh goats milk cheeses, a vegan chocolate maker, Olympic Provisions, New Deal Distillery, a spot cooking up vegetarian Asian bowls, two different produce vendors, smoked salmon and Great Harvest Bread Company. The goats milk folks had several different cheeses and even a goats milk caramel to try. The bowl folks had food plus sauces for sale, New Deal had vodka and gin samples to taste, OP had their usual array of meats, plus hot dogs, brats and kilbasa to try (those were really good, except the price), the produce vendors mostly had greens. I was looking for some fresh tomatoes, neither had any. The smoked salmon was really great, I think they had catfish as well.
My new favorite however is Great Harvest Bread Co. Asiago sourdough bread and spinach feta cheese bread were just unbelievable! They rotate specialty flavors and I just happen to pick the right day to be there. Lucky me. I took a round of the spinach feta cheese and cut some slices, added some olive oil and put them on the grill. That was so goooooooooooooood.
I know there are other markets around Portland, and eventually I’ll make it out to the PSU one, but when you have one only five minutes walking distance? Can’t beat that.
Enjoy.

Upon entering the Eastbank Farmer’s Market you can’t help but noticed the number of children dangling from a nearby tree and some clinging for dear life on a wired fence. They’re less than 5 years old, everything is big. You got to give them credit to being adventurous.
The marketplace is small, but it packs a great deal of fantastic produce booth. There are approximately 4 – 5 that have a wide variety of choices, the others are more specialized. Don’t spend all your money at one stand, buy a little here and there. You’ll be glad you did.
The sellers are very friendly and knowledgeable about their harvest.
If you’re hungry there’s a great Mexican food stand, it’s out of this world. If you’re not adventurous, there’s always other options: Italian, etc. Wine for those who need something to wash down the food. Of course, there are lots of bread and cookie stands around.
My favorite has to be the mushroom stand. They demo their mushroom by cooking small morsels for you to try. It’s delicious.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this market.

With an incredibly convenient location, the weekly Eastbank Farmer’s Market keeps close-​in Portlanders who live in the Hawthorne, Belmont, and Buckman neighborhoods well supplied with fresh fruits and vegetables.
And, although this market is a fraction of the size of its downtown sibling, it’s got all the essentials every Thursday from 3:30 — 7:30.