Farmers Market Offers Fresh Food Every Saturday

The Sayville Farmers Market has been open in its new location for a few weeks now and while business is picking up, a few of its vendors feel it isn't getting the same attention that it was on Main Street.

The new site, directly across from the Sayville train station, seems like an ideal location; however, most of the traffic heading over to Fire Island on the weekends goes straight from the train to the taxi down to the ferries.

"It's a different crowd here," said one of the representatives of Papa's Farm on Connetquot Avenue in North Great River. "It's a lot of commuters and weekenders but they just don't seem to have the time to browse at the market. They are basically trained to get off the train and head straight for the ferry. Hopefully in time, that mentality will change."

This is the second year the Farmers Market has been open. It was formerly located in the Carvel parking lot. The market is open every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the summer months. "We are missing that drive-by traffic this year," said Greg Sandor of Bridge Vineyards in Mattituck. "We hope through more marketing and more word of mouth, the word will get out."

Despite these small obstacles, the market is pouring with fresh, organic produce, locally baked breads, handpicked flowers, fresh seafood catches and more. Funded through the Town of Islip and organized by Ken Mangan, the market offers the perfect opportunity to bring nutritional products to Sayville as well as support local businesses.

Eugene Clark Farm in Manorville offers an array of fresh, locally grown produce. Aside from its produce offerings, Papa's Farm also sells homemade jellies, jams and salsas in a variety of hard-to-find combinations. Bridge Vineyards offers Long Island made wine in Merlot, Reisling, Summer White, Rose and Pinot.

Miss Amy's Preserves, strategically situated next door to Pass the Bread, offers plenty of varieties (and free samples) of jellies, jams and local honey. At Pass the Bread, Sharon Stanton showed off different varieties of her organic bread, all made with the company's own recipes by a local commercial baker. Richy's Fishy, sold by Richy Harkin, provides shoppers with the freshest locally caught fish, caught the day before. Last week, Richy was offering up bluefish, skate, fluke, scallops, clams and tuna. Got Cheese? showed off its handmade artisanal cheeses made with local ingredients. Spring flowers were also available, courtesy of Spingtimes Garden Center in Sayville.

Darcy's Delights was just that indeed. Her homemade pumpkin bread, available in chocolate chip and cranberry, were moist and delicious. Available in two sizes, many shoppers were picking up loaves to bring to a barbeque at a friend's house.

All proceeds of the Farmers Market support "Back Pack Pirates," a day at a Fire Island beach sponsored by Every Child's Dream, an organization founded by Mangan and his wife Karen to support underprivileged children.