The Park Ridge Farmers Market will open for the season May 27 on Prairie Avenue, featuring almost 50 vendors.
Market Master Karen Grunschel said almost all of last year’s vendors will be returning for the event, a Park Ridge fixture on Saturday mornings since 1991. This year’s market offerings will include a new farm stand from Michigan, a pizza vendor, Forno Pavese, from Niles and more gluten-free and vegetarian offerings, she added.
The first market of the season will feature a balloon artist and face painting in the kids’ tent, Grunschel added.
Tony Pavese, owner of Forno Pavese, said he uses San Marzano tomatoes, Antimo Caputo flour and premium fior di latte and mozzarella, then allows the dough to go through a 24-48 hour fermentation process before baking it onsite for 60 to 90 seconds in portable ovens that reach 900 degrees.
“Throughout my life, no matter where I found myself, my love for food remained at the forefront of my mind,” Pavese said. He has also sold at farmers markets in Mount Prospect and Riverside.
When the Park Ridge Farmers Market closed in the fall, it wasn’t clear if it would be held in the same location this year.
The farmers market committee spent some of the winter debating whether to relocate the event after an ownership change for the Prairie Avenue parking lot.
Discussions about whether to move the market began because site owner AT&T sold some of the area to a real estate investment company, Reign Capital, in May 2021. But the market will stay put for the 2023 season.
As for whether the relocation discussion would continue after the 2023 season wrapped, Grunschel said it’s too soon to know.
“Next winter is a long way away,” she said.
The farmer’s market runs Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. through the end of October.