Fresh flowers and veggies, baked goods, honey, spices and unique gifts are just a few of the reasons to attend a farmers market in Naperville this year.
NAPERVILLE FARMER’S MARKET
Open from 7 a.m. to noon Saturdays through the end of October, the Naperville Farmer’s Market opens for the season on June 6 near the Metra 5th Avenue train station at 200 E. 5th Ave.
Market manager Annamarie Bensfield said visitors can shop for organic vegetables and meats, fresh fish, freshly made breakfast items, healthy sweet treats, bread, popcorn and kettle corn, hot sauces, honey, coffee and microgreens, to name just a few of the food options.
Non-food booths are manned by a chiropractor, an urgent care doctor and a dog rescue as well as sellers offering natural dog food, natural soap, cleaning supplies, candles and other items, she said.
“We have 70 vendors this year. I took over (the market) 10 years ago and we had two vendors when we started,” Bensfield said. “It’s been an exciting 10 years for the Farmer’s Market in Naperville. We have a huge attendance. I think it offers the community something to do on a Saturday morning with their families.
“You can come in, get a breakfast sandwich and a cup of coffee, some great vegetables and fruits, and a lot of interesting items, and spend the day with your neighbors.”
The Naperville Farmer’s Market will have three special events this year: Summer Fest on Aug. 15, Fall Fest on Sept. 26 and a Halloween parade on Oct. 31.
“Each booth will have something special to offer the community,” she said. “In October, we always do a Halloween costume parade. Something very safe for the kids. We give out prizes for the best costumes and we have a trick-or-treat at every booth for the kids.”
Each Saturday, the market hosts a local musician, from professionals to students, Bensfield said.
“Some people will bring a blanket and sit down and listen to the music, which is always nice,” she said. “Some of these (music acts) actually have a bit of a following. We have had several high school students who have gone on to have careers in music, have gone to college for music and have used that they’ve played at the farmers market over the years.”
People often comment that they wait all year for the market to return, she said.
More Top Picks Best Computer Monitors
“People are just very appreciative,” she said. “We’re finding more and more young people are coming with their children and are making a morning of it. It’s a really nice community builder.”
NAPER SETTLEMENT FARMERS MARKET
The Naper Settlement Farmers Market returns for its third year on June 30. It’s open from 3 to 7 p.m. every Tuesday through Sept. 22 at the Naperville history museum campus, 523 S. Webster St.
In addition to more than 30 local vendors, it offers live music, educational classes, hands-on demonstrations, kid’s activities, museum exhibits and food trucks.
Bluegrass, folk and jazz music is presented from 4 to 7 p.m. and age-based classes and demonstrations are from 5 to 6 p.m. The June 30 agriculture class is “Backyard Chickens for Beginners,” covering everything from selecting a breed and building a coop to daily care and harvesting eggs.
Classes planned for July include preserving and pickling foods by water bath canning, using and storing herbs, beekeeping and cold brew iced teas with Southeast Asian flavors from Mahal Tea Company.
August will offer a corn husk flower workshop, a corn class, a homemade bread class and a composting workshop. September classes include soap making, homemade natural skin care balms and butters, soup making and creative designs with pressed flowers.
LISLE FRENCH MARKET
The Lisle French Market has a new location this season, relocating to Metra’s commuter parking lot B. This open-air market runs from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays through Oct. 24, with free parking available in the commuter lots on Burlington Avenue and Main Street.
The new location means more space for more vendors as well as additional parking, said Christina Cahill, director of marketing with Bensidoun USA, which presents several weekly markets in the Chicago area, including Wheaton, Geneva, Brookfield and a new one in West Chicago.
Each week there are a maximum of 40 vendors that can change weekly, meaning each week is a new experience for shoppers, Cahill said.
“We’re booked pretty much all season,” she said. “We have a lot of new vendors this year.”
Farmers are courted and invited to attend the markets, she said.
“We do financially incentivize farmers. They get the best pricing and priority with us,” she said. “We are about bringing good, real food to as many people as we can.”
Some vendors that have or will appear at the market are Pet Wants Naperville, Blazeprintingco, Creative Clay Creations, Kaizen Baby, Tamales Express, That Girl at the Market, Maddy Kakes Bakery, Serendipity, Everette’s Coffee, Tastefully Simple and Evergreen Moments with custom photo gifts, she said.
“Avocado Theory is brand new this year; I saw them at our Wheaton market and I have never been so impressed by a concept,” she said. “They have a guacamole bar — so you can have as much or as little cilantro as you want or as much heat as you want. They have avocado oil and avocado beauty products.”
Cahill said she hopes people come to the French Market not only to support local businesses but connect with their community, she said.
More Top Picks Best Rechargeable Book Lights
“This is a great place to meet new people … while eating and supporting local, family-owned businesses,” she said. “… Our winters can be so miserable that we have an extra joy and an extra innocence as a people when we can sit and feel the air on our face and smell this beautiful food and feel a part of a community.”
Annie Alleman is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.