Central Farm Markets
Every Sunday from 9:00 a . m . to 1:30 p . m ., rain or shine , for the past sixteen years , a ritual occurs at the Bethesda Elementary School ’ s spacious parking lot . It ’ s nothing short of a finely tuned choreography of just-picked healthy farm produce , artisan specialty foods , fresh baked breads and irresistible knoshables , hand-crafted meats , spirits , grab-and-go fare , fresh cut flowers , plants and more with cheerful volunteers , passionate vendors and loyal customers who all come together on a few thousand square feet of asphalt .
Welcome to the venerable Bethesda Central Farm Market . It ’ s one of three farm markets — called Central Farm Markets founded and operated by Mitch Berliner and his wife Deb Moser . The Pike Central Farm Market , at Pike and Rose in the REI parking lot , opens on Saturdays and the NOVA Central Farm
Feeding the Soul of the Community
by wib middleton
Market is on Sundays in Vienna .
If you head to the Bethesda or Pike markets you ’ ll probably see a wiry guy , fit , always moving and clearly in charge . That ’ s Mitch : market space designer , affable greeter / ringmaster , and logistics guru . It ’ s not uncommon to hear a fan give a shout out to Mitch , “ Hey , you ’ re like the mayor of Bethesda .” “ No ,” he corrects them and laughs , “ I ’ m the mayor of a parking lot for four hours .” You can ’ t take yourself too seriously he insists .
In this trendy age of pop-up everything , especially with nimble pivots and lots of experimentation during COVID , you could say that the urban farm market was the original pop-up . Turns out according to the US Department of Agriculture , “ Farmers markets are a critical ingredient to our nation ’ s food system , and date back to 1730 in Lancaster , Pennsylvania ... when city planners ... designated a 120 square foot lot in the center of town as a public market place .”
With over 150 vendors amongst the three Central Farm Markets , many have been with Mitch and Debra since the beginning . Not just about food , each market engages its local community with educational activities , food demonstrations , useful information and programming that help to educate about food , wellness , to give back to the community and ultimately
Plant Masters , a second generation family flower farm , brings high quality , seasonal flowers to brighten the market all year long .
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