Mint Plaza Farmers' Market a Chill Alternative to Heart of the City

Mary Ladd

Yesterday was week two for the seasonal Mint Plaza Farmers' market.

​Yesterday's Mint Plaza Farmers' Market ― overall a smaller, somewhat tidier version of Heart of the City, happening simultaneously at Civic Center ― offered a chance to buy bread from two bakers (Beckmann's and Bakers of Paris), jars of spices from Spice Hound, and produce from a handful of mostly organic farms.

The week-old market, slated for Wednesdays through October 27, is organized by Urban Table, a South Bay nonprofit that produces smaller markets in business plazas and city centers. They're behind the North Beach Sunday market, too.

Mary Ladd

The market is a smaller, quieter version of Heart of the City, which takes place simultaneously in Civic Center.

​The feel was mellow and intimate. There was music, flowers, and people enjoying leisurely lunches at tables outside Chez Papa. Thermidor had a few customers at the bar, and 54 Mint was wide open. Chez Papa had to-go lunch items for sale, and nearly all the plaza's signature orange chairs were filled with denizens taking a lunch break.

Mint Plaza Farmers' Market: Mint Plaza between Jessie and Mint Streets; Wednesdays through Oct. 27, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.