I had hoped for a "soft open" this weekend, but I got an email Thursday saying that the opening will be September 10 and the hours will be Thursday 9-6, Friday 9-8, Saturday 8-3. The market is on Rte 198 about a half-mile east of U.S. 1 -- very easy access from I-95 or U.S. 1.
(Update: Reports about the re-opened market are in the comments below. Plus a bunch of photos on TVMom's A Million Things I Love blog.)
Click here for more information about the market and the move. Or click for the starting page for my "What I Learned" guide to food in Howard County.
8 comments:
I just returned from the Dutch Market; it was great! I bought a loaf of fresh bread (still oven warm), apple butter, candies, cheeses and a slice of caramel walnut apple pie. It was very busy, but lines moved well. It's very well lit, well stocked and well staffed. Everyone (workers and shoppers) seemed very happy - it was a fun atmosphere. The restaurant was booming. It's set up similarly to the Burtonsville location. I only had half an hour to browse, but will definitely return tomorrow. The parking lot navigation was a bit challenging, but well worth it. I look forward to reading comments from others!
As my first day back at the market, I can say it has been great to see some familiar faces and a lot of new ones! The parking lot situation is pretty hectic, the lot is much smaller than the Burtonsville lot and it takes some driving around and waiting for most costumers to find a spot...get there early on saturday! The aisles are much wider and there are an abundance of miniature shopping carts for costumer usage. The meat stand has divided itself into two stands the deli and smoked meats counter and the fresh meat counter to alleviate lines. The candy stand is under new ownership and offers an even wider selection of goods than before. The juice stand has a wider range of juices from Kreider of Pennsylvania available and also stocks the cider from the produce stand to help alleviate the lines.
My list of market must haves
*Grilled turkey and cheese sandwhich from the restuarant with waffle fries
*bacon egg and cheese pretzel
*cut fruit from produce
*fresh squeezed orange juice-juice stand
*deli meats from meat stand are delicious
*dirt pudding from salad stand
*chocolate covered cherries and strawberries from juice stand
*monkey munch from candy stand
I've been working there for quite some time so I've had a lot of stuff, but those are the things I just cannot live without!
I was at the Farmers market on the first day around 5:30 PM (close at 6 PM). The parking lot was crazy and almost full though I did find a parking space quickly pretty far from the store.I fear Saturday mornings are going to be ugly. The large numbers of people on opening day surprised me and it wasn't packed in the store. On a Saturday, I think the new shopping carts are going to cause problems in the aisles.
All the same stores are there (no new ones either) but they're a lot larger. The dairy (cheese milk etc) shop is huge now with a more merchandise including olives, pickled sausage and more cheese. It's not at the level of Roots, Wegman's or Harris Teeter in terms of variety or quality but it's interesting.
I bought my standards from the meat & dairy stands: sliced farmer's cheese, thick cut hickory bacon, turkey bacon ends and threw in some descent quality fresh mozzarella balls. I'm happy again but I need to go back soon and keep exploring.
Well, I returned on day two (see my post from yesterday above). Today I spent most of my time in the dairy section. I picked up some smoked horseradish cheddar, farmer's cheese, longhorn and sharp cheddar. Add to that spinach & artichoke cream cheese and jalapeno cheese spread. Cheese, glorious cheese! I also grabbed some pecan turtles and strawberry-rhubarb pie. I better start my fall exercise program today! There were some safety-vested people directing traffic. Be patient in the parking lot if you go on Saturday; once you get inside it will be well worth it.
Went there this evening and it was great. Loved it and I'll be back. My favorite is the ice cream from Kreiders. Cons - parking isn't great and getting in and out of the parking lot is a pain. I took some pictures and they are on my blog.
Today is Saturday, September 12, 2009, I got to the Dutch Country Farmers Market 10 minutes before it opened, I had no problem finding a parking spot. When they opened there were maybe 20 people who walked in with me and I had no problem getting my cart and going on my way to do my shopping. I did not have to wait in line nor did I have to take a number. The people are so friendly, the prices are resonable. I had a very pleasant experience. I even had another customer come up to talk to me and he said he just got off of work and he was going to pick up some things before he headed back home. And he asked me about the Maple Turkey bacon they had. Let's just say it is one of there more popular items and alot of people there were getting this item.
My mother and daughter had breakfast in the restaurant. My daughter had pancakes with milk and my mom had the scrambled eggs with bacon, toast and juice. All for just $11.00, for two people that is very reasonable. I highly recommend if you get the chance to come on down. The selection is overwhelming. I felt like I did when I was a kid, it brought back some of my childhood memories of that homemade food that grandma use to make.
Here's a cell phone pic I took while in line for apple fritters on Thursday (opening day) right before it closed: http://media.shozu.com/cache/portal/media/58a465d/4278190192
You know it's a small world when you show up in 22090's picture.
Post a Comment