Clevedon Village Market

Clevedon Village Market
A&P Showgrounds, Monument Rd, Clevedon
Open Sundays 8:30am-12:00noon

I have been meaning to make the trip to the farming community of Clevedon (South of Auckland) to check out their Farmers Market for quite some time, and so finally made the trip with a friend today. Now I say farming, but actually there is an array of products being produced out of this region now and it is not just cows and sheep! It now grows award winning olive oil at the River Estate, wine at Puriri Hills and Vin Alto, and award winnng buffalo mozzarella, ricotta and yogurt at the Clevedon Valley Buffalo Company just to name a few.

What got me excited at this farmers market was the freshly made pasta available from Pasta Nostra, which is owned by, don't quote me on this, Sage Restaurant in Mission Bay.  It looked fantastic, but since I'm on my own pasta making mission these days, I refrained from purchasing any and just took home some buffalo ricotta to make my own.

There are a number of food options available, from Cornish pasties, Hungarian twisters, fresh juice and coffee, Paella, crepes, chocolate, fudge, fresh bread, and bagels. We chose to try the I Love Pies chicken and leek pie at $6.50 each.  This company prides itself on pies and I'm sure are a step above the pie you will find in any service station, but we did need to ask where the chicken was! Shame really, but no point cutting corners if you pride yourself on being the best.

What makes this farmers market different from any other I have been to so far is that it has a lovely relaxed environment, very friendly people on the stalls, a great area to sit and eat, and pony rides for the kiddies.

There are quite a few produce places selling organic fruit and vegetables and meat, including a stall selling Maori potatoes. My only other purchases today were 3 plants for the garden - spring onions, rhubarb, and sage (3 for $5) and a real bargain!

This is definitely worth a visit, and my only recommendation is to take a map, as it is not a direct route to get to.