I spent the day getting lost, trying several different places to see if they had fresh local corn on the cob. I was so hungry for it and it would be the perfect addition to those five pounds of crab legs that I was cooking.
I drove NE, W and south of me and all of the corn was from Georgia, I did end up buying a few ears at another place, which claimed it was local but the husks looked old. During my travels I saw a truck unloading tomatoes, cucumbers and fresh corn on the cob to a small wooden table along side the road and under a shade tree. I slammed on my brakes, pulled over and put my flashers on.
Folks were quickly gathering around the small worn out table and each one asked, Is it local? Yes, it was just picked this morning in New Jersey, yay! I bought one dozen ears, why? For heavens sake what in the world will I do with fifteen ears of corn! It truly is fresh and so crunchy and sweet and I am anxious to cook more up tonight and tomorrow night and the next night...
So, why did I still need to find Lou's Farm Mart when I had more than enough corn? Because I have been reading their ads for years in the weekly Clipper magazine and have always been amazed at the deals they are offering. After four or five people gave me wrong directions ( I sometimes think they do that as a joke ) I found an honest face and in dismay I said could you please tell me how to get to Lou's. What a good Samaritan, he had me there in two minutes flat!
The building used to be an old diner, you know all shiny metal with the big windows along the front, of which they added on to big time.
The outside holds flowering plants, very healthy and established at extremely low prices. I bought a large tomato plant that already has four good sized green tomatoes on it for $1.59! I also bought two flats of annuals for the large side bed that I am still working on, $15.00 plus I had a coupon for $5.00 off!
Inside you will find a very friendly and down to earth staff who actually understands we are keeping them alive, so helpful too. The huge produce area carries it all at unbelievable prices, I bought a whole seedless watermelon for five bucks, two large cantaloupes for $1.50 each, a large bag of sweet Vidalia onions, bell peppers, tomatoes and more.
The large Georgia peaches that were advertised at $1.00 per pound, not only in the clipper but on their sign out front was priced at $1.59 per pound inside, which I brought to their attention and they were more than happy to adjust the price, although I decided to pass after seeing all of the fruit flies hanging around and they were anything but large and ripe.
They have a nice sized market with shelves of pantry items and snacks and a large deli with all kinds of homemade salads and desserts, like bread pudding, the only thing that I bought at the deli was a pound of shrimp salad at $6.99 per pound with nice sized shrimp. A local bakery supplies their rolls, bagels and loaves of bread and they have a bakery section with fruit pies, cookies and cakes. One of the coupons was for a free dozen XL eggs, which I took them up on and two family sized boxes of Snyder's hard pretzels, two for three bucks.
They have daily lunch specials of a hoagie, a bag of chips and a soda for under four dollars and they were selling them like hot cakes, if you are not interested in the daily specials they have a nice sized take out deli menu. Discounted prices and you don't have to buy in bulk. They carry their own line of fruit butters, jams, marinades and salad dressings. Really easy to find, once you realize where it is and well worth the trip!
Thank heavens their corn was from Georgia, although once Shady Brook Farms has it available then so will they. I was loaded up with all of my goods and helped to the car with my flowers and even given a free six pack of very healthy petunias.
I'm off from work today and trying to decide whether it will be a tomato and mayo sandwich or a shrimp salad one for lunch... read more