Pinnacle Gardens is as good as it gets in my book. They specialize in local produce, with some supplemental produce from organic californian farmers. They always have a great variety of fabulous looking fruits and veggies and the two ladies who help me out at the Town and Country market (Janna +1) are super friendly, knowledgable and generous even when I show up an hour before the market technically opens (10-2 every Wednesday).
The produce selection changes frequently because of availability, season, crop yields but I want to highlight some of my favorites:
arugula - PG warns that this arugula is "spicy". In reality this is what arugula is supposed to taste like, peppery and hot and I had forgotten that after eating so much of that garbage-y bagged supermarket arugula that is doused with chlorine and other chemicals to kill whatever is growing there. I am hopelessly addicted to this arugula.
canteloupe - when I was in Chile I tasted canteloupe for the first time. I mean real canteloupe, not that almost white rock solid melon you get at supermarkets that has no discernable flavor. I was worried that after the chilean canteloupe I would never find another canteloupe worth eating, but PG has saved me from a listless, canteloupe-free existence with the locally grown melon that has even more subtle nuances than I imagined were possible. The one I bought today smelled almost floral and had really delicate flavors of honey and just fell away from the rind right into my mouth. YUM.
grapefruit - same goes for PG's locally grown grapefruit. I can't even look at a supermarket grapefruit after having these beauties.
chard - I've eaten chard (swiss and rainbow) before but never really craved it. Pinnacle Gardens grows some delightful huge chard leaves in the spring and it's delicious and a little bitter.
Pinnacle Gardens also sells fresh local eggs, some canned tuna and salmon, and local honey. Prices are very reasonable (cheaper than McClendon's thank you very much). I just ate some of their spaghetti squash for lunch and would like to thank all the farmers and PG staff for keeping me fed. read more