As spring returns with warmer weather, so does the Market Square Farmers Market, reopening for its 19th season in Market Square on Thursday, May 11, 2023.
A beloved tradition for the Downtown community, the rain-or-shine Market will be open Thursdays from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. to offer regionally grown produce, organic products and small-batch foods from over 30 vendors.
An array of local musicians will also perform each week, with Byron Nash welcoming shoppers on opening day. The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy will also continue its annual ‘free bulb giveaway’ tradition for the kick-off, handing out hundreds of free daffodil bulbs on a first-come, first-served, basis while supplies last.
Admission to the market is free, with discounted parking available at the 350 Oliver Avenue parking garage Downtown, offering a $5 Daytime Parking rate (for up to two hours) on weekdays. The new Golden Triangle Ambassadors, who have been out and about Downtown since the hospitality program launched in March, will be on hand to welcome people back to the market on opening day. Plus, visitors will get a first look at a new natural gas-powered truck, provided with generous support from Peoples Gas, to support the PDP’s expanded Clean and Hospitality services.
“The opening of the Farmer’s Market is always a wonderful occasion to get people excited about Downtown and the incredible programming we have lined up for the summer,” said Jeremy Waldrup, President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. “It’s an opportunity for workers, residents, and visitors to reconnect in the heart of our city while enjoying live music and fresh, locally sourced goods that support dozens of small businesses in our community.”
The market will feature many returning favorite vendors like Good L’Oven Cookies, The Brinery @Two Acre Farm, José Quiroz Farm, and Mediterra Bakehouse, as well as new vendors such as Pittsburgher Highland Farm, a local producer of environmentally sustainable, grass-fed beef and Tiny Seed Farm, a small-scale producer of high-quality vegetables, flowers, and mushrooms.
Just Harvest will be onsite again this year to offer their Fresh Access program that enables shoppers to use their food stamps – as well as credit and debit cards – to buy fresh, nutritious, and locally grown food. The program also supplements food stamp shoppers with an extra $2.00 to spend on fruits and veggies for every $5.00 they spend in food stamps.
The opening of the Farmers Market kicks off an exciting season of expanded programing in Downtown that will reinvigorate the community. Yoga in Square will be returning to Downtown for free, bi-weekly classes on May 14, joined by a new Move-It-Mondays series, featuring free, outdoor fitness classes in Market Square starting on June 5.
Live music will be front-and-center all summer long with brand new Lunch Concerts presented by Dollar Bank every Wednesday starting June 7. Plus, more weekend shopping opportunities and live entertainment will commence in late June when PDP’s Night Market series expands to both Fridays and Saturdays.
VENDOR LIST FOR 2023 SEASON:
Full-time season vendors:
- 1:11 Juice Bar
- Alpha Farms
- Always Summer Herbs
- Amazing Books & Records
- Calla dba Chocolate Moonshine Fudge
- CinnaRoast
- The Diabetic Pastry Chef
- Ekernally Yours Gourmet Popcorn & Sweet Treats
- EmTree Bath and Body
- Good L’Oven Cookies Too
- Gosia’s Pierogies
- Hello Hummus
- José Quiroz Farm
- Keystone Cultures Co
- KizzleFoods
- La Palapa, Mexican Cuisine
- Little Athens Catering
- Mediterra Bakehouse
- Pisarcik Flower Farm
- Pittsburgher Highland Farm
- Simmons Farm
- The Olive Tap
- The Smokey City’s 412 BBQ
- Tiny Seed Farm
- The Brinery @Two Acre Farm
- Woolf Farms
Partial list of Part-time vendors who will be visiting throughout the season:
- All Things Empanada
- Batch
- Billy’s Country Smokehouse
- Burgh-ade Lemonade
- Fungetarian
- hGrace Confections
- Lemmon Bros Farms
- Paul Family Farms
- PopWorld
- Real Fungi
- Tommy’s Jerky on the Road
