Our Fair City: East End Market

There is a new market near us that we have been to many times - I am surprised I have yet to post about it. When I first heard about it, it was described to me like a mini Redding Terminal Market in Philly. Ours is small, but still two stories high, with different vendors on the first floor and offices and an event space on the second floor. 

The first floor is lovely when you first walk in. It's a stretch of a pathway straight to the back of the building, with bread, meat, cheese, coffee, and even beer and wine vendors on either side. Every time we go, we grab a beer, sometimes a sandwich, and site outside in their little patio. The patio is surrounded by their vegetable garden. There's tomatoes and gorgeous leafy lettuce, in abundance.

Everything there is done with care, locally and sustainable. The beer and wine are made in central Florida, the cheese lady has cheese from throughout Florida, and my favorite, the bread lady from the farmer's market, has a booth right in front with a wall of crusty bread. It's a beautiful sight.  

I hope that everyone had a wonderful New Years Eve, both safe and fun. We spent the beginning of the night at a friends house, then made our way to a wine room for midnight. The wine room seemed perfect since it has champagne "on tap", however, the champagne machine was down that night - the worst night for champagne to not be flowing. Instead we opted for a bottle (or two...) which really is the next best thing. Although all the bartenders were working, they too were able to enjoy the festivities and some bubbles. I can really appreciate a work environment that is flexible and forgiving to employees on holidays. 

The next day, as most can imagine, we all ended up with sugar headaches. The dizziness went away quickly, but the headache lingered into lunch. It was definitely worth it to celebrate that way, and so was The Sopranos marathon we enjoyed at home with paninis and sausage bread - two things I could make at home that were on the greasier side. 

And again, it's the weekend. I'm looking forward to cleaning up the house a bit, researching some spots to see in Buenos Aires in February, as well as Savannah, where we'll be for my birthday next weekend. If you have any suggestions for either - shout them out please! I've already started my lists in a moleskine, which is what I take on my trips as a journal. It started in Paris where I wanted something small I could keep in my purse to write in throughout the day at a bistro table at a cafe or on a park bench. I did the same in Costa Rica and have one already set aside for Argentina and Brazil. Happy weekend!