Saratoga Farmer's Market and the Rive Gauche Trio: Undeniably a Feast for the Senses
“Let Food Be Thy Medicine.”
Hippocrates
Cecile and I love to weave through the Saratoga Farmers Market every Saturday morning, rubbing shoulders with members of our community, soaking in the great atmosphere of food gatherers, witnessing nature’s color palette on display, and being seduced by the aroma from the plethora of cooked food being prepared by vendors from diverse cultures and ethnicities.
The offerings are many: Rotisserie Chicken, Indian, Thai, Vegetable Crepes and Quiche pies, Mexican, and Afghani food to eat there or take home. We ordered Bon Mi Vietnamese Salad and Bon MI Sandwich to go from the Flambe’ Asian American Grill. We also picked up Vegetable Crepes from our Ukranian friend who happens to practice yoga at one of the local yoga studios we attend.
The bounty of fruits and vegetables is fresh, abundant, and unmatched from what you get from our local supermarkets.
We love supporting the local growers and producers.
There is so much variety. Take tomatoes: They go beyond the usual red and green. it is not unusual to see orange, yellow, pink, purple and even striped. We love knowing the fruits and vegetables are fresh. Maybe not fresh off the vine, stalk, bush, tree or ground that very morning—but certainly a few days fresh.
The Farmer’s market may not always be certified organic, but small scale growers do employ organic practices. Unfortunately, the expense and time it takes to get USDA certification makes it difficult to compete with the big boys.
The band that performed this past Saturday was Left Bank Rive/Gauche Band. The "Left Bank," is the southern bank of the river Seine in Paris.
Their specialty is French cafe-style music of the 1920s-1940s, Spanish and Gypsy songs and other period piece favorites from America and Latin countries. The instruments the trio played were violin, bass, guitar and accordion.
“RIve Gauche” or “Left Bank,” generally refers to the Paris of an earlier era: The Paris of artists, writers, and philosophers like ike Henry Miller, Anais Sin, Pablo Picasso, Gertrude Stein, Henri Matisse, Jean-Paul Sartre, Ernest Hemmingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald and James Baldwin. The phrase “Rive Gauche,” implies a sense of bohemianism, counterculture and creativity.
If I had to write a poem about my experience at the Saratoga Farmer’s Market, it would go like this:
“The friendly hum of conversation and music fill the air.
Colorful fruits and veggies compete to draw my eye,
The sensuous feel of gem-like cherry tomatoes,
The Aromatic smells of fresh-cut flowers,
Toot-picked samples of sweet melons and sugar plums
caused me to become completely undone.”
