On Saturdays the Brown Shoe parking lot (on Maryland Avenue just west of Straub's) in tony Clayton is transformed. Folding lawn chairs are assembled into an ad hoc seating area, crates of vegetables are hauled out of vans and pick-up trucks and white canopies begin popping up in rows.

Must be a farmers' market!

Spinach and kale, hearty and hale. | Zach Garrison

Though the Clayton Farmers' Market (8282 Forsyth Boulevard, Clayton; 314-398-9729) is a bit smaller than some of its brethren, it boasts plenty of high-quality produce worth toting home in your enviro-friendly grocery sacks. Having stopped by this past Saturday (May 18), Gut Check put together a rundown of what visitors this weekent can expect to find.

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EarthDance Farms has its roots in a fifteen-year-old girl's first encounter with organic agriculture.

Hoping to cultivate his daughter's love for fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables, Molly Rockamann's dad took her to visit Al and Caroline Mueller's organic farm in Ferguson.

The seed was sown. It took more than a decade to germinate, but germinate it did. Now what began in 2009 as an apprenticeship program at the Muellers' farm has grown into EarthDance. A year ago this week, with funding from the Open Space Council, the nonprofit was able to purchase the fourteen-acre urban farm where Rockamann's dream began.

Crystal Rolfe

Apprenticing at EarthDance Farms involves a great deal of fun. And weeds.

See also:
- Molly Rockamann cultivates Gut Check's urban-farming acumen

Today EarthDance plants and harvests organic produce, raises chickens and even keeps bees. The fruits of the farmers' labor can be purchased at the Tower Grove Farmers' Market, the Ferguson Farmers' Market and EarthDance's own CSA program.

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Butter Crunch: A gorgeous head of fresh, crisp lettuce for $3 bucks. | Zach Garrison

The Tower Grove Farmers' Market (in Tower Grove Park at the intersection of Main Drive and Center Cross Drive, west of the wading pool; 314-771-4410) having been open for a few weeks now, we figure now is the time to head over for a Saturday-morning produce run.

In order to prep you, dear food lover, for what to expect when you're exploring on Saturday, Gut Check grabbed a few insulated grocery bags and sallied forth to the market last Saturday. Such foresight is our hallmark not at all typical of us, but hey, even a blind squirrel nabs a nut now and then.

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It was a damp and chilly opening day for the eighth season of the Tower Grove Farmers' Market (Main Drive & Center Cross Drive, west of the wading pool; 314-771-4410 ), but that didn't stop St. Louisans from showing up to enjoy food, music and the variety of crafts from local artisans.

Crystal Rolfe

Chilly weather and overcast skies didn't scare away the multitudes who flocked to the Tower Grove Farmers' Market for opening day.

Since its opening opening day in 2006, the Tower Grove market has burgeoned in size and range, attracting thousands of visitors each week and featuring vendors who offer fruits and vegetables galore, not to mention specialty items such as hand-spun angora yarn and organically cultivated mushrooms.

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Good news for locavores: Our options for locally grown produce are about to expand significantly. Tomorrow, Saturday, May 4, the Tower Grove Farmers' Market (at the intersection of Main Drive and Center Cross Drive, west of the wading pool; 314-771-4410) launches its eighth season -- has it really been that long?! -- in style, bringing together more than 90 vendors offering everything from local produce to organic spices. Beginning at 8 a.m. and continuing till 2 p.m., the festivities transpire smack-dab in the middle of Tower Grove Park.

Opening day brings a passel of activities to augment the regular market.

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via Facebook

Rumors of this or that grocery store opening a Delmar Loop location have run rampant for years. The chatter has only intensified since Washington University announced its plans to build a massive retail-residential development in the Loop.

Construction on the Wash. U. project is now under way, and one local blog believes it has identified which grocery store will occupy a large swath of the retail space.

Alex Ihnen of nextSTL claims that Global Foods Market (421 North Kirkwood Road, Kirkwood; 314-835-1112) will open a location in Wash. U.'s Delmar Loop development. Ihnen couches his report as "nextSTL has learned" without naming a specific source.

Gut Check is always hungry for more restaurant news. Feed us your tips.

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Courtesy of Vin de Set

Land-locked pescatarians and seafood lovers rejoice -- Vin de Set's (2017 Chouteau Avenue) Fresh Fish Market returns for a second year with saltwater treasures straight off the boat from the coast. Every Thursday from now through the fall, head to the rooftop European-style open-air market to choose your own dinner adventure.

See also:
-Food Photo Essay: Finned, Scaled, Shelled at Bob's Seafood

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Yesterday, under ominous storm clouds, the Schlafly Farmers' Market (formerly known as the Maplewood Famers' Market) opened for business in direct defiance of the blustering winds.

Zach Garrison

Held each Wednesday until the end of October from 4 to 7 p.m. in the parking lot of Schlafly Bottleworks (7260 Southwest Avenue, Maplewood), this gathering of local producers presents an eclectic array, ranging from Hanley Fold Farm's goat-milk soap to the sugary staples of Cherokee Street's El Chico Bakery.

Though the list of vendors is subject to change throughout the year, for the most part a reliable cohort sets up each week. But while the vendors might remain familiar, the market will evolve as the seasons change.

The best example might be Three Rivers Community Farm, located in Elsah, Illinois, which currently offers winter greens -- spinach, arugula and bok choy, for example -- but with warmer weather will come a full cornucopia of spring crops, including squash and cherry tomatoes.

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image via

Martin Casas and his daughter in a St. Louis park.

St. Louis has oodles of markets, but there's nothing quite like Grand Market, slated to open in Strauss Park (Washington and North Grand boulevards) this summer.

According to market coordinator Martin Casas, the market will be part arts venue, part specialty store and part produce vendor. It will take advantage of the diverse community that surrounds the Grand Center district, the geographic center of St. Louis.

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The voicemail sent a chill straight down Gut Check's spine and back up again:

"Hi, this is Alison ________. I'm calling from Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern. There was a piece that was published about Andrew Zimmern coming to the Soulard Market. The network has just asked me to give you guys a call. They're a little bit uncomfortable having all of this information published."

The briefest of pauses.

"For security purposes."

See also:
- Bizarre Foods' Andrew Zimmern to Visit Soulard Farmers Market in March
- Soulard Farmers Market Announces Bizarre Foods Filming Date

Sweet mother of God, what had we done?

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