Last weekend I met a friend at Farmers Market. We had a couple beers, hung out and talked. It felt like summer, and I don’t just mean the weather. Lots of people were out and about. There was a relaxed, low-key vibe. Everybody seemed to be having a good time.

The crowd at Farmers Market on a Saturday afternoon

Lots of families were out and about.

It’s usually pretty crowded on weekends…

…but you can still find a few quiet spots.

I’ve been going to Farmers Market since I was a kid. I used to go there with my grandmother. When I got older it was a place to meet friends for breakfast or lunch. For years a friend and I made it a habit to catch Ranch Party on Saturday nights.

I wasn’t the only one surprised to see this goat having his lunch.

The weather was warm, but not really hot.

The property has been owned by the Gilmore family since the 19th century, but the Farmers Market didn’t get started until the 30s. It began informally as a place where farmers could sell their produce during the Depression. Gradually stalls and restaurants sprang up, and it became a fixture of life in LA. If you’d like to learn more, the Farmers Market web site has a number of articles about the site’s history, as well as a short video.

Farmers Market History

Security was on the job.

Dupar’s has been there forever.

One of the things I love about Farmers Market is that there’s a sense of tradition. While there are some new restaurants and shops, many of them have been there for decades. You can find concerns that are family-owned, where two or three generations are still involved in running the business. In a town where chain stores are the norm, and pop-up shops are increasingly part of the landscape, it’s cool to see restaurants and shops that family members have invested their lives in.

Waiting for the bus on Fairfax.

We finished our beers, my friend left, and I wandered around for a while taking photos. Then I decided it was time to move on, so I walked out to Fairfax and caught the bus home.