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Photos: Downtown Public Market opens

By Howard B. Owens

The Downtown Public Market opened today.

Above, Salters Alston, proprietor of Alston's Bone Sucking BBQ Sauce, serves up a mound of his pulled pork.

Between Alston's and the Jackson Street Grill stand, the market is going to be a great place to stop for lunch on Thursdays.

And then you can pick yourself up a few big, plump tomatoes to take home.

Mark Potwora

I stopped by there today...Wasn't only but a few stands...very small..no selection..the one at Batavia Downs is so much better......You would think they could do better then what they had out there today...

Jun 17, 2010, 2:47pm Permalink
Michelle Dawson

I agree. I visited both sites on their opening day and was disappointed by both, but in particularly this one because it was so much smaller than the Batavia Downs site. I thought BD was small enough as it was. I'm hoping that as the season goes along that more vendors will participate.

Jun 17, 2010, 3:36pm Permalink
Gabor Deutsch

If the produce is grown in NYS then its going to take some time before you see a harvest. I decided to grow my own tomatoes this year since I got sick of paying up to a dollar a piece for them. I got a late start but I am sure to have some outstanding tomatoes by the end of JULY. I planted some late bloomers but I have some early bird and celebrity plants showing some small fruit already. Tomatoes grown here are the most succulent when they ripe in July ! Keep your store bought hydroponically grown tomatoes, I want flavor !

Jun 17, 2010, 4:13pm Permalink
Steve Ognibene

I tried a sample of both the " Mild " and " Hot " BBQ sauce on the pulled pork from the Alston's stand. Let me tell you it was out of this world!!! I bought a Mild BBQ sauce to take home. Next time I will buy the full sandwich with it on it !!! AWESOME, AWESOME, AWESOME !!!

Jun 17, 2010, 11:36pm Permalink
Jeremiah Pedro

I agree with you Gabor. I love the flavor of home grown tomatoes. When I moved out here in 2006 I couldn't believe the prices on tomatoes.

Jun 18, 2010, 12:46am Permalink
Billie Owens

I went to the downtown public market yesterday afternoon and first and foremost bought a bottle of mild and a bottle of hot Alston's BBQ sauce. I told him I'd waited a whole year for his sauce and then sampled some pulled pork on tiny slices of bread. Excellent! The best! Next week, I'm going to buy one of his sandwiches.

I also bought delicious little Italian cookies stuffed with figs and iced with sprinkles on top. They didn't last the night. Scarfed. Howard said he had to eat them to see if they were good enough for me to eat. Pretty sly, huh?

Then I got some greens onions pulled that morning from a garden, some fresh eggs, tasty strawberries, a hand-knitted dish cloth and a bar of goat's milk soap scented with figs, surprisingly fresh and clean smelling.

So what if I can't always get everything I want or need there, it has some wonderful stuff and it's right around the corner from my house!

Jun 18, 2010, 12:52pm Permalink

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