Caprese Diem: Where are the good, ripe, reasonably priced tomatoes?!
So: The Fort Greene farmer’s market finally has nice tomatoes—heirlooms for $4.50, New Jersey beefsteaks for $1.99. That, I can live with. But sometimes, you want tomatoes on some day other than Saturday, no? Associated, of course, has nothing but hothouse jobs from Europe or someplace (and those idiots keep theirs in the fridge). Meanwhile,…
So: The Fort Greene farmer’s market finally has nice tomatoes—heirlooms for $4.50, New Jersey beefsteaks for $1.99. That, I can live with. But sometimes, you want tomatoes on some day other than Saturday, no? Associated, of course, has nothing but hothouse jobs from Europe or someplace (and those idiots keep theirs in the fridge). Meanwhile, Greene Grape Provisions, which I like for many things, is charging an absolutely criminal $7.78 a pound for heirlooms–I mean, dude, they’re in season, already! I ask you: where the hell are the good, ripe, reasonably priced tomatoes?
I generally also get my tomatoes from the farmer’s market to last the week, and we eat a lot of tomatoes. If I need to replenish, I make a trip to the Tues or Thurs Boro Hall farmers market. I also do not refrigerate my tomatoes.
Personally I think Provisions’ prices on organic meat, nice cheese, etc., is the same as Fairway and everybody else, basically within range for the quality. But $7.78 a pound for heirloom tomatoes when they’re in season? Unforgivable. You’re never gonna make a killing gouging people on freaking tomatoes. Just sell them for a fair price, as one of the most glorious, celebratory moments in the agricultural season, please.
Greene Grape Provisions has absurdly high prices on everything. I don’t know who buys any of it. They’d make a lot more money with lower prices and higher volume.
Last year I bought several cherry tomato plants. Watered them, fed them, cared for them, talked to them. 8 tomatoes, folks. 8.
That being said. I myself got a gift of three cherry tomato plants from a co-worker who bought a “flat” at some equivalent of a terminal market in Canarsie. I’ve been growing them on my roof and there have been many more than I could eat so I’ve been sharing the “bumper” crop one ziplock bag at a time…
Chinatown
I plant tomatoes every year here too. This year I had nine heirlooms (Mortgage Lifters, Yellow Giants,Sugar Nuggets, etc). They were doing fantastic until about the second week in July. I had so many large, ripening tomatoes on the plants that I had to add secondary support for the branches.
Then for some odd reason, they all started to croak. They were getting the recommended fertilizer and water. I even bought an electronic soil tester to make sure of that. It wasn’t bad soil because they were all in large planters with fresh top soil.
What a freakin’ disappointment. I think I’m just gonna buy tomatoes next year. This is the second year in a row I’ve had a bad crop. The previous four were great.
In answer to the question, I found incredible tomatoes cheap: $20 for a half bushel (about 21 pounds). The downside: it was at a farmers market in Kingston, NY. The corn alone was worth the trip.
I’m sorry, where exactly did you say your house was and does there happen to be a lock on your gate?
Union Market has tomoatos for $1.99/lb right now if I remember correctly.