By Doug Carman, Staff Writer
HIGHTSTOWN – The fruit and vegetable stands are back this summer.
The first Friday in June marks the beginning of the third annual Farmers’ Market in Hightstown.
The seasonal, community event runs from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. every Friday evening until September.
Christopher Moraitis, one of the organizers behind the Farmers’ Market, said Hightstownians and non-borough residents heading can also expect live music and local artists set up around Memorial Park and Main Street from now through the summer.
Organizer Tom Muza said the market will feature the Mendies Family Farm from Roosevelt, which has sold its fruits there in previous years. He also listed nine vendors, ranging from herb and flower merchants to a Latin American bakery.
"We hope to add another farmer to the market in the next few weeks and a few more venders to round out the offering we are giving the community," Mr. Muza said in an e-mail.
The list of vendors include:
Mendies Farm from Roosevelt,
Stace of Cakes, a cupcakes and sweets vendor,
Tumbleweed & Eddie’s, Natural Pet Treat Co.,
Sally’s Dawg Den, a food cart selling chicken sausages, pierogis and hot dogs,
Reed’s Eggs, Herbs and Flowers,
Zoe’s Handcrafted Soaps,
Molto Bene, an Italian café located in Hightstown,
Gaute Pan, a Latin American bakery in Hightstown,
The Happy Wanderer Bakery, of Hamilton, and
Olsson’s Fine Foods.
"It has been the launching ground for a couple of local businesses that have started in that area," Mr. Moraitis said. "A couple of businesses that were fledgling… participated, and it was successful for them."
This year, visitors can use the public restrooms at the borough’s municipal building on North Main Street.
Previously, merchants and shoppers had wound up using the restrooms of nearby businesses, provoking Tavern on the Lake business owner Fran Palumbo to complain about the market. She also began an unsuccessful petition drive to reschedule the market to Saturday mornings from Friday evenings.
Though the borough refused to change the scheduling, Mayor Steve Kirson ordered the restrooms at the municipal building to remain open during the market’s hours in response to the petition.
"It’s great that the petition did make that happen," Mr. Moraitis said.
