Warren, RI If you’re not hanging out in the Schoolyard at Hope & Main on Wednesday evenings with a craft cocktail or mocktail and a freshly fried falafel pocket, Korean corn dog, or Rhode Island’s only Ethiopian food, well, you’re missing out.
The food incubator’s Schoolyard Market is the town’s weekly neighborhood block party in the middle of a hyper-local food market. Every Wednesday night they have a rotating line up of passionate food and beverage vendors putting their best dish forward for you. Each week the market will host 20 different vendors, live music and cooking demonstrations, as well as activities for kids, and a fun line-up of themes from Christmas in July, Ice Cream Sundae Week, to Yappy Hour for four legged market-goers. Lawn chairs, wagons, and extra shopping totes are strongly encouraged.
“The Schoolyard Market is truly a place to scope out what’s new in local food and beverage ” says Alison Mountford, Hope & Main’s director of marketing, “Since the majority of vendors are members of our culinary incubator, they’re making their products on site and selling them to our community. Some are brand new, making their first sale to the public, and others are here growing and expanding their passionate customer base. Either way, it’s a win for local food lovers.”
Later this summer, Schoolyard Market fans can vote to help their favorite Hope & Main contestant win the Sam Adams Brewing the American Dream Pitch Competition. Finalists will compete to win $10,000 at the annual Schoolyard Twilight Party on September 23rd.
Schoolyard Market happens every Wednesday from 4-7pm until September 27 at Hope & Main, 691 Main St. It is free and open to the public. Well-behaved, leashed pets welcome. Rain or shine. Free municipal parking. A full list of vendors, programming and market-day details is available at https://makefoodyourbusiness.org/markets/
Hope & Main’s Wednesday markets provide a convenient midweek location to pick up dinner, shop for a backyard summer cook-out, and stock up on iconic classics and new favorites made by Hope & Main makers, including hummus, pimento cheese, hand-made pasta, herbal teas, fresh fruit mocktails, empanadas, artisanal chocolate, hand-decorated decorated cookies, blondies and pastries, and locally grown vegetables. Hot meals from Hope & Main member businesses are an ideal summer weeknight meal solution for busy families, located on Main St.
Both RI and MA Food Stamp (EBT) recipients are encouraged to shop at the Schoolyard to make the most of SNAP dollars. Hope & Main’s continued partnership with Farm Fresh Rhode Island’s Bonus Bucks program provides a free match on all EBT transactions so customers get more to spend on fresh fruits and vegetables. On-site farmers accept WIC and Senior Citizen coupons, too. Families can pick up free Nourish Our Neighbors meals and others can participate in Hope & Main’s Buy One, Give program, i.e., buy a meal for your own family and give one to a neighbor in need.
Hope & Main’s markets are partially funded by the USDA’s Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP) grant and local sponsors. Data captured from vendors and market-goers is helping to quantify the impact of this innovative food incubation program on local job creation; building a more sustainable regional food system; and on the overall local food economy.