by Maddie Roberts

With the warm weather starting up and hopefully here to stay, it is the perfect opportunity for outdoor dining. One place to stop by is the Central New York Regional Market. Established in 1938, this market has so many options for food and shopping all year round. The market is full of vendors selling different foods, produce and handmade goods. Year round, Saturdays are for farmer’s markets, with a variety of produce from local farmers and other products from across Central New York. These Saturday markets host over three hundred vendors, ranging from meats and fish to dressings to beverages. 

The CNY Regional Market has a mission focused on supporting the local community: “The mission of the Authority is to provide facilities, programs, and service to promote opportunities for Agriculture and commerce in Central New York.” They have kept the same mission since their founding. 

At the market, they also have dining options, because as the website says, “you should never grocery shop hungry.” There are three different restaurants on site. The first is The Market Diner. It opened in 1974 and offers traditional American and European food. It has a 1950s vintage vibe, and it is family owned and operated. There’s also a Wendy’s, because you can never go wrong with some yummy fast food. It’s quick, cheap and gets the job done. And let’s be real, a frosty is just amazing! The last restaurant has food and some cute friends, cats! The Pawsitvitea CNY Cafe and Lounge combines warm cozy drinks and fluffy cats, which is perfect for the winter months when the regional market is still open. There are delicious cafe items, in addition to adoptable pets to enjoy it all with. 

Another fun feature of the CNY Regional Market website is the recipe section. This highlights a collection of recipes from vendors and customers for all meals of the day. This is just another way the Central New York Regional Market supports the local food community. Breakfast recipes include pumpkin spice pancakes and a tuscan farmer’s breakfast. There are recipes for Mexican salad and beet soup. The appetizer section shows off turkey rolls and savory popcorn salt. There are multiple meat, seafood, pizza and even slow cooker options. Wrapping up this section is the sweets department, linking recipes to some incredible sounding treats. With maple taffy, maple cookies and a vegan pumpkin loaf, these desserts are bound to be a hit at the market and at home. 

Since 1938, the Central New York Regional Market has continuously supported local agriculture, food vendors and foodies alike in the area. There are options for all to become vendors or support local food producers. The CNY Regional Market is a highlight for the food community here and should definitely be an end-of-semester stop this year.