I’m basically a good wife, but I have been a little reticent regarding Bobby’s desire to visit West Side Market. In the last year, he has mentioned us “needing” to go there a couple of different times. I’ve been there before, so I had already crossed it off my bucket list. Didn’t really see it as a good reason to battle the Cleveland traffic, to see it again. However, because today is his birthday, I began to think that I could make the journey for him. Goodness knows he does plenty for me.
Thankfully the weather today was awesome. Not too cold and there was no precipitation, so travel was easy. Even with a detour, we made it to the Market in good time. (Thanks to my sister, Randi and her husband, Shaun, letting us stay at their house in Lodi, last night. That cut off around 25 minutes from our travel time. Plus Owney got to hang with his cousins all day.) We parked behind the building in their Lot A, which is free parking–another nice perk.
For those of you who have never gone, the Market has a produce section, where different vendors sell all kinds of produce from apples, bananas and oranges, to much more exotic options like papya and pomegranate. Bobby picked up a container of peeled garlic. I guess that is about as exotic as we get.
The main section of the Market is filled with different vendors whose wares included cheese, jerky, beef, pork, breads, cupcakes, caramel corn, gyros, apple fritters, cured and smoked meats and samosas. We picked up some ziti pasta that is not cut, but long like regular spaghetti. We also got an apple fritter, cupcake, pretzel bread, and a jumbo gyro (that was for me). We were told by many different vendors that we selected a good day to come. Mondays are much slower than Saturday’s. (The last time I went was a Saturday and it was a mad house!)
We chose to go on a Monday, based on a recommendation from one of the managers at Heck’s Cafe in Avon Lake. Tammy, from Steve’s Gyros, who has worked there for 15 years, said that on Saturdays the wait for a gyro can be as long as an hour. We only had to wait a couple of minutes.
At the end of our time there, I asked Bobby what he thought about the experience. He said it was, “interesting.” He then went on to say that if we didn’t have access to the sort of things we saw there, closer to home, it would be a good place to go. However, we are blessed to live in an area where we have access to Buehler’s with their vast selection, including Certified Angus Beef. We also live within 20 minutes of Marshallville Meats. (One of the vendors at the West Side Market sold Marshallville Cottage Hams.) Not to mention we also can take a pleasant drive (not on a freeway), to Amish Heartland, where we can enjoy delicious bakery items, cheeses and meats (some of the vendors sold Walnut Creek brand cheeses).
But for a birthday present, Bobby is now able to mark West Side Market off of his bucket list. And I come across as an awesome wife, who took him there for the experience. Sounds like a happy birthday to me!
I’ll be writing more about our day, including lunch at Ohio City Burrito and dessert at Mitchell’s Homade ice cream. Remember, if you subscribe to my blog, you’ll get a free gift, my ebook, “Joy in Budgeting.”
