This past weekend, having kidnapped my nieces for a few days, I finally had to return them to their parents. On the way into the city there is the distribution center for all produce for much of the city of Houston. It is like a huge warehouse market area with lots of trucks and loading docks. One of the vendors also sells produce in an un-airconditioned building (this info is important because we are talking about Texas!).
BTW- Is there really a cuter baby? Don’t answer that…
What I like best about this place is not the prices, but that it really gets the kids excited about eating vegetables! They start begging, I mean asking for fruit and vegetables! Wow, who knew? They always want to try new things, I give each child a bag and have them help me decide what we will be having for dinner this week. They can also pick out what they want to eat.
The prices are a little bit less then what you can find in the local stores. It is not low enough to make a special trip, but if I am anywhere close it is worth it to stop.
This is the place, that when we started a fruit and vegetable co-op they delivered to us. They also deliver to most of the restaurants and small grocers. Consider finding where your stores get their produce from and buying it direct OR just go and check things out, maybe they have a little store like our that you can purchase from.
I paid about $33 for what you see in the picture above.
If you are in Houston:
Caninos Farmers Market
2520 Airline Dr
Houston, TX 77009
Part comedian, part Dad, part athlete. He will boss around your children while they play ball.
Just as angelic as she looks, this girl could easily raise a Village by herself, and all the children would grow up to be President.
Self proclaimed, she would be a webkinz dog. Because, "they're cute, and puppies are too. And they're sweet and they always get along with other puppies."
This mini-Martha Stewart can handle ANY craft you send her way. She isn't all bows and rainbows, she's got karate kid moves!
Not "Pick-Me-Up" like caffeine, she wants you to pick her up! AND NOW!
Anything that can be destroyed WILL be destroyed!
Practically Perfect in Every Way for now! Nicknamed "The Panda" she is rolly polly and lives by the motto, "the little one, is KING!"
The resident Labradoodle, Miller got his name because Mom won and got to name the baby! Need something chewed up? He'll take care of it. Especially if it's expensive..
In our area the farmer’s market is not really cheaper, but the veggies and fruits are really nice. It’s also a great place, early in the season, to get live vegetable plants for my garden at prices much lower than Lowes.
Canino’s has some great deals in the back; however you usually have to haggle for these great deals. Went about 3 weeks ago and my sister-in-law got a great deal on lychees (an asian fruit) that normally get sold for $4-5/lb in the asian markets (Hong Kong Mrkt/Viet Hoa) but there were only $3/lb at Canino’s. However my sister-in-law wanted 50 lbs for a family reunion and the vendor only had a few pounds but she told us to go all the way to the back where they unload/load trucks and we found a refrigerated warehouse where they sold them for $2/lb.
They usually have pretty good deals on watermelons, mangos, pineapples, etc however you have to haggle with them. If one vendor won’t lower their price move on to the next; I guarantee one of them will! I usually don’t go there without my husband or sister-in-law as haggling seems to be in their blood =)
I like the selection at Canino’s, but don’t live close enough to it to make a special trip. And they’re similar to grocery stores where the best deals go fast (ie, red and yellow peppers for less than $1!). On another note, there’s a bakery across the street, El Bolillo, that we stop into when we’re in the area because they have several freshly baked pastries and sweet breads individually priced, so everyone gets a treat for super cheap. On our last trip, each person in our family of 6 got 3 pastries that came out to just under $7!
I’m going to answer it anyway–NO there is no cuter baby anywhere! What a doll. 🙂
Andie is the cutest, sweetest baby around! 🙂
The next time you get over that way you have to try the AAA Restaurant right next door. They serve veggies fresh from the market. With it’s strong sweet tea, dark paneling, ugly orange chairs, geriatric patrons and surly waitresses it is truly an experience.
Oh my goodness! Thank you so much for this post. My husband, daughter and I are new to Houston and trying to learn the area. We’ve been wanting to find a market like this. And thank you Heather for the tip about the bakery. I love me some sweet breads. 😀
I second the bakery! It is amazing! You get a pizza tray and a pair of tongs = children in Heaven!
I Love The farmers Market ! I go when I get a chance if you walk past the main market kinda middle they have great spices sold in bulk don’t think you can beat the prices on chili powder ,cumin, and many others . Great place to get fresh veggies and fruit
Your daughter is the cutest little girl i’ve ever seen. Love the dark hair and eyes!!! You make pretty babies 🙂
Oh Thank you! I happen to think so also! 🙂
My kids like that area too!! We shopped there alot years ago when we lived in Houston. My kids liked walking to the back when they each would fill a cup with fruit pieces to eat and shop. I loved the smell of fresh herbs and seasonings, too!
I read recently, that there is an outside Market on Saturdays in the Woodlands and am interested in attending.
That baby is so cute!!!
Thank you! They do have one! Here is a good one also http://www.the-veggie-lady.com/
Awww the Panda
Every thing you had in your photo we can buy at the corner street market half block away for about 3$ US. Not as good quality in some cases but cheap and plentiful. If we go to the western market it would cost about what you paid.
it is an awesome place this is where we go get fruit for the band kids during band camp the second week they are there all day everyday and the boosters feeds the band kids and the directors and we get them snacks all fresh fruit.
i LOVE to go there and haggle in the back. I walk away with bags and bags filled with goodies for under $30, thanks for the bakery tip as well… I think if I were to of seen you, I would of been star-strucked =) youre a legend in our family lol
Oh no! We should all go together and have breakfast and go shopping for veggies together!
Anyone ever heard of “rawfuly organic”? It’s a coop where you order online a share or a half share and every Tuesday you pick your produce up at the arboretum (there are also other pick up options-go to rawfulyorganic.com). You get a little of whatever is in season. A half share is $48 and it’s a TON of food, plenty for my family of four for the week.
Thanks for sharing this. It sounds great. I used to have fresh produce home deliver from a co-op when i was in PA. It was fantastic.. Now we moved here, so I am looking for something similar. I checked out rawfully organics pickup locations … Not very convenient from the Woodlands. Is there any other such service that delivers locally in the Woodlands?
I absolutely love Canino’s! My family and I all go in together and each supply about $20…giving us a total of $140….you can imagine what we walk away with…we love the variety and the prices…just an FYI for those on government assistance, you can your your lonestar card in the front part of the market…we are actually taking a trip there in the next few days…can’t wait! we take my 2 kids and my sister’s 3 kids…they all love to look at the vegetables and learn about what they are, and they help pick stuff out too!!!
Another great place to check out in the Houston area is 99 Ranch Market. It’s a huge Chinese market place … Excellent meats and produce & very economical. Very clean. Great bakery and restaurants in the building too.