More Strawberries

Was anybody at the San Francisco Farmer's Market yesterday by Galleria Mall in downtown? My office is right across from it, and I learned that there's a farmer's market every Thursday around lunch time. Yes, a farmer's market right in the heart of SF downtown! And to my pleasant surprise, there were so many vendors and office workers during the time. Though it was already late lunch by the time I joined the crowd, the place was still packed and I had to peek over people's shoulders to see some of the most popular produce of the day. Cherries were the first ones to go, and I got in a line to grab some of the last strawberries. Though was not my original plan, I ended up buying two full boxes of strawberries. They were selling $4 for a basket and $15 for a box of 6 baskets, but then the deal came when the guy said $20 for 2 boxes. It was no brainer - I got 12 full baskets of strawberries for the price of five. But the thought on how I would carry them back home on BART only came later.

I saved one box for Kevin's mom (Kevin is Min's ex-roommate and the best-man at our wedding) who invited us for dinner that evening, and shared the other box with coworkers. The strawberries were truly amazing. Every single one of them was so juicy and sweet inside and out. I couldn't help telling myself that these strawberries got to be the best strawberries I have ever had in my life. I had been to Watsonville few weeks ago, and I thought then their strawberries are the best when I tried some from a fruitstand by the strawberry field. (In case you don't know, Watsonville is a farming town just south of Santa Cruz where probably most of strawberries and artichokes grown in the US come from.) Then couple weeks ago, we bought another box of strawberries from Casa de Fruta near Gilroy on our way down to LA. Their strawberries were just as good or better, we thought then. After all those strawberries in Watsonville and Hollister, the strawberries I bought yesterday in the middle of San Francisco downtown were the best ever, I have to say. This year has definitely been one of the sweetest year for strawberries, and I am so glad that I got to taste their best during this season.