Buy Local
Shop Talk | Local Market
Designing a house? Trolling Maine for cool finds? Don’t forget the kitchen- and your appetite. Local Market offers quality goods (and goodies) for those who love to cook, shop, and eat. Dig in.
Local Market is the kind of place everyone would like to have nearby. Housed in a landmark 1870s building on Maine Street in Brunswick, the shop is owned by Sharon Smiley and Sylvia Wyler, whose inspiration for opening in 2012 was simple: a love of cool kitchenware and local, farm-fresh provisions.
Chances are, when you pop in to Local Market, Smiley will be on hand, helping customers, chatting with the chefs, or working on product displays. She’s friendly and seriously knowledgeable about food and the merchandise she sells.
Smiley will happily share all that you want to know about the producers of everything from honeys and sauces to cheese, wine, beer, and kitchenware. If cooking (or shopping) isn’t your thing, she’ll direct you toward the wide selection of prepared entrees like pan- blackened salmon with tomato vinaigrette and lamb shepherd’s pie, which are made in small batches in the shop’s on-site kitchen. Head chef Stephanie Danahy also caters events.
Among Smiley’s many go-to sources for organic produce are Bowdoinham’s Left Field Farm and Freeport’s Farm Fresh Connection (a consortium of farmers), as well as start-ups like Richmond’s Tender Soles and Silent Wild Farm, who supplied all of the herb offerings last summer.
Local Market draws a loyal community of customers, who often arrive by foot or bike and linger over coffee and baked goods (from Standard Bakery); sandwiches such as roasted beet and chevre and turkey, swiss, and bacon with chipotle mayo; and soups like curried parsnip, sweet pea, and Hungarian mushroom.
Another ingredient of Local Market’s success is the carefully curated line of kitchen products. Smiley has organized the selection into micro-categories including kitchen gadgets (In need of a melon baller? Or a zester perhaps?), chic dinnerware, and industrial- inspired lighting. Looking to crank out your own linguine? Check out the gleaming chrome Atlas pasta maker. You’ll also find a sizable collection of cookbooks, which convene with pizza stones, cutting boards, corkscrews, and more.
Each table and shelf is a small foodie-inspired anthology of items that intrigue and beg to be perused. Shopping with little ones who might become too curious? The assortment of brightly colored candies arrayed in general-store-inspired glass containers near the checkout will distract and delight.
A little more shop talk.
Buy local, yes, then how about a date night in? Start with a recipe from our friends at Local Market.
GINGER BEET SALAD – SERVES 4
1 1/2 pounds red beets from Left Field Farm in Bowdoinham
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger from Sparrow Farm in Pittston
1 ounce sliced red onion from Left Field Farm
Place beets in a pot, cover with water, and simmer until beets are tender, about 30 minutes. Let the beets cool then peel and cut into 1/2-inch dice.
In a small bowl, whisk the rice vinegar, soy sauce, olive oil, and minced ginger and let sit for 10 minutes.
In a medium bowl, toss the beets and red onion. Add the rice vinegar dressing, toss again, and enjoy!