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| - I may have a slight addiction to Marty's Market... But please, let me explain. You'll totally understand!
I've been to Marty's a handful of times in the past, but I started really going in earnest about a month ago. My husband and I decided to embark upon a week-long Buy Fresh Buy Local Challenge to see if we could make about 75% of our meals for the week from locally-sourced ingredients (or at least locally-purchased, to support small business even if it was for items that weren't made nearby).
So, I bought almost all of our meat and a good bit of our produce from Marty's. And I haven't looked back.
Their produce section is locally-sourced, and they tell you where each onion, potato, and peach was born and raised. Many of these items were from the farms we see in our Penn's Corner CSA farm share each week, so it was no surprise to see familiar names like Clarion River Organics and Brenckle's Farm. The prices are higher than you'd see at a big store like Giant Eagle or Shop n Save, but you know exactly where you're getting your freggies from, and exactly what they've experienced in their little freggie lives.
Speaking of knowing where your food is from, I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the amazing meat selection at Marty's! This is where we really fell in love with the store at first. They do their own butchering on site and use only locally, humanely-raised animals. (We saw butcher Steve do a demonstration at Hometown Homegrown with Oliver from Northwoods Ranch.)
Yes, the meat is more expensive than that BOGO deal you may get at Giant Eagle. But trust me when I say this: it tastes better. It really does. First of all, you won't waste ten minutes of kitchen prep slicing off the fat, because the pieces of meat you receive are what - and only what - you want. If you want fat, you can get it. But if you don't? No worries. The meat is ready for you.
We're in love with their pork belly, which I have used in a variety of cooking capacities. I've also bought their deli meat, and we are big fans of their flank and hanger steaks, as well as their fresh chicken breasts. And best of all, we know where these animals came from, and we know they were raised humanely and had excellent lives before graciously giving themselves up for our nourishment. Buying meat from Marty's helps to bridge the gap between 'I think humans are supposed to have some meat in our diets' and 'but OMGZ I love the animals.'
Finally, I need to mention the staff. Top. Notch. You can come in with a cooking question of any sort and find an answer to it. The butchers are so knowledgeable about the meat, and they definitely want to share what they know. And the other staff have been so helpful when I'm stuck with a cooking ingredient question. (Since the produce is seasonal, I find myself having to make substitutions at times, and I've always been able to get great help from the staff with this.)
Long story short, I've committed to taking a few extra dollars out of my bank account to put it toward better nourishing my body. And that means buying local and organic products, and that absolutely means shopping at Marty's every week! Check it out, and maybe you'll make the switch to Buy Fresh Buy Local as well!
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