Borough Hall’s Greenmarket connects downtown brooklynites with local farmers, making our city life a bit more grounded. As I ambled through, I found a bit of everything—fruits, root veggies, herbs, and fresh baked goods. Like all Greenmarkets, it’s seasonal. In winter, we get carrots, pumpkins, squash, and apples, and all year round, there’s a fantastic selection of bread and local honey to try. They also had a tasting table with a meal made from the selection of produce offered at the market that day to encourage the purchases and spark creativity.

Sure, you’ll see the usual suspects like apples and carrots, but what caught my eye were these new and exciting things—exotic fruits and vegetables with quirky names that you won’t find in your regular grocery store.

Now, let’s talk prices—they might be a smidge higher here, but it’s because they’re all about top-notch quality, freshness, and giving a leg up to local farmers. Case in point: the honeycrisp apples I love was $2.50 a pound here, whereas they’re just $1.99 at the supermarkets in my area.

My discovery—Black Velvet Heirloom Tomatoes. They’re not your run-of-the-mill tomatoes; they’re dark, rich, sweet, and were really good. Choosing these over the regular ones isn’t just about flavor—it’s about supporting local farms that grow them naturally. These tomatoes had a good taste but rotted faster than my supermarket produce.