Each year, Bridgeport Farmers Market culminates a community dinner – a chance for local supporters to gather around the table. Last year, the event took place at Bridgeport Conference Center. This year, organizers are switching it up a little.

 

A Sept. 10 dining experience in Sutton will feature food from the market’s finest local farms, prepared by the state’s top culinary artists. To put it simply, the premier dinner – titled A Wild and Wonderful Table - will take those who attend to the heart of our state, said Debbie Workman of Bridgeport Farmers Market Association board of directors.

 

“It’s the perfect time to wrap up the 2016 growing season, share remarkable food and drinks and celebrate the good things sourced here in our Appalachian home,” she said.

 

At $75 per person or $140 per couple, the event serves as a fundraiser for Bridgeport Farmers Market which hosts weekly outdoor markets from May to October and indoor monthly markets November through April. The indoor winter markets are held inside Bridgeport Conference Center and regular season markets are held on the market grounds at Charles Pointe.

Workman and her BFM team work hard to bring in a variety of vendors. In the height of the season, the market hosts as many as three dozen vendors - those selling everything from fresh produce and flowers to baked goods and artisan wares.

 

When founded in 2009, Bridgeport Farmers Market featured just six vendors and has grown to be one of the state’s premier markets, drawing people from throughout North Central West Virginia, Workman said. Recently, the American Farmland Trust recognized BFM as the best farmers market in the state and the 14^th best market in the nation.

 

The market’s mission is to create and sustain a community of local vendors and supportive customers in order to cultivate the local economy and provide fresh, healthy food options for local families. Adding talented artisans, musicians and authors to the mix is an extended mission of the market, Workman said.

 

At the Sept. 10 dinner, the following West Virginia chefs will prepare local foods: Richard Arbaugh of South Hills Market, Pamela Delaude of Mia Margherita Coal Fired Pizzeria, Michael Diethorn of The Country Vinter, Geoff Kraus of Thyme Bistro, Jay Mahoney of Pierpont Culinary Academy, Cody Thrasher of Cody’s and Hash Browns & New Grounds, Tim Urbanic of Café Cimino and Joe White of Bridgeport Conference Center. In addition to the dining experience, the event will feature live music, craft cocktails and specially curated wines.

 

The menu, which will have a seasonal theme, is still being tweaked but should be finalized sometime next week, Workman said. 

Seating is limited.  Purchase tickets at www.bridgeportfarmersmarket.com.  

 

Editor's Note: Photos of previous Bridgeport Farmers Market Community Dinner and produce items at Bridgeport Farmers Market are by Ben Queen Photography.