More than 200 people showed up to Phoenix Public Market’s first Downtown Sundown event last month to experience the agricultural, art, beauty and healthcare vendors as well as live entertainment and food trucks.
The event is a new weekly staple at the open air market, on Central Avenue and Pierce Street, every Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m.
As The Haymarket Squares livened up the night with country music, several vendors sold goods at tables. One of those vendors, James Golo, sold organic food he grew with his family out of the Golo Family Organic Farm in Litchfield Park. His selection includes eggs, radishes, eggplants, broccoli and several other vegetables, most of which are sold for under $5.
Another food vendor, Ray Raimondo, has been in the restaurant business for 38 years. At the Phoenix Public Market, he sells various pastas and several types of bread including multigrain organic bread and gluten-free bread. Some entrees on his menu included eggplant rollatini, vegetable lasagna and meatballs. Raimondo said his food is homemade and always fresh.
Food truck employee Ruben Llamas said he liked the selection of food trucks available as well.
“They have good food and there’s a good variety,” he said. Llamas said he recommends the Bacon Cheddar cheeseburger and aqua fresca from Burgers Amore.
Vendors sold pottery, jewelry and clothes, and there were games for kids like giant Connect Four. Attendee Heidi Hallquist-Szabo said the local stores are what she liked most about the event. Downtown Sundown lets people enjoy the friendly downtown community, and she said she was happy the event was pet-friendly.
Open Air Market Manager Sara Matlin said Downtown Sundown includes both new and previously existing vendors.
“We want the market to grow organically, so we have launched it with 25 awesome vendors who can provide a well-rounded dining and shopping experience,” she said. “We also wanted to be sure to highlight some of our smaller farmers on Thursday to give them a chance to shine at the market.”
Matlin said the event is held on Thursdays to make the day an exciting time to get the weekend started and meet friends. She said neighbors and the local community are the main audience this event targets.
“Whether you live or work around the market, this is for you. From students, to families, to business patrons in the downtown area — this is a market for those leaving work looking for a bite to eat or heading home and picking up a variety of delicious foods for the weekend.”
Matlin said Downtown Sundown is intended to help downtown residents with their groceries as well, since there isn’t a grocery store in the central core.
“As a part of the mission behind the Phoenix Public Market, our goal is to provide healthy, fresh food to our community,” she said. “If you can’t make the Saturday morning market, you now have an opportunity to get your groceries mid-week at the market.”
“We hope to create routine for many people to shift the way we shop and learn how to utilize the market for their groceries,” she said. “This is a chance for people to rethink a normal grocery store run, to eat more naturally.”
She said the event is unlike any other because it is inspired by the energy of Downtown Phoenix. Upcoming Downtown Sundown events will include live music, mini-exhibitions, square dancing and Halloween costume contests, she said.
She said she is still finding the right balance regarding whether or not the same vendors will appear every week, and that the mix will adapt to what the community wants.
“We have seen fantastic crowds of people coming down to check out Downtown Sundown,” Matlin said. “We are thrilled to keep spreading the word and get more people out to support our vendors and enjoy a new experience in downtown.”
“Downtown Sundown wants to help Phoenix and our amazing, talented food vendors, farmers and artisans expand with it. We want to contribute something to the community with this market.”
Contact the reporter at Holly.Bernstein@asu.edu
