I took a day off from the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show! The sky was azure blue, the ocean like a lake and my motorcycle hasn’t exercised for a while. The only thing missing was a destination. Whenever I’m bored, I think about food, so a farmers market came to my mind. Online I found a local food site with lots of markets in South Florida. I know it won’t be south of France or Sicily, but I went with an open mind.

Key Biscayne is an attached island south of downtown Miami. Gorgeous for walking, biking and water sport. In the spring the Key Biscayne Tennis Open is held here. It’s a family friendly neighborhood and a good clientele for a farmers market. And without traffic my ride was epic!

Once I arrived at the “Farmers Market” in Key Biscayne and parked my motorcycle on a golf cart parking spot, reality kicked in again. Not much food here, just some handcrafted textiles and lots of second hand stuff for sale. Although these Colombian bags are gorgeous and very trendy in St. Tropez this summer.

On the other side of the parking lot I saw a display of gourmet pasta and fresh bread. I actually bought some orzo and made a nice Greek style salad for lunch later.

Save the best for last I thought and checked out the only produce stand here today. And trust me, it was all worth coming here. All the fruit and vegetables are locally grown in the south Miami area of Homestead. The shop run by a family since generations. A humble and proud owner answered all my questions and made customers taste his delicious and seasonal fruits with pleasure.

Quality has improved over the last few years in the local supermarket and health food chains. But only at this little stand the freshly picked green beans actually tasted like green beans.

South Florida is the tropics and so are the fruits. Dragon fruit, mango, papaya, maracuya, sugar apple etc are in season right now.

Unfortunately my back pack could hold only a small amount of shopping. I bought some papaya with a deep orange color and intense ripe scent. On the way home I was thinking how to use it in my lunch. Sometimes I drizzle some lime juice and a little flour de sel over a weak tasting papaya. But this one, peeling and cutting it up was the only thing that was needed. I felt like being on the beach in Thailand again.