Market in the Making

"And up from the ground came a bubblin' crude…"

- Theme song from The Beverly Hillbillies

Like when Jed Clampett was shootin' at some food, Roger Konka and Norma Cravens saw an empty lot just off a nascent restaurant row on Northeast Killingsworth and what bubbled up before their eyes was a spot where they could sell their bounty of wild and cultivated mushrooms. A weed-covered emptiness, the lot was owned by a friend of Roger's. Of course, it didn't hurt that it was right across the street from Beast, perennially named one of Portland's best restaurants, and just down the block from Yakuza Lounge, Fats pub, Autentica, DOC and funky breakfast spot Cup and Saucer.

An instant hit, it didn't hurt that chef (and GSNW contributor) Kathryn LaSusa Yeomans (left) was dishing out samples of her crazy cream of mushroom soup, along with a rotating cast that included her bean stews, polenta with lamb and a heavenly apple crisp. (Try walking by that without stopping on a chilly Saturday. I dare you.)

Then, within a week they were joined by Hood River's Draper Girls, selling not only their signature fruit, but fresh-pressed cider, dried beans, pork and lamb. And just last week Nancy Chandlers' hugely popular Alsea Acre Goat Cheese joined them with her nearly impossible-to-resist herbed cheese spreads.

Apparently other vendors are clamoring to join them, so this little market may be going viral. I'll keep you posted on what bubbles up next.

Details: Urban Farm Market. Saturdays, 10 am-3 pm. NE 30th and Emerson, 1 block south of Killingsworth.