Places like “The Farm” Make Charlottesville a Fun Place to Live

The Farm has been taunting me for weeks. Every time I drive or ride by, I think, “I really need to check that place out.” Finally, this week, I did

The Farm is decidedly not homogeneous, and that’s part of what makes Charlottesville a special place to live.

It’s small, jam packed with local foods – breads, beer, coffee, eggs, produce, milk, tofu – and is full of character and it’s been open for just over three months. And if you’re near Belmont, stop in and check it out for yourself.

Described on Foursquare as:

A “gourmet bodega” in the Belmont neighborhood, featuring locally sourced foods, including produce, meats and more! There are fresh-baked baguettes and pastries from Albemarle Baking Company in the mornings, as well as coffee from Shenandoah Joe’s brewing all day.

Rather than re-write what’s been written, read Dave McNair’s comprehensive story at The HooK in November about The Farm.

Follow The Farm on Twitter as well.

A year ago, there were few grocery stores within walking distance in Downtown Charlottesville. Now, we have the Market Street Market, Gibson’s Grocery, the Market at Meade and The Farm.

I’m going to go ahead and call this type of organic growth good.

* interestingly all of these local markets have Facebook pages. So far, the Market Street Market wins. Further, this is part of the evolution of a more walkable Charlottesville.

* Having a phone with a great camera changes everything. The above photos were taken with my Droid and originally were published on my Google Plus world.