Fall French Market Adds More Vendors
By Chuck Sudo in Food on Oct 16, 2009 5:20PM
A Sample Market Stand
In anticipation to its proposed mid-November opening, the Metramarket at 131 N. Clinton announced an additional 16 vendors to the 20 already onboard today. We've included the full list after the jump. [Inbox]
(Previous Chicagoist coverage of MetraMarket 1, 2, 3.)
Abbey Brown Soap Artisan
Founder and proprietor Deborah Kraemer brings handmade cold-pressed olive oil soaps, soothing body oils and relaxing bath essentials to Chicago French Market. All products are made in-house at the first Abbey Brown location in Chicago with fair trade ingredients including herbs grown organically and locally by Smits farm. Abbey Brown soaps and bath products are truly 100% natural, and are balanced for all skin types. Abbey Brown also offers classes on soap making, plus makes most packaging in-house.
Bowl Square
Young Sun Jang and her husband, Gwang Ho Jang, will make traditional Korean dishes such as Bibimbap (seasoned beef and white rice topped with namul / sautéed vegetables and gochujang / chili pepper) and Bulgogi (marinated barbequed beef). The Jangs will offer a simple menu that gives consumers an opportunity to sample and experience Korean fare, widely viewed by top chefs and food trend experts as one of the hot new cuisines in the U.S.
Buen Apetito
Buen Apetito is a family owned taqueria that specializes in traditional Mexican favorites with modern flair and a focus on healthy, fresh and flavorful ingredients. The menu features grilled steak, chicken, salmon and vegetarian tacos and tostadas, plus burritos. All dishes are flavored with fresh herbs and distinctive spices of Latin America. For a sweet side of Buen Apetito, guests can also enjoy Dona Mona’s signature cheesecake flan.
Chundy’s Gourmet
David Chundy will bring Indian-fusion dishes, plus a variety of quality grab-and-go meals, salads, snacks and drinks to Chicago French Market. Menu highlights include cold sandwiches, meat and vegetarian Panini, soups such as green curry coconut, traditional Indian mulligatawny and lentil, salads, side dishes, a selection of chutneys and slaws. Chundy’s Gourmet will also serve a collection of fruit and vegetable sweet breads, flatbreads, plus fresh fruit smoothies, milkshakes and iced fruit teas.
City Fresh Market
Brothers Danny and Ray Kovacevic opened the first City Fresh Market location in 2004, a European-styled grocery shop in Chicago. Now both brothers will open a second, smaller location within Chicago French Market with a focus on fresh poultry and grass-fed beef raised without antibiotics and hormones, plus a variety of other meats, fruits, vegetables, cheese and meat pies, grab-and-go salads, fresh-squeezed orange juice and a selection of grocery items including olive oils, vinegars, salad dressings and more.
Delightful Pastries
In 1998, mother and daughter Stasia Hawyrszczuk and Dobra Bielinski opened the first Delightful Pastries bakery in Chicago and now will open another location within Chicago French Market. The bakery specializes in authentic European pastries, using local, natural and sustainably grown ingredients. The majority of Delightful Pastries’ products are also made low-sugar and include seasonal breads, cookies, bars, cakes and morning pastries, plus traditional Polish and French savory specialties such as pierogi and quiches.
Frietkoten
Netherlands-native Jeroen Hasenbos will bring Amsterdam’s traditional Frietkoten ‘fry shack’ experience to Chicago for the first time, with Belgian fries that are served in a cone and distinguished by a crisp outside and soft, delicious potato inside. In keeping with the popular ‘fry shacks’ in Amsterdam, Frietkoten will offer these traditional Belgian fries with up to 20 different sauces and aiolis to choose from on any given day. Soon after the grand opening, Frietkoten will also offer Dutch and Belgian beers to complement these traditional grab-and-go Belgian fries of the Netherlands.
Fumare
Dick McCracken left banking to pursue his love of good food and sharing his culinary finds with others. Fumare ('smoke' in Italian) brings traditionally cured and smoked meats from local producers to Chicago French Market. Items include locally made prosciutto, hams, smoked sausages, bacons and other delights. Menu highlights include an old-fashioned, Montreal-style smoked meat (think pastrami) cured and naturally smoked, peppered and slow-cooked to a well-marbled tenderness. Sandwiches and sides are also available.
Juicy Orange
The Gasienica family, who moved to the U.S. from Germany in 2001, will serve fresh, squeezed-to-order fruit and vegetable juices, plus smoothies homemade with seasonal fruits. All juices are 100% juice, with zero added sugar or concentrates.
Les Fleurs
With more than 35 years in the floral business, Les Fleur proprietor Dean Futris will bring a colorful collection of fresh-cut flowers, potted plants, orchids and European-style floral arrangements to Chicago French Market. Les Fleurs will offer grab-and-go bouquets, plus custom arrangements. The Les Fleur team works with area residents and companies throughout Chicagoland, including well-known movie production teams that have trusted the Les Fleur team with floral arrangements for various film sets.
Necessity Baking Company
Chicago-born Ellen Carney Granda enjoyed a successful career in non-profit fundraising and a brief stint in corporate America before turning her love of artisan bread baking into a growing bread company serving North Suburban farmer’s markets and now Chicago French Market. Ellen and the Necessity Baking Co. ‘Hive’ (a team of bakers, market tote makers and worker bees) bring the art of old-fashioned bread baking techniques back to bread making, delivering hand-shaped and seasonally flavored breads to market goers. Specialties include sweet and savory French boules, olive oils from around the globe, aged balsamic vinegars and market bags constructed from oil cloth and vintage linens. Necessity Baking Co. uses only natural ingredients and infuses flavor through the most premium ingredient: time.
‘Hive-made’ fresh pasta will also be available everyday soon after the market opens.
Pop This!
Lauri Bourgeois was inspired to launch her Pop This! popcorn business by her dad, Art Hixson (aka ‘The Popcorn Man’), who started his own popcorn business in the 1980s selling at Chicago art festivals, Navy Pier, Taste of Chicago and eventually at his own storefronts in Chicago and Denver. The Pop This! team will make their gourmet popcorn onsite at Chicago French Market. They will offer more than 17 flavored popcorn varieties, and specialize in personalized, custom popcorn creations.
Produce Express
Fourth generation farmers in Chicagoland, the Jeffrey family will offer a variety of seasonal and locally grown fruits and vegetables, plus grab-and-go and made-to-order fruit baskets for holiday gifts and throughout the year.
Provo’s Village Bake Shoppe
After immigrating to the United States in the 1980s and working for several bakeries, Wesley Kuras purchased the Village Bake Shoppe in 2000. Now focused on selling his family’s homemade baked goods at farmer’s markets throughout Chicago, Wesley will open a year-round location at Chicago French Market with a variety of breads, coffee cakes, sweet rolls, pastries, cookies, cakes and pies made with
seasonal ingredients from local farmers. Provo’s offerings are all free of high fructose corn syrup and preservatives.
RAW
Raw food-enthusiasts Polly Gaza and Carole Jones will offer a variety of meals, drinks and snack items, all made onsite at Chicago French Market and based on a raw food diet of uncooked and unprocessed vegan foods. Featuring all organic ingredients, RAW’s menu highlights include fresh salads, pizzas, pastas, muffins and granola, with a focus on nut-free. RAW will also offer a selection of super food smoothies, sunflower sprouts, vitamins, wheat grass shots, coconut water and rejuvelac, plus host onsite classes.
Saigon Sisters
Two sisters, Mary Nguyen Aregoni and Theresa Nguyen, along with their mother Suu Nguyen will offer signature Vietnamese cuisine with French accented flavors. The menu includes traditional summer/spring rolls (Goi Cuon), the quintessential Pho soup, salads and Banh Mi, Vietnamese sandwiches which have garnered significant attention in Los Angeles and New York City. The ingredients will focus on healthful, flavorful and aromatic herbs, spices, vegetables, seasoned meats and seafood from locally sourced farmers and purveyors.