When I was young my Italian parents would occasionally visit downtown Detroit’s Eastern Market early on Saturday mornings. So early, in fact, that I can remember freezing walking through there as a kid. It would still be a bit dark out, the fog would be lifting, I could see my breath in the cold air and I had to dodge getting nailed by the pigeons in the rafters. It only needs to happen once to be cautious forever more.
It was important to arrive as early as possible in order to find, what else? The freshest food. Shopping in small markets for produce is typical in Italy so my parents were pros. Those trips seemed tedious at the time especially since my mom and dad would wind their way around the entire market evaluating what everyone had to offer first. Once the stalls with the freshest produce, at the best prices, were identified, there might be a small dispute if a vendor starting filling the bag themselves as opposed to letting my mom do it. Particularly when they were choosing items behind them in crates and not on the table where my mom could see what was being put in the bag. Lesson #1 had been learned on “avoiding the fregatura”.
