So why bother to go out of the way to the Asian Markets (at least the good ones) on Buford Highway?
Because four ears of spindly corn, barely fit for mule feed cost $2.99 at Publix. (The picture below is from a month ago – $1 worth of good corn…)
The entire load in the picture above (2 cans of Thai coconut milk, xiao bai tsai (baby bok choy), peeled garlic (about 2 1/2 head worth), black plums, Taiwan bok choy (funny, I can’t find a Chinese name for this anywhere – help?), 2 large cucumbers, 2 bunches of scallions and 2 1/2 lbs of chicken cost $10 at the Atlanta Farmer’s Market.
Perhaps the biggest reason to consider a Buford Highway market (or carniceria) is the meats are substantially cheaper there than Kroger or Publix. A typical price for lamb at a carniceria or a farmer’s market is $2.99 a pound. Contrast that to $5.00/lb at Publix and $5.99/lb at Kroger. Sirloin? $3.79 a pound at a carniceria, last I looked. $6.99 a pound at Publix, and so on.