Nashville Spotlight: Porter Flea

I'm all about supporting local businesses. They're part of the foundation of classic Americana and help real people do what they love. Sure, big box chains may be convenient, but there's a very important aspect of human-to-human connection missing when a purchase is made from one, as opposed to from a local merchant. Local merchants always deliver on quality, not only because their name is at stake, but because they actually care about the work that they do. And it shows.

So on Saturday, when my roommate, Megan, brought up the Porter Flea Holiday Market, I didn't need to think about whether I wanted to go. The answer was an immediate "yes!" Less than an hour later, we were stopped by a line of cars. A man in the road directed traffic. I rolled down my window.

"Ya'll going to the market?" he asked. "Head that way but pull into the farthest parking lot. Don't park on the street. It's a mad house."

That was an understatement.

After parking, we followed the crowd to what was the line to get into the OZ Arts Center, where the market had been set up.

The line was a bit long to say the least, but it moved quickly and after about a half hour, we were in.

From the line, I saw a row of food trucks and immediately forgot that I had just eaten lunch, like, an hour ago. It was free entry, and once we'd gotten in, the four of us walked immediately over to the trucks.

The Grilled Cheeserie's line for, you got it, artisan grilled cheese

Riddim N Spice, feat. jerk chicken & vegan Caribbean food. Mmm.

But alas, we hadn't made the trip for the food trucks alone, so we found our way into the OZ Arts Center and waited a few more minutes to enter the market.

And man, I had seriously underestimated the size of the market. What waited inside was vendors galore, selling everything imaginable— from pottery to prints to pasta.

The Meat and 3 Printing Co. was swarmed with shoppers when we passed

Nicoletto's Pasta Co'., serving handcrafted small batch pasta

When we walked out of the OZ Center, we were surprised that there was another part of the market, an entire tent set up with dozens more vendors. We had to check that one out too, of course...

By the time we'd walked through the entire market, I'd made a few purchases: an air plant from The Zen Succulent (because ugh, if you know me, you know how much I love plants) and two postcards from Dordles. I'd also received a natural and nontoxic soap sample from Rainwater Farm that smells so good that I'm planning on buying them for everyone on my Christmas list. Good-smelling natural soap is hard to find! I'd also received a sample of chocolate chai tea, served with chocolate almond milk, from Firepot. It was, hands-down, the best caffeinated drink I've tasted all year. 

Other merchants worth mentioning are as follows:

• Suburban Pallet, a super unique collaborative of woodworkers and artisans producing quality furniture & decor.
• Pourtaste, whose E. Harlow Pristine Tonic was both delicious and unlike anything I've tasted before (and I was a craft cocktail bartender in Chicago for years!) If you have anyone in your life who prides themselves on their home bar, you have to buy them this product. 
• Holler Design caught my eye with their beautiful cheeseboards and butchers blocks. These would make an excellent gift for the chef in your life... or, you know, me.
• Nola, a natural granola company that was happy to let us sample most of their flavors. I was impressed by their bourbon granola, because, uh, bourbon and granola. 

Be sure to check these vendors out and knock out some holiday shopping! Also, remember that even if you don't live in Nashville, there's always independent markets going all over the country. It's worth looking into, and way more rewarding to spend your money on products that are handcrafted by people who care about making them. 

And maybe, by spending time in such a creative environment, you'll even be inspired to create something of your own.