The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
FRESH AND SWEET
Elyria’s Fenik’s Farm Market, known for its sweet corn, opens for season
For more than 70 years of operation, business at Fenik’s Farm Market, also known as Fenik’s Sweet Corn, 6413 Lake Ave. in Elyria, has steadily grown.
Known for its sweet corn, the roadside fruit and vegetable stand reopened for this year’s season July 18, a little later than usual, said Patrick Fenik, coowner of the business.
“With the dry season, we’ve had we had to delay the opening,” Fenik said.
Fenik said there were benefits to the late opening.
“The actual sweetness is enhanced because there’s less water in the kernel,” he said. “It’s very sweet corn.”
With more than corn on the menu, Fenik’s brings fresh, hand- picked and local produce to the community with the help of family and a few local teens.
“Basically, we pick stuff in the morning and sell it that day.”
— Fenik’s Farm Market coowner Patrick Fenik
At 6 a.m., daily, vegetable picking begins on the 30 acres of fresh produce.
“We have fresh green beans, peppers, onions, tomatoes, watermelon, cantaloupe and a lot of other fruits and vegetables,” Fenik said. “We also have fresh flowers, jams and honey.”
As the seasons change, so does the variety of products, he said.
During the fall months, pumpkins and gourds are available, Fenik said.
Benefits of shopping locally, he said, applies to his family stand as well.
It’s more environmentally friendly because you aren’t getting strawberries from California, Fenik said.
“Basically, we pick stuff in the morning and sell it that day,” he said. “Other places there’s refrigeration and transportation, and we don’t have that; it’s fresh and homegrown.”
Fenik said the stand has seen an increase in the business of customers from out of the area.
“We’ve gotten pull now from Cleveland,” he said. “People like to get away from the city and come to the country.”
The stand is open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., seven days a week.