Making a stand for 40 years
Cornucopia produce market offers fresh goodies year-round
The Sunday farmers market in downtown Los Gatos is a popular spot for fresh produce, but just down the road there’s an “everyday farmers market” that’s been open for 40 years. The Cornucopia Fruit Stand stocks justpicked fruit and vegetables during the spring and summer, then turns into a fall pumpkin patch and a winter Christmas tree lot.
Cornucopia is on Winchester Boulevard between Highway 85 and Knowles Drive, across the street from the original Netflix headquarters.
Owner Connie Norman drives to small farms in Morgan Hill and Gilroy daily for fresh produce, including apricots, cherries and strawberries. “We open in the spring when they start picking strawberries in Gilroy, but always by May 1,” Norman said. “People tell me their first sign of spring is when the fruit stand opens.”
Norman and her husband, Bill, opened Cornucopia in 1976. “My husband and I worked in the semiconductor industry,” she said. “There were some big layoffs in the 1970s, and that’s when we decided to start the fruit stand.”
Some advice from uncle didn’t hurt, either.
“My uncle used to talk about the Great Depression, and he taught us that food is a commodity that’s always in demand,” Norman said.
That lesson has served the family-owned business well for 40 years. “I’m very proud we’re still here,” Norman said. “I want to continue the legacy for as long as possible.”
Today’s Cornucopia is smaller than the original fruit stand because quite a bit of land was lost years ago when Winchester Boulevard was widened from two to four lanes.
“The northbound lanes of Winchester are the original lanes,” Norman said. “The fruit stand’s property went to the center divide, so today’s southbound lanes used to be our parking lot.”
Since the stand was left with just two parking spaces, most customers today park on the street.
Cornucopia remains popular with customers in part because it’s a throwback to the days of the Valley of Heart’s Delight. Norman said, “There was nothing between Los Gatos and Campbell. It was mostly apricot orchards, but they slowly disappeared.”
Now, Cornucopia’s nearest neighbors are the busy boulevard, the tech company Roku, the Aventino Apartments and Highway 85, which is why the little white building with handpainted cherry and strawberry signs stands out as a blast from the past.
“My wife and I keep coming here because it reminds us of the old days,” a longtime an Los Gatos customer named Paul said. “We like the fruit and the owner.”
Indeed, Norman says half the fun of running the stand is that “customers have become friends over the years. They’re more than customers.”
That’s evident when she greets local resident Paula Pineda and her little dog, Buffy. Pineda has been visiting for “years and years.”
“Everything here is better,” Pineda said. “I don’t buy melons anywhere but here because they’re the only ones that are ripe. It’s nice that it’s all locally grown.”
Some of the fruit is more local than you’d expect. “Believe it or not, a few things like Santa Rosa plums, lemons and avocados still come from Los Gatos,” Norman said. “These Hollister tomatoes are wonderful, and I just started getting Gilroy tomatoes and corn this week.”
Look for both yellow and white corn, along with “butter and sugar corn” that has both white and yellow kernels.
There’s also Gilroy garlic, onion, squash and cucumbers. Tree-ripened peaches are in stock, too.
“Everyone says they count on us for ripe peaches. They stand out on the sidewalk and eat them, juice dripping down their arm,” Norman said.
There’s a small patch of land next to the fruit stand where Norman used to grow corn, but she stopped that because of the drought. Now, sunflower stalks reach for the sky, and there are just two raised beds for tomatoes and basil.