Dakin Dairy hosts summer market in Myakka City

By Lesley Dwyer
| 5:00 a.m. May 31, 2023

Myakka resident Delicia Stoltzfus mans the Java Dawg Coffee truck for her parents.

East County
Neighbors

Plenty of Saturday markets call themselves farmers markets, yet they’re rarely held on a farm.

That's not the case at the newest farmers market in Myakka City.

Hosted by Dakin Dairy Farms, the outdoor market is held every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For now, the market is only planned through September, but if successful, it will continue. Nate and Rachel Thomas, the owners of the Farm Cafe (the concession at Dakin Dairy), are the market’s organizers.

“We want the farm to bring people good food,” Nate said. “Myakka City, for some crazy reason, is like a hub for entrepreneurial food businesses. We’re trying to keep it local first, and then step out.”

Vendors have to interview with the Thomases before being accepted into the market. Right now, the vendors are mostly selling prepared foods, but Rachel said they’re looking for produce vendors.

“We’re wholesalers. We could go into Plant City or Englewood or wherever and get everything, but we would love to see those local farms,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be a farm. Anyone who is growing produce and wants to sell it here, we want that, grown by yourself.”

Myakka City resident Mike Leworthy had a bumper crop of Seminole pumpkins this year, so he was selling them along with his usual lemonade and cotton candy.

The food at the market is from scratch. Maria Yoder brings freshly baked breads and desserts each week. Her piña colada zucchini bread sells fast and comes with a side of complementary piña colada cream cheese.

Among the other offerings are hand-twisted pretzels, freshly brewed Java Dog coffee, enchiladas made from a family recipe and cheese curds made with Dakin milk.

Farm tours are available, and on select Saturdays, Dakin Images will take photos of you and a calf sitting on a couch together, but book ahead. Walk-ups are not accepted.

One last reason to check out this market — 15-minute calf cuddle sessions are coming soon.

Dakin Dairy Farms hosts a summer market every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Edna and Ruben Hoover are so close to the farm, they drove their golf cart to get some handmade pretzels from Mama Mandy's.

Ryan Young, Linda Schmidt and Julia Young browse the market after taking a tour of the farm. The Youngs are visiting Schmidt in Old Miakka from Los Angeles. They left the tour shaking jars of cream to churn into butter.

Mike Leworthy sells lemonade, sprouted fodders and Seminole pumpkins grown at his home on Verna Bethany Road.

Elizabeth, Preston, Graceyn, Remy and Josh Hostetler share a property line with the farm, but this is their first visit to the market.

Bradenton resident Mary McCoy orders beef enchiladas from Angie Banuelos. Chuco's serves El Paso-style dishes that are made from family recipes.

Charlotte Rivard has a photoshoot with 3-week-old calf Waylon. Her mom drove her down from Clearwater after finding Dakin Images on Facebook.

Three-week old calf Waylon naps in between photoshoots.

Myakka resident Maria Yoder sells freshly baked, non-GMO breads and desserts.

Nate Thomas manages the market and is focused on bringing in quality, local food vendors.

Alexander Langer gets help pushing a truck up the sand hill from grandma Jenny Blair, who lives in Nokomis.

author

Lesley Dwyer

Lesley Dwyer is a staff writer for East County and a graduate of the University of South Florida. After earning a bachelor’s degree in professional and technical writing, she freelanced for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Lesley has lived in the Sarasota area for over 25 years.