Anyone belong to Sweet Pea CSA?

[maharani]

I'm thinking of plunking down $495 for a variety pack share this summer and was wondering if anyone was a member last year and could give me a review...

[heekyung]

This is pretty late, but I'll put this one out there anyway...

I was a member during the 2008 year, and am considering joining again for the upcoming year though I haven't decided yet. I've been a member of one other CSA in Brooklyn before joining this one (the one located in Prospect Lefferts Gardens), and I have to say that that one was much more impressive than Sweet Pea. I'm not sure why--but the previous CSA I joined had unbelievably beautiful and fresh produce (like straight out of a food magazine), and there was always more than enough for all the members, but at Sweet Pea I was surprised to find that if you pick up your share at 5:30pm or later (after my normal work day), many times the better produce choices would be completely gone. You could make up the loss by picking up more of another fruit/vegetable, but how much can you really do with so many bags of mesclun? That was one of the most frustrating things about this particular CSA.

And (this is my guess and may be completely untrue) my impression was that the farmers would sell their produce at a market during the day, then drop off whatever remainders they had for sweet pea members at the end of the day...a lot of times it seemed like the produce was "leftovers" and not the best pick of the bunch. It also explained to me why there would so obviously be not enough of certain types of fruits/vegetables to go around (like not even close).

This info probably sounds all really negative, but it's really just me being picky. I love CSAs because they lock me into eating vegetables constantly (you already put down the money, your fridge is FULL of it, so you gotta eat it!), they force me into cooking with veggies I normally would never even consider, and they support local small farmers. Sweet Pea does all of these things. I also really enjoy never knowing what I'll get in the next delivery and then figuring out how to cook with surprise ingredients, but many people dislike that.

[Val55]

You pick out your own veggies at a CSA? I thought they gave you your share and that everyone's share is about the same. I am semi-interested in participating in one ( I am near FHills, RPark, if anyone has suggestions or recommendations). I would probably be picking up right before they close, so if that is the norm, then I am not interested.

[rose water]

At mine (Central Harlem CSA, run by Roxbury Farms) they have all of the produce in bins, and when you come in, you're told how much to take--a big bowl of salad greens, a pint of that, a handful of basil, two onions, etc. Roxbury does only CSAs, and the quality of their produce is stellar. Quantity can be variable, though, but part of what you're doing with a CSA is supporting a local farm and if their produce doesn't do well for whatever reason, you take the hit with them.
You can find locations at http://www.justfood.org/csa/locations/ and I hope that someone will chime in with specific info about the CSA in your area. But I can't speak highly enough about being a CSA member, for all the reasons heekyung mentioned and then some. My declaration of love from 2007: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/430340

[heekyung]

the two csa's i have been in are the same. you are never 100% sure what you'll get in next week's delivery, and the produce comes in large plastic bins. you bring your own totebags (or plastic) and figure out what your share is from a sign posted on the wall (or chalkboard) and you go around and fill'er up. CSA's are all about flexibility!