Mission High Students Visit the Ferry Building

Picking plums

The Ferry Building Marketplace is a foodie magnet, bustling with shoppers and tourists, mostly upper-middle class.  Why is that?  Without a doubt, the food shops inside the building are expensive.  But the farmers don’t charge any more than the average grocery store for comparable produce. On October 6^th, I brought a group of Mission High students on a guided tour of the Ferry building, and I’m wondering if after their experience there, they will return as shoppers.

My friend, Lisa, of In the Kitchen with Lisa offers “intimate culinary excursions in San Francisco, Napa Valley, and West Marin in Sonoma County for individuals and groups looking to go behind-the-scenes with a local expert for a taste of the remarkable food culture that exists in these regions.”  She generously donated her time and the time of one of her guides, to introduce my students to the food at the Ferry Building Marketplace.  My group is made up of Hispanic, Asian, African-American a White 14 and 15 year olds of varying socio-economic backgrounds and varying interests in food.  Some have been to the market before, and were comfortable asking for samples.  Others had never been to the market before and were comfortable asking questions (Where did the Mutsu get its name?), and some were just there for the food. 

Pick a pepper

For the most part, the students liked everything they tasted with the exception of arugula.  They enjoyed discussing the nuances of Scharffenberger chocolate compared to Hershey’s, enthusiastically scarfed down a wheel of St. Pats after claiming to hate cheese, and gave pause to Carter’s (from Prather Ranch) warnings against fast food.  None of them acted like teenagers who won’t eat their vegetables.  The field trip was successful.  Students learned how delicious local, fresh food tastes and they were given the opportunity to think and talk about the food they ate.  I think they all really recognized the beauty of  the food at the Ferry Building, but, most of the them, I suspect, experienced the tour as anthropologists studying a culture not their own.    Chef Harris

Sweet as honey