Every summer we await the arrival of the plump, juicy, and intensely flavorful New Jersey farm peaches at Europa grocery on Forest Ave. They’re one of Ridgewood’s best-kept seasonal secrets (along with mucenici, which is arguably less enticing) that we touched on in our Ridgefood Grocery Shopping Guide, and we think these peaches deserve a closer look. Other groceries like Parrot Coffee and Max Euro also sell Jersey farm goods (peppers, tomatoes, and the like) in the same telltale yet nondescript cardboard boxes often simply labeled “FARM,” but you can only find these magical peaches at Europa.
Peach interior
Over the coming weeks, you’ll notice folks buying these peaches by the dozen, bag after bag, presumably to make cobbler, crumble, jam, or just to eat fresh. And they’re so popular with those in the know that they often sell out and you have to wait for the next delivery; the husband of the husband-and-wife co-owner duo drives to a New Jersey farm “every second day,” the wife tells me, where a man named Bob has the boxes of peaches waiting for him, ready for their journey back to Ridgewood. The peaches will be available for the next month and a half or so, according to Europa, so get them now!
FARM Peaches: $1.49/pound ($3.12 for 5 peaches)
Europa Grocery
6699 Forest Avenue
(718) 821-3732
An old peach-related tweet from 2013 (don’t say we didn’t tell you!):
Europa on Forest has those amazing local farm peaches again. Get ’em while you can! pic.twitter.com/9K40Tme3S6
— Ridgefood (@Ridgefood) August 28, 2013
