The Roslindale Winter Farmers Market returned to the Square last week at the Boston Emerald Society Building.

Residents, vendors and organizers said they were all very happy to move the market back inside after several iterations out in the cold. The weather wasn’t exactly cooperative, sitting at a high of 21 degrees Fahrenheit; thus the tea from The Real Chai was a popular item.

Hillside Mushrooms provided fresh fungi, Maple and Thyme Granola gave everyone something to chew on, Far From the Tree Cider offered some tart, and The Neighborhood Farm sold fresh produce, outdoors at the start of Birch Street.

The Roslindale Village Main Street (RVMS) organization puts the winter market on every year, and Event Manager Steve Marcelin said he is happy to see the market return indoors. He first started with the RVMS back in 2017 as the Farmers Market Assistant and has seen the event change and morph since then.

“I’ve been here for a while,” Marcelin said. “It’s pretty automatic, but there is always new things to figure out, always a new crew and trying to figure out the best way to communicate with them, sometimes there is a new space – we were outside and now we’re inside and the first time doing it in this hall and figuring out the logistics is always new and challenging.”

As in the summer, the RVMS is offering Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) users a $10 match twice a month in all SNAP-eligible products. He said it’s been very popular throughout the summer and will continue at the Winter’s Market.

“In the summer we saw a lot of people take advantage of this, especially with the government shutdown and cuts to SNAP. It was really a relief to a lot of people who shop with us,” he said. “It’s also bringing people to this location. It’s the first time doing this at the hall, and we don’t want to lose them.”

Marcelin said it was the first day of the market and they had been seeing a steady stream of patrons, but he said it’s always slow to start. Not to mention the weather doesn’t exactly make for a lot of foot traffic in the Square.

“We’re doing alright; I think in the first market, people are still getting to know the format and a lot of people don’t know we have a Winter Market, and the word is still getting out there,” he said. “And last year’s market by the ABCDC Lot, it was a very slow market, being outside, cold and not very favorable for the vendors. This year we were able to work out something with the Emerald Society for 13 dates where we can be inside, and we do between 10-13 indoors and up to four vendors outside.”

Marcelin said winter can present a logistical challenge. Some vendors don’t want to brave the cold temps, while others don’t want to give up the visibility the great outdoors provide. He said he felt they were able to offer a compromise, with The Neighborhood Farm outside at Birch and most of the vendors inside.

“They figured out costwise and setup, it would work better for them outside,” he said.

Marcelin said he hasn’t been at the markets too much these days as the RVMS Event Manager, but he said coming back is always a treat.

“It’s a lot of fun, I don’t get to be at the markets too much anymore,” he said. “Madison (Danis) is the farmers market lead and puts everything together now with the admin and instructions to make it happen the day of. So every now and then I get to poke my head in and be Madison, which is pretty great.”

Residents Clayton and Jackie Cheever said they come most years to support RVMS.

“It’s the first day of the Farmers Market and we always want to support the winter market,” Clayton said. “We’ve been coming every year that I can remember. It’s great to see our friends from The Neighborhood Farm, get some good chai, get some root vegetables, and mushrooms are always a great treat. It’s great to see people and I love how Roslindale comes out. It’s great to see friends and support local commerce!”

Chiquis Kitchen Boston owner Krysia Villón was pretty busy during the market. She said she’s bringing Peruvian empanadas to the mainstream in Roslindale. She said this was her first winter market, but regularly sets up at the summer market on Adams Park.

“I love Roslindale so much, I love the population and how excited people are about trying different foods,” she said. “I sell both hot and frozen stuff, I just love being able to see people’s reactions and how they interact with the food when they discover something new. I am the only Boston-based business specializing in Peruvian empanadas, so I like to get out in the community – I don’t live in Roslindale but I kind of want to move.”

Villón said she comes to Roslindale from Newton, with her kitchen located in Woburn. She said she’s hoping to participate in the 2026 dumpling festival, but she said they’ll have to upgrade their cooking equipment to handle the expected demand (the first year festival actually was so popular, they ran out of food).

“Currently, we do everything by hand from scratch,” she said. “The from-scratch part will always remain true, but we might have to enable some machinery to help with producing more stuff more quickly, because I’m not a young buck anymore. After five years of doing this, my body’s starting to feel it! Maybe it’s time for some extra help you know?”

For more information and an updated weekly vendor list, go to https://www.roslindale.net/farmers-market