Ripe, red tomatoes. Tender, sweet corn. Strawberries and stone fruit. This is why we look forward to summer every year. And now, like Christmas morning, it's finally here.

The Downtown Farmer's Market Festival kicks off this week with the emphasis on festival. Held on Thursday nights, 5:00 to 8:30 p.m., from June 11 through September 17, the Farmer's Market takes over Main Street from 3rd to 7th Streets. The best point of access is probably the parking garage at the corner of 4th and Rood, which is free after 4:00. A newly opened breezeway between 4th and 5th makes access to Main Street a snap.

The organizers have accurately included the word festival in their event because there is far more going on than tomatoes and corn. There is live entertainment, art demos, sidewalk sales, artists and craftspeople, food vendors, and, oh yeah, produce.

This has become an important and popular social event for the locals strolling up and down Main Street, visiting with friends, filling up restaurants, mastering the fine arts of guiding dogs and strollers, and, oh yeah, buying produce.

Some welcome additions to the Farmer's Market include Roan Creek Ranch featuring grass fed beef and lamb and Troyer Poultry offering chickens. If the organizers can convince a baker and pastry chef to join in the fun this can truly become a complete opportunity to purchase and consume locally produced foodstuffs.

Over the last couple of years one of the most popular vendors has been Main St. Chiles. It is worth braving the long lines for their delicious green chile burritos. The combination of soft flour tortilla, melted cheese, and hot roasted green chile turns the simple into the sublime.

A weekly listing of performers and vendor offerings can be found at http://www.downtowngj.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=page.farmersmarket.