Knoxville may be famous for orange-clad tailgates and a river that looks like it’s vaping before breakfast, but the real local sport is competitive produce hunting. When humidity cranks up to “sauna” and tomato vines threaten a backyard coup, East Tennesseans flee to farmers markets for some open-air retail therapy. Sling a tote over your shoulder—bonus points if it still smells like last week’s peaches—and let’s prowl the stalls that keep Knoxville delicious.
Market Square Farmers' Market | Downtown superstar
It’s hard to beat the charisma of a market that literally shuts down the heart of downtown twice a week. Every Saturday morning from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Wednesday late mornings from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., more than 130 growers, bakers, and artisans cram onto Market Square, Union Avenue, and Market Street like tomatoes in a good Southern gravy. Expect a bumper crop of seasonal produce, pasture-raised meats, flower bouquets the size of toddlers, and buskers crooning everything from Dolly covers to indie folk.
The vibe is equal parts street-festival and grocery run, so plan to linger—parking garages nearby fill fast, and you’ll want time for a biscuit pit-stop at one of the square’s cafes. SNAP is gladly accepted, kids can join the free Nourish Moves scavenger hunt, and leashed pups get fawned over as if they personally invented kale chips. Plot your produce pilgrimage.
New Harvest Farmers Market | Best after-work pick-me-up
If your Thursdays drag harder than an August squash vine, head to New Harvest Park in East Knox, where the tents pop up from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. every week April through September. The after-school timing attracts families, commuters, and anyone who forgot to buy lettuce for taco night. Vendors skew heavily toward produce—think rainbow carrots, hydroponic greens, and those trendy mushrooms that make carnivores question their life choices.
Free parking surrounds the playground-equipped park, and live music often drifts from the pavilion while kids ruin their dinner with honey sticks. See who’s vending this week.
Dixie Lee Farmers Market | Farragut Saturday fiesta
Out in Farragut’s Renaissance shopping center, the market bell rings at 9 a.m. sharp every Saturday from April through November, then the crowds graze until noon. Dixie Lee’s personality is “small-town fair meets Pinterest,” with tables of naturally grown produce rubbing elbows with goat-milk soaps, lamp-worked glass, and freeze-dried candy that crunches louder than SEC stadiums.
Parking is abundant, shade tents are plentiful, and the market’s mission wall reminds us this is a judgment-free zone for imperfect tomatoes and imperfect humans alike.Get this week’s vendor lineup.
Pavilion Farmers Market at Hardin Valley | Covered evening hangout
Need groceries and a social life? Hardin Valley Event Center has you. Their brand-new 22,000-square-foot pavilion hosts a Thursday market from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. June through October, rain or East-Tennessee-monsoon.
Because the venue doubles as a concert space, expect food trucks, pop-up barbecue, and the occasional fiddle jam echoing through the metal rafters while you debate rib-eye versus eggplant. It’s blissfully paved, well-lit, and rumor has it a kayak landing and brewery are on the expansion list, so grab a loaf of sourdough and stay for the patio vibes. Check the weekly theme nights.
Eastside Sunday Market | Community-first vibe
Tucked into Walter Hardy Park off MLK Jr. Avenue, this producer-only market runs Sundays 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. from June through September. More than half the vendors travel fewer than five miles, which means the tomatoes may have walked over on their own vines. SNAP is doubled up to twenty bucks, and kids score Produce Bucks during the monthly Nourish Kids Club, so nobody leaves without at least one vegetable they can’t pronounce.
Parking is street-style but plentiful, shade trees abound, and the vibe feels like a neighborhood block party where grandma sells collard greens. Peep the season dates.
Maryville Farmers Market | Small-town charm
A quick hop down Pellissippi lands you in Founders’ Square, where Maryville’s producer-only market pops every Saturday 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., April through November. The smaller footprint—usually forty-plus vendors—means conversations run deep; farmers remember your dog’s name, bakers remember your gluten situation, and someone will surely hand you a sample of goat cheese so good it qualifies as life advice.
Live acoustic sets drift through downtown, parking at the adjacent lot is painless, and prices feel pleasantly pre-inflation. Plan your Blount County browse.
Oak Ridge Farmers Market | Historic square gem
Over in Jackson Square—where Manhattan Project scientists once bought newspaper clippings—vendors now lay out heirloom tomatoes every Saturday. Hours shift with the season: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. January to March, then 8 a.m. to noon April through November.
The setting feels retro-charming, with brick storefronts framing bushel baskets of produce, honey, and wildflowers that know exactly how to dress a picnic table. Parking rings the square, and many shoppers pair the market with brunch at a nearby café before nerding out at the American Museum of Science & Energy down the street. Scope the seasonal schedule.
Field notes for fearless foragers
Cash remains king, but card readers have staged a full-on coup, so bring both and never choose between rent and raspberry jam.
Arrive early for eggs and berries, then loop back near closing for discounted bread that tastes like victory.
A small cooler in the trunk is your insurance against the Tennessee sun turning goat cheese into abstract art.
Chat with farmers—they'll gladly spill secrets about which tomato survived last night's raccoon raid and which pepper is legally classified as a fire hazard.
Rotate your market schedule—downtown on Wednesdays, East Knox on Thursdays, Hardin Valley or Farragut on Saturdays, Maryville when wanderlust hits, and Oak Ridge for a side of science with your peaches. .
Now sling those totes, channel your inner Johnny Appleseed, and remember: the only thing louder than a July farmers market in Knoxville is Neyland Stadium on game day—and one of those also sells cinnamon rolls.
