Cash & Carry Tuesday Farmers Market in Lake Charles: Family-Friendly Fresh Finds & Community Vibes 🥕🍅🍯
Why Bring the Whole Family to the Cash & Carry Farmers Market
"Mom, it’s Tuesday!" my son Connor exclaims, bounding into the backseat during after-school pickup. With boys in kindergarten and fourth grade, our family eagerly anticipates Tuesday afternoons at the Cash & Carry Farmers Market, located at the corner of Broad St. and Enterprise Blvd. in Lake Charles' Nellie Lutcher Cultural District near Downtown. Having frequented markets in Los Angeles and Orlando before relocating to my hometown four years ago, my husband and I were delighted to find several year-round options here. We stock up on groceries, gifts, snacks, and dinner while our children connect with the local community—all in air-conditioned comfort.
4 to 6 PM Every Tuesday
Picture this: It's 4:00 PM on a balmy 85°F Tuesday in Lake Charles. Inside this historic building, crisp air greets you alongside warm smiles and scents of fresh coffee, baked bread, and comforting dishes. Ceiling fans whirl gently to piano melodies as sunlight filters through skylights onto exposed wooden beams, brick walls, and 26 vibrant vendors. Magic unfolds during these two hours at Broad St. and Enterprise Blvd.
What to Buy
Source warm home-cooked meals or ingredients for your own, exploring regional and global flavors alongside locally grown groceries. Vendors offer fruits, vegetables, milk, eggs (chicken, quail, goose), butter, cheese, yogurt, artisan breads and baked goods, grass-fed beef, juices, kombucha, natural body care, local honey, organic fair-trade coffee, and jarred preserves from fruit jams to pickles. Market manager Giva Foy hosts Cooking With Cash and Carry monthly, demonstrating home recipes using market finds.
Our family favorites include honey from Santa Rita Honey Bee Farms, chicken salad (regular and vegan) from Heather Hamilton, natural stick deodorant from ME Healthy Foods, and coffee from Acadian Coffee Roasters. Check the Cash and Carry Farmers Market Facebook page every Monday for the weekly vendor lineup.
Vendors and Memorable Experiences
Today, my 10-year-old Connor grabs pineapple-ginger kombucha from ME Healthy Foods and a red velvet macaroon from Diana’s Cakes, Confections and More. Five-year-old Owen opts for a sugar cookie from Evelyn’s Decorated Sweets, chocolate milk from Hillcrest Creamery, and Immunity #31 (cold-pressed apple/beet/zucchini juice) from Main Squeeze—after sampling Cacao Mylk and Almond Mylk.
ME Healthy Foods
Owen visits ME Healthy Foods to chat with owner Ella and daughter Maia, Lafayette locals vending since 2011 with salves, soaps, oils, deodorant, honey, kombucha, and water kefir. Ella’s husband MuRay is a beekeeper. Launched in 2010 post-Ella’s health recovery, their natural, toxin-free products have loyal fans—like a customer praising the Spearmint Eucalyptus deodorant as his three-year favorite for its "manly scent."
Kombucha Tasting
Friends Danielle Wyble and daughter Mia join us, trying kombucha—a probiotic-rich fermented tea enjoyed for millennia—for the first time. Owen samples seven flavors, choosing blueberry to stay hydrated.
Market Manager Giva Foy
Owen lights up for high-five from Giva Foy (pronounced like Gina with a V), who founded with Rick Richard and Brett Marino in 2010 and joined full-time in 2017. Often at her first-right booth or assisting vendors, she adores kids and brings her grandchildren. My boys describe her as a "very sweet lady with long brown hair" who "could do Pantene commercials." Giva shares:
"It’s important to me that the market is community-minded, whatever that means for the community at that time. My biggest goal is unity and love."Her energy drives the market's heart.
Diana’s Cakes, Confections and More
Friend Chris arrives with four-year-old twins Christopher and Leslie, heading straight for Diana’s cupcakes, chocolate chip cookies, pecan pie bars, berry cheesecake bars, and almond joy cookies. Grade-school pals, we reconnect weekly, watching our kids grow amid the bustle.
Live Music
Gentle live "background" music enhances the vibe without overwhelming young ears, fostering vendor chats across generations for a true family-and-community feel. Today, keyboardist/vocalist Bryce Louvierre captivates with Can’t Help Falling in Love, then This Is Me from The Greatest Showman, sparking kids' dances.
Plantes De L’eau
Bryce’s mother, Temple Louvierre, runs Plantes De L’eau. No sunflower sprouts left (snapped up by a restaurant), she offers samples—I snag cabbage sprouts in a paper gift bag.
A True Sense of Community
Exiting, we spot Giva offering free mint-infused ice water from her garden. Farmers markets embody community spirit, reminding us to stay curious. They've introduced our family to 20+ new foods across LA, Orlando, and Lake Charles—perfect for Tuesday adventures.
