Popular local farm stand re-opening at new location
Chan and Meui Saelee are re-opening their popular produce stand Friday at a new location on Union Road, just east of Golden Hill Road arcross the street from PRW Steel Supply in Paso Robles. The farm stand will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Last year the family struggled with the San Luis Obispo County Building and Planning Department which ordered the stand closed. After locals protested the county decision, the stand was allowed to remain open for the season bu forced to relocate.
Below is an updated version of a feature story written by Meagan Friberg in May 2015:
Find fresh fruit daily at local farm stand
Chan and Meui Saelee offer fresh fruit and vegetables for sale at their farm stand, located at the southeast corner of River and Charolais roads in Paso Robles. Photos by Meagan Friberg
Customers discover a variety of delectable offerings daily
Strawberries grown just down the road from the farm stand are harvested daily.
On any given day of the week, there’s a line of people stopping by a local produce stand in Paso Robles eager to grab a basket or two of the fresh fruit and vegetable bounty sold by the husband and wife team of Chan and Meui Saelee.
The couple opens the stand, now in its sixth year of operation locally, once their strawberries are ripe and ready to be sold, typically around April.. The stand remains open daily from 9 a.m. to around 6 p.m. depending on customer demand, until sometime in October; although last year they were able to stay open until mid-November.
“Our season just really depends on the climate and how well the farm produces for us,” says Meui. “We have a little farm just down the road from our stand with about three acres of strawberries and about one acre of assorted vegetables such as squash and zucchini. We are also growing beets, turnips, artichokes, okra, and tomatoes but those are not ready to pick just yet; we will be offering them soon.”
In addition to strawberries, there’s a wide amount of fresh selections currently available at the stand including green beans, summer squash, zucchini, fava beans, garlic, and onions. In addition, there are cherries, nectarines, peaches, lemons, oranges, pecans, and walnuts from Visalia along with blueberries from Porterville, all picked fresh from the trees and land of friends.
In addition to fresh garlic and onions there are other vegetable selections currently available at the stand including green beans, summer squash, zucchini, and fava beans.
“Everything we offer is fresh and we pick daily,” says Meui. Although not certified organic, all of their crops are pesticide-free. With the help of their two aunts, Chan and Meui plant, grow, pick, and sell the bounty of their harvest. “We do it all, from start to finish.”
The couple commutes from their home in Visalia to Paso Robles daily during the season, with the commute cut down to two or three times weekly during the rest of the year. “We have to pick the fruit fresh during harvest time, so that makes the commute necessary,” explains Meui.
Prior to their venture locally, Chan and Meui had been growing and selling their crops in Visalia for about 20 years. When the land they leased from a church became unavailable due to building construction, Chan began searching for another location and discovered the perfect acreage in Paso Robles.
“Finding the land and having everyone support what we are doing here has worked out very well for us,” says Meui. “We have a lot of repeat customers; they love what we have to offer. It’s nice to see the same people every few days or so, and the kids, especially. They can’t find this quality in any market and they keep coming back for more. And we hope that if there are people that have not tried our fruit and vegetables that they will stop by soon.”
Cyndi Almendarez of Paso Robles purchases fruit from Meui as Chan fills baskets of fresh produce in the background.
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