Carole B.
Yelp
OMG, is there a better farmer's market anywhere in this region? No matter what you're looking for, you will probably find it at the WNC Farmer's Market.
Though there are more buildings to explore than just the two mentioned below, i can speak only for the two enormous indoor warehouses I frequent. These two buildings have more than just edibles, but let me start with the FOOD.
What are you planning to cook? If you're like me, you're planning to make sauerkraut. If so, you'll find more colors and varieties of cabbage here than you're likely to find in all of your favorite supermarkets combined: purple, green, and Napa cabbages are the most common, but I've also found small, sweet Japanese cabbages in the warehouse to the right side if you're coming in from the parking lot. You'll also find ready-made sauerkraut in tidy rows of jars in that same building.
What are you looking for, though? Apples? Peaches? Pumpkins? Pears? Strawberries? Cucumbers? Chestnuts? Cheeses? Butter and nut butters? Jams and jellies and candies? Check out the jars on the shelves of nearly every stall, because you never know what you might discover. I'd never even heard of mayhaw jelly until I found it at the farmer's market, and it is lovely!
Not sure how to prepare a meat, fruit, or vegetable? The folks behind the counters will have more suggestions than you'd expect. The more questions you ask, in fact, the more useful answers you'll get. (I used to keep a small notebook for that purpose when I first started fermenting vegetables at home.)
Food is NOT all you'll find at the WNC farmer's market, though. There are gifts of all kinds, from baskets to plaques and signs from the humorous to the religious. Depending on the season, you'll also find scarves and gloves and mittens, often handmade, as well as hand fashioned jewelry you can have made to match your favorite outfit.
You'll find that jewelry down at the end of the building on the left, btw. The pleasant young woman who makes it is just two stalls up from the fellow at the very end, on the right, who will sharpen your knives and scissors (often while you wait, if he's not too busy), so that they're sharper than they were when they were new. He'll whisk away the nicks and gouges in your oldest knives and scissors, and can even custom make pieces for you (though I've never had that done). His prices are incredibly reasonable.
There is so much to see at the WNC Farmer's Market that I've barely scratched the surface in this review.
I encourage you to stop in at least once, if you're just visiting the Asheville area -- and more than once if you're local. You'll save money and discover something new each time you come.