Downtown Mount Vernon had its Fall Festival this weekend, so we wandered down to check it out. This is the second year for the event, so it’s still a bit casual, but I like it: the farmer’s market moves down from the riverfront and sets up in the middle of the street downtown, plus there’s a beer garden, a car show, craft booths, several bands playing, and a grill set up for hot dogs and bratwurst. It’s all very festive.

Although the weather’s starting to get colder and fall is definitely coming, the market is still at its peak. We got some beets, potatoes, summer squash, mozzarella cheese, and cauliflower, plus a rhubarb pie. I would’ve bought some delicata squash and sugar pumpkins, but we were on foot – we’ll have to bring the car next time, or a wagon, so we can carry it all home.

For lunch, we stopped by the grill that was set up on the corner and got a couple of bratwursts with local sauerkraut, then took them to a table in Pine Square and attempted to eat them without covering ourselves with mustard. Not so easy – you try putting the mustard on top of the kraut and not get it smeared all over your face.

After the brats, I was really wanting a beer, but the beer garden wasn’t quite under way yet. We took our baskets of produce on a detour to our favorite hangout, the Porterhouse. They have a large selection of rotating taps, usually all Pacific Northwest brews, and this week they have a beer that’s making me very happy, Big Time Bhagwan IPA from Seattle. Really good stuff – it just shot up into my top five.

Then all we had to do was make it back up the hill with everything we’d bought…