"Sundays are really packed and busy days for a lot of vendors." Melissa Farwell, director of development for Raw Inspiration, gave that reason in a Palisadian-Post interview this summer. She was explaining why the Pacific Palisades Farmers Market, which ran Sunday mornings for years, would come back on a weekday.
The market reopened on Swarthmore Avenue on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, four days after Palisades Village reopened. For Brentwood, the important part is the day it chose. After a year and a half of hosting the Palisades vendors on San Vicente Boulevard, Brentwood's Sunday market did not lose them to a rival Sunday. The Palisades homecoming was timed on purpose to leave Sunday where it was.
A Year and a Half on San Vicente
The arrangement started within weeks of the fire. In early February 2025, Brentwood News reported that the displaced Palisades market had temporarily merged with the Brentwood Farmers Market. The combined market spread along San Vicente Boulevard from Gretna Green Way to Bundy Drive, and eastbound traffic dropped to one lane for a short stretch. Councilwoman Traci Park and her staff were there on the first Sunday to welcome Palisades vendors and shoppers.
The arrangement worked partly because one operator runs both markets. Raw Inspiration, the nonprofit behind California Certified Farmers Markets, has run the Palisades market since 2000. Council District 11 says Park's office worked with Raw Inspiration to fold the displaced farmers and vendors into Brentwood and helped cover the associated costs while Swarthmore was inaccessible. The South Brentwood Residents Association noted that the expansion also helped the market team recover some income lost while the Palisades market was shut.
The lane closure was the cost. By spring 2025, some residents north of San Vicente had complained about Sunday backups. Community representatives met with market organizers, and Brentwood News reported that the market added three measures in April 2025:
- A crossing guard at Gretna Green Way to help pedestrians and keep drivers from stopping in the one open lane to drop off passengers.
- Drop-offs moved to the Montana Avenue and Gretna Green intersection, where traffic moves more safely.
- Signs west of the golf course on San Vicente warning drivers of the closure and suggesting Burlingame or other streets.
SBRA took a position too. It polled its newsletter readers, and the South Brentwood residents who responded overwhelmingly supported letting the Palisades vendors stay so they could keep earning a living. Residents also told SBRA that many Palisades residents were coming to the Brentwood market. "South Brentwood residents sent a clear message: supporting local vendors matters, even if it means a minor inconvenience on Sundays," the association said in a statement reported by Brentwood News.
SBRA framed its support around a timeline: the vendors would stay until the Palisades market could reopen. The Palisades market reopened in August, and the way it was scheduled took the growers' Sunday commitments into account.
Why the Palisades Chose Wednesday
Before the fire, the Palisades market filled parts of both Swarthmore Avenue and Antioch Street on Sunday mornings. The Antioch side, which held half the market, was lost in the fire. The returning market uses Swarthmore only, from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Wednesdays.
The weekday was a deliberate choice. Westside Current reported that the schedule was designed so farmers and other sellers would not have to give up Sunday markets where many had kept operating during the closure. The council office's announcement said the same thing in plainer terms:
"It will temporarily operate on Wednesday afternoons from 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., allowing participating farmers and vendors to maintain their established Sunday market commitments."
That line comes from Council District 11's August 21 update, which also said Park was covering the city costs of closing the street on Swarthmore.
Brentwood was the Sunday market where the Palisades vendors spent the closure. A Sunday Palisades reopening would have asked growers to choose between the community they had served for decades and the one that had hosted them since early 2025. A Wednesday reopening let them keep both.
Farwell has said the Sunday question is still open. "We do want to bring the Sunday market back at some point, but we wanted to start with Wednesdays first," she told the Palisadian-Post, adding that organizers would gauge turnout before changing the schedule. She credited Maryam Zar, CEO of the PaliBu Chamber of Commerce, and Rick Caruso with helping make the return happen. Sites that would have meant setting up on grass, or that sat too far from the village center, were ruled out.
One Set of Farmers, Two Days a Week
The same operator now runs two markets on two different days, a few miles apart. Council District 11's October 2 update confirms the Palisades market is open every Wednesday afternoon on Swarthmore. The Gretna Green market is still listed on Sundays by both its operator and the state's certified farmers market directory, dated October 1, 2026.
| Brentwood Farmers Market | Pacific Palisades Farmers Market | |
|---|---|---|
| Day | Sunday | Wednesday |
| Hours | 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. | 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. |
| Address | 741 Gretna Green Way | 1035 Swarthmore Ave. |
| Parking | Street parking in a residential area | Palisades Village underground garage, free with manager validation |
| Operator | Raw Inspiration | Raw Inspiration |
Raw Inspiration's opening announcement for the Wednesday market named eleven farmers and producers expected to take part.
- Pedro's Organic Avocado Ranch
- AZ Ranch
- Lily's Eggs
- Rob & Isa Floral
- Frecker Farms
- C&L Farms / JM Produce
- Chickenhood
- Funghi Valley
- G Farms
- Kepner / Maust Farms
- Divine Décor
Raw Inspiration called that list "only a sneak peek" and said it was "still building." Its stated plan is to grow the Wednesday market past opening day and bring back more of the farmers and food makers the Palisades knew. The Palisadian-Post calendar lists Wednesday markets through November 25.
For a Brentwood household, the Palisades homecoming adds a midweek option. The Sunday market keeps its usual 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. hours at Gretna Green Way.
After the Market, a New Stop on San Vicente
The Sunday market ends at 2 p.m. Since early October, San Vicente has a new spot for lunch afterward. Burger She Wrote held its grand opening on October 3 at 11686 San Vicente Blvd. It is the smash burger brand's first Westside location and, at 25 seats, its largest. Eater LA's openings roundup, updated October 27, lists it as the company's third Los Angeles location.
The menu is short and the same at every location: a classic smash burger and an Oklahoma smash burger, both made with American wagyu. The Oklahoma version adds grilled onions and the house sauce, and the ranch, spicy mayonnaise and barbecue sauces are also made in-house. Fries, grilled cheese and Mexican soda fill out the menu. Inside are the brand's green patterned tiles and a wall of skating photos, a nod to co-founder Don "Nuge" Nguyen's skateboarding career.
Co-founder Mikayel Israyelyan described choosing the location in terms that fit the Gretna Green story. "We want to choose a location that has a strong community. That's very important for us," he told Westside Current. "We want to be the neighborhood burger shop."
Burger She Wrote is open 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, so on a Sunday the market and lunch overlap from 11:30 until the market closes at 2.
If you are thinking about a home within walking distance of Gretna Green Way or San Vicente Boulevard, The Sher Group can walk you through what is changing on those blocks. Schedule a confidential consultation.