The Indianapolis City Market is an institution as old as the city of Indianapolis – one of the few constants in a city of seemingly never ending construction and development. Since 1821 farmers and producers have gathered at the City Market property to sell their wares, and since November 1886 the City Market House has stood as a gathering place for Hoosiers and visitors alike.
The historic food hall is welcoming to people from all walks of life and offers a place to enjoy both foreign concepts/cultures and things that are thoroughly Indy. While the 132-year-old structure is an anchor to the city’s history, it also reflects the change and innovative spirit so many in Indy champion. Now, with so many people returning to Indy’s urban core, City Market is working to keep up with the times. The thing is, we can’t keep up without your help.
As a 501(c)3 non-profit, we need the time, talent, and treasures of caring and dedicated Indy residents who appreciate what the City Market is: a gathering place for all to enjoy. You can help support our mission, while having a really great time, by attending City Market events like our upcoming 12 Chefs of Christmas fundraiser!
12 Chefs is a concept we are returning to, but with some changes. In the past we worked with 12 local chefs and the “12 Beers of Christmas” from Flat12 Bierwerks to provide food and beer pairings for people to enjoy. While Flat12 is still involved, we’re bringing 11 other Indiana craft breweries on board – 12 chefs, 12 breweries, 12 pairings, all for one great cause! And we’ve got some really innovative people in on the fun this year; here are all the participating breweries, chefs, and the sort of dish each group will prepare:
Hosting 12 chef and brewery pairings was a great start, but we decided to make it a baker’s dozen and also bring Ash & Elm Cider Co. and Poke Guru in on the action too for a special 13th pairing. Each of these chefs and breweries is donating a great deal of time and money to make this possible, and we’re excited to see what they come up with.
The proceeds of 12 Chefs of Christmas will go toward the Indy City Market’s placemaking efforts, meaning changes and redevelopment of our space and programming to make City Market the best place possible for all of the community. Placemaking can be as major as a building out entirely new spaces or as simple as taking two benches that are back-to-back and flipping them to be face-to-face to help foster togetherness and conversation. Our work on placemaking has included building out the rain garden and bocce ball courts on our east plaza, as well as offering cooking classes, putting out ping-pong and cornhole sets, and working with Big Car Collaborative on other great programming.
We want to see you at 12 Chefs of Christmas, and if all the food & beer pairings aren’t enticing enough we’re offering a discount to IndyHub readers! Use the code NOMEANCITY when visiting the 12 Chefs ticket page for $5 off a general admission ticket.
Not able to make it to 12 Chefs of Christmas, but still interested in getting involved with the City Market? We have regular events like Art At The Market celebrating First Fridays, and the Original Farmers’ Market on Wednesdays from May through October. Read up on all this and more by visiting our website at www.indycm.com, and keep helping us and IndyHub make the vision of No Mean City a reality!
*12 Chefs of Christmas also wouldn’t be possible without the help and support of community partners like IndyHub and Yelp Indy. We also rely heavily on corporate and community sponsors such as Piazza Produce, the Brewers of Indiana Guild, OurHealth, American Structurepoint, Bose Public Affairs Group, The Indy Eleven Professional Soccer Club, Caldwell VanRiper, City Securities Insurance, The Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Ice Miller LLP, and Indianapolis Girls Pint Out.
