It's nice living this close to Jacksonville. You can head down for a day trip, pack quite a bit into the morning, and still get home with plenty of afternoon left.
We recently headed south for a stroll through the Riverside Arts Market and ended up making an afternoon of it: lunch in Five Points, ice cream, a comic shop and coffee for the drive home. My interests lean toward coffee, desserts and old comics, so this particular stretch of Jacksonville checks every box.
Start at Riverside Arts Market
The main reason for the trip was Riverside Arts Market, held under the Fuller Warren Bridge along the St. Johns River in Jacksonville's Riverside neighborhood. Produced by Riverside Avondale Preservation, the weekly market has drawn visitors since it first opened in the spring of 2009 and now attracts roughly 4,000+ visitors every week (Wikipedia).
RAM runs Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., rain or shine. You'll find artists, makers, food vendors, plants and plenty of things you probably didn't leave the house intending to buy. It's also dog-friendly.
We spent some time walking through the booths and picked up bread pudding, several houseplants and fresh-roasted beans from Catbird Coffee Roasters.
I don't remember the bread pudding vendor's name, so I can't send you to that particular booth. Catbird, fortunately, is easier to point you toward.
The variety is what makes RAM worth a visit. You can browse artwork, stop for something to eat and find yourself considering another houseplant a few minutes later. There's no shortage of items to browse and peoples to watch (if you're into that sort of thing).
Parking tip: We parked at the Black Knight building's lot at 601 Riverside Avenue, immediately adjacent to the market. YMMV
Riverside Arts Market — 715 Riverside Ave., Jacksonville. Saturdays, 10 a.m.–3 p.m.
Find the Crab of Fortune
One of the more unusual stops at the market was the Crab of Fortune.
It's a hand-painted vending-machine-style art experience. We bought a Crab Bag and got a Crab Fortune.
I can't say we drove to Jacksonville expecting to make that purchse, but here we are.
Grab Lunch in Five Points
After RAM, we headed into Five Points for lunch at Hawkers Asian Street Food.
Hawkers is one of our favorite Jacksonville haunts. I'm a fan of the Pad Thai, but having tasted almost everything on the menu; you won't be disapointed.
After lunch we walked a few doors down to Waffle Cone Jax for ice cream. It's a family-owned, locally owned shop in the Five Points-Riverside neighborhood .
I already want to go back for the Butterbeer Float or a scoop of the Elvis.
Make Time for Black Cat Comics
Our next stop was Black Cat Comics on Stockton Street.
If you've seen my office or read much of anything I've written about my interests, a comic shop probably doesn't need much explanation.
I love the feel of this shop! There's a wall devoted to new arrivals, a ton of back-issues, even local zines; but one stopped me in my tracks: a July 11, 1978 issue of US magazine featuring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno from The Incredible Hulk television series.
Coffee for the Drive Home
Our final stop was Bold Bean Coffee Roasters.
We grabbed a latte for the drive back north to Camden County. The Catbird beans were for home. This coffee had a more immediate purpose. I'm a sucker for these homemade syrups!
So, Is Riverside Arts Market Worth the Drive?
Absolutely! RAM gives us a reason to head down, but Riverside and Five Points give us plenty of reasons to make an afternoon of it.
We made the market, lunch, dessert, comics and coffee and still had plenty of Saturday left when we got home to take a walk at the St Mary's Waterfront Park.
That's a pretty good day trip.
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