Maybe you were dragging your feet this morning. Maybe traffic was bad. Regardless, sometimes the last thing you want to do is spend another hour cooking and cleaning like a responsible adult. And this is assuming you ever even learned to cook. But you still have to feed yourself. This is how McDonald’s wins. Fortunately, fast food isn’t the only option. Scattered throughout the Sarasota-Bradenton locale—in addition to all the wonderful farmers markets supplying deliciously fresh fruits and vegetables you still have to prepare yourself—the area plays host to a variety of gourmet markets standing by to provide the malnourished masses with high quality meals easy on the old ticker.

Fresh Market 

Homemade Haven

6701 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton, 941-795-1800

Aiming solidly for that Southern comfort sweet spot, Fresh Market doubles down on the friendly neighborhood market feel with its combination of smiling faces offering a sea of samples and a rustic aesthetic. “It’s all about the experience,” says Charlene McKinney, working the Fresh Market deli, where comfort food reigns supreme. Options range, but a longtime favorite and gold standard remains the house-made rotisserie chicken salad, she says, made from six separately seasoned and cooked birds, including lemon, white wine, honey and garlic. Pair with some mashed potatoes, mac’n’cheese and corn bread and cart home a real southern spread. For a lighter touch, McKinney recommends the salmon—plain, bourbon or lemon-pepper flavored—but finish strong with a Chantilly cake. “Just awesome,” says McKinney.

 

Whole Foods

Secret Garden

1451 1st St., Sarasota, 941-316-4700

More than an upscale grocery, the chefs over at Whole Foods whip up something new every day, keeping the lunching and munching hordes wondering what’s next. In addition to ready-made soups and chowders, the rotating hot bar tackles international cuisine with a conquering fervor, ranging from Ethiopian to Indian to Mexican to good old-fashioned fried chicken. Vegetarian options abound and, for a quick and healthy dessert, caramelized plantains are a regular treat. Going light on the calories but not the flavor? The salad bar is second to none, allowing diners to create their own leafy paradise from organic selections with enough variety to satisfy the most particular grazer. But don’t leave without stopping by the sandwich line, where custom-made gourmet sandwiches the size of your head await.

 

Morton’s Gourmet Market

Grabbing Gourmet 

1924 S. Osprey Ave., Sarasota, 941-955-9856

It’s all about the variety at Morton’s, and it would be staggering if not presented in such meticulous fashion. Just talking salads, there are 51 different types made daily, including serious business like quinoa and edamame. But Morton’s Catering Director Patty Doty is likely to steer you to the newly revamped hot bar, where every day the chef presents something new to tempt the taste buds. “So there’s never just one item that stands out,” she says. It’s hard to predict and you never know if it’s a turkey meatloaf or beef bourguignon kind of day, but that’s the point—the chef does it for you. For a dinner for two, give the Chef’s Corners a quick peek, where Morton’s chefs prepare a few choice specialties such as poached salmon, butternut squash and dauphinoise potatoes.