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Lloyd Allen isn't your typical shopkeeper. The fashion designer-turned-playwright/play producer-turned farm stand owner-turned-author (he penned Martha Stewart's biography, interviewing her while she was in jail) has turned again, to farm stand owner redux. And, happily, his Double L Farm Stand is back too.
Lloyd, along with partner Michael Van Haaften, recently opened the familiar Double L Farm Stand, a brick and mortar iteration of the infamous (to Westport's planning and zoning department, that is) plywood and tarp structure he pioneered in Westport in the late 1980s. The Double L "lives," as he puts it, on the Post Road in Westport, adjacent to Calise's food market. Lloyd's produce is overwhelmingly local, which is not to say he's a strident localvore: "I just love really good fresh food," he says with childlike exuberance. "I love these amazing peaches I got from Georgia as much as the organic rainbow chard I just got in from Ambler Farm in Wilton. You gotta smell this!" His affable personality, as well as his love of all things fresh and good, is infectious.
The feel of Double L is decidedly homey, echoing the rough-hewn nature of the farm stand's original lean-to-like structure. But folks don't come only to buy vegetables: They come to chat, taste, linger, learn -- and then chat a little more. And Lloyd is usually at the center of most conversations: "I'm not exactly a shy and reserved guy," he says with a sly smile.
Homemade, painted signs hang on the walls while smaller chalkboard notes -- with prices, recommendations and whatever else jumps into Lloyd's ever-racing mind -- dot the bountifully laid out aisles of produce, honeys and regional seasonal specialties.
Lloyd has created a destination spot for his legions of loyal customers, foodies and friends, and also for local farmers, who bring him the best of their harvests. But he doesn't only buy from farmers; he unites them. "We get fantastic produce from Sport Hill Farm in Easton and then we supply that farmer with organic fruit we've found in the Amish Country," he said, adding: "It's robust and it's always changing and exciting."
Double L Farm Stand's incredibly fresh produce will lure you to the store; Lloyd Allen's warmth, enthusiasm and knowledge will keep you coming back.
The Double L Farm Stand is located at 730 Post Road East, Westport. The phone number is (203) 557-4705.
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