A Windy Sunday at Riverside Farmers Market: A Little Tempeh, a Lot of Heart

Sometimes, the most memorable days begin with a little uncertainty.

The days leading up to Sunday, 25 October, were not exactly reassuring.

Cardiff had been experiencing storms, with strong winds and rain sweeping through the area. The forecast warned of more severe weather, including a yellow weather warning for high winds. As a small business preparing for only our second time at Riverside Farmers Market, we found ourselves wondering whether setting up a stall was a sensible idea at all.

On Friday, 23 October, an email arrived from the market organiser:

“Due to the incoming Storm Austen, high winds are forecast over the entire weekend. So the market will still go ahead on Sunday but we will not be erecting gazebos for health and safety reasons.”

No gazebos. Just tables, our products, and whatever the weather decided to bring.

It was a little daunting, to say the least.

A blue sky, a strong wind and a table full of tempeh

Then Sunday morning arrived.

The sky was blue. It was still windy, but thankfully, the rain that had made the previous day so unpleasant had eased. We decided to go ahead, carefully setting up our tables without a gazebo.

Everything had to be secured. Anything light enough to fly away had to be watched closely. We kept looking around, checking our display and keeping an eye on the wind.

And, if I am honest, I was feeling rather anxious.

Would people come out on such a windy day? Would anyone want to stop at our little stall? Would people be willing to try something they might never have heard of before?

When you are running a small business, especially one introducing people to

an unfamiliar food, these are the little questions that run through your mind. You prepare your products, pack your bags, arrange your display and hope that someone will be curious enough to stop.

That morning, we could only do our best and see what happened.

“What exactly is tempeh?”

As the market got going, something wonderful began to happen.

People stopped by.

Some were drawn to our tempeh crisps and were happy to try a sample. Others approached the stall with a different kind of curiosity.

“What is tempeh?”

It is a simple question, but one that means a great deal to us.

Tempeh has a long tradition in Indonesia, where it is made by fermenting soyabeans into a firm, sliceable food. Here in Wales, we are introducing this traditional food to more people, one conversation at a time.

For some visitors, tempeh was completely new. Others had heard of it but had never cooked with it. A few wanted to understand how it compared with tofu.

So we talked about the difference.

Tofu is made from soya milk that is coagulated and pressed into a block. Tempeh, on the other hand, is made from whole soyabeans bound together through fermentation. They are both plant-based foods, but they have different textures, flavours and ways of being used in the kitchen.

We also talked about cooking it. How to slice it. How to fry it until the outside becomes golden. How it can take on the flavours of a marinade or sauce.

These conversations might seem small, but they are exactly what we hoped for when we started Calon Tempeh.

We do not expect everyone to arrive already knowing what tempeh is. We simply hope they will be curious enough to ask, open enough to learn, and perhaps adventurous enough to take some home.

And on that windy Sunday, so many people did just that.

A little crunch, a few questions and lots of encouragement

Our tempeh crisps gave people another way to discover tempeh.

For anyone who was not quite ready to cook with a new ingredient, trying a crisp was an easy first step. A little crunch, a little flavour, and a chance to experience tempeh in a different form.

It was lovely to see people stop, taste, ask questions and share their thoughts.

Some came to find out more about the crisps. Others were interested in our fresh tempeh. Some simply wanted to understand what we were making and why.

Every conversation reminded me that introducing a new food is not always about persuading someone to buy something. Sometimes, it begins with listening, explaining and giving people the chance to discover something for themselves.

And for a small independent business, that willingness to stop and take an interest means so much.

And then, our fresh tempeh sold out

One of the happiest moments of the day was realising that our fresh tempeh had sold out.

After all the uncertainty about the weather, the wind and whether anyone would come, there we were, having conversations with customers who were genuinely interested in what we were making.

It is difficult to describe how encouraging that feels when you are a small producer.

Every pack represents time, preparation and care. Behind every product are the decisions, experiments and learning that go into making something we are proud to share.

When someone chooses to take a pack home, they are not simply buying food. They are giving a small business the opportunity to keep going. They are helping a traditional food find a place in a new community. And they are giving us a reason to keep improving, learning and showing up.

To everyone who bought our fresh tempeh, tried our crisps, asked a question or stopped for a chat, thank you.

Your curiosity and willingness to try something new made our day.

Why these little market days matter

When we began Calon Tempeh, we wanted to make traditional tempeh more accessible to people here in Wales.

That sounds simple enough, but bringing an unfamiliar food to a new audience takes time. People need to know what it is, what it tastes like, how to prepare it and where it fits into their everyday meals.

A farmers market gives us the chance to answer those questions face to face.

There is something special about meeting the people who might cook with your food, share it with their families or recommend it to a friend. We get to hear what they are curious about, what they enjoy and what they would like to know next.

We also get to learn from them.

Every conversation helps us understand how to explain tempeh better. Every new customer reminds us that there are still people discovering it for the first time. And every familiar face makes this journey feel a little less like running a business alone and a little more like building something with a community.

That is what makes these market days worthwhile, even when the weather is far from perfect.

A windy day, a full heart

Looking back, I am glad we went.

We began the morning with questions and a fair amount of anxiety. We ended it feeling grateful, encouraged and reminded of why we started.

The wind made everything a little more challenging. Without gazebos, we had to be extra careful with our tables and products. It was certainly not the relaxed market morning we might have imagined.

But the day turned out to be wonderful in its own way.

People came out. They stopped by. They tasted something new. They asked thoughtful questions about tempeh, tofu and cooking. They supported a small local producer. And our fresh tempeh sold out.

Most of all, we were reminded that you do not need everyone to know about tempeh already. Sometimes, all you need is a chance to introduce it to someone who is willing to listen and give it a try.

To everyone who visited our stall on Sunday, thank you for making our second Riverside Farmers Market such a fulfilling day. Thank you for your curiosity, your kindness and your support.

And to those who were not there this time, we hope to meet you at a future market. If you have never tried tempeh before, please do come and say hello. We would be delighted to tell you a little about it.

At Calon Tempeh, we believe good food can bring people together, even on a windy Welsh Sunday.

Calon means heart in Welsh. And on 25 October, our little stall was filled with plenty of it.

With gratitude,
Calon Tempeh
Locally made in Wales. Fermented with care.