Clark Fork Market

Clark Fork Market pairs a large seasonal vendor roster with health-and-safety rules that reference both the CDC and the Missoula Health Department, giving the market a distinctly organized feel alongside its open-air river setting. The market runs out of the Riverside Parking Lot at 225 South Pattee Street in Missoula and supports 265 vendors across its indoor and outdoor seasons. One visitor summed up the on-the-ground mix with live music, hot food, and views of surfers nearby, details that match the market’s own live music programming and river location.

Why it matters locally

The strongest local rule here is geographic: products sold at Clark Fork Market must be grown or raised in Montana, west of the Continental Divide, with exceptions only for prepared foods, baked goods, and coffee. That standard keeps the market tightly tied to western Montana agriculture rather than a broad resale mix.

Its impact measures also stay close to Missoula. The market reports support for 265 vendors across indoor and outdoor seasons, service to 403 families through WIC, and more than 9,700 pounds of food donated to Missoula Food Bank. Seasonal programming adds another layer of local use, with a live music series, cooking series, harvest and craft series, and other community impact events built into the calendar.

What you'll find there

The clearest through-line is local farmed goods shaped by a strict regional sourcing rule, with room for prepared food, baked goods, and coffee alongside produce and other agricultural products. Visitors also describe an eat-now layer that includes hot food, coffee, kombucha, sauces, salsa, and plants.

• -Find Montana-grown and Montana-raised farm products from vendors working west of the Continental Divide.
• -Expect prepared foods sold under the market’s stated exception to the grow-or-raise rule.
• -Pick up baked goods, another category specifically allowed by market rules.
• -Grab coffee from vendors included in the market’s product exceptions.
• -One visitor noted kombucha stands, sauces, salsa, plants, and vegetables during a visit.

Seasonal programming includes an annual bingo event, scavenger hunts, a live music series, and community enrichment activities such as cooking demos, wreathmaking, and fermentation classes.

Know before you go

No dogs is the biggest practical rule to know before arriving, and the policy is tied to Missoula County Health Department restrictions on food vending settings. The market is held outdoors at 225 South Pattee Street in the Riverside Parking Lot, so that is the address to plug in for arrival and parking.

If you hoped to vend rather than shop, reserved vendor spots for the 2026 outdoor season are sold out, with applications accepted online for the waitlist and for nonprofessional or occasional space. The market also maintains an on-site Information Booth with signage throughout the season, which gives first-time visitors a clear place to orient once they arrive. Staffing includes Executive Director Kaylee Nassiri, Operations Manager Ten Ruzek, and Booth Manager Hannah Gulbrandson.

Payments & SNAP

SNAP/EBT is accepted at Clark Fork Market, a meaningful detail for shoppers planning food purchases here. The market’s broader food-access work also includes service to 403 families through WIC, showing that benefit use is part of how the market operates rather than an afterthought. Payment methods are presented clearly for visitors, which helps reduce guesswork at the market.