Daniel Ceballos at his Gourmet Specialties stand at the Manhattan Beach Farmers Market. Photo by Mark DcDermott

Daniel Ceballos has the greens, and his Gourmet Specialties stand at the Manhattan Beach Farmers Market has a dedicated following among local home chefs.

Ceballos and his sister, Lilia Galacia, run a business that primarily grows herbs and salad greens for restaurants and professional chefs around the country. They operate out of a large greenhouse in Vernon, California, where the bulk of their produce is grown.

“It’s cleaner, and all organic,” said Ceballos.

Gourmet Specialties has a broad array of offerings. Their salad greens, including arugula, spinach, and a “spicy mix” that includes edible flowers, are among the most popular, but their unique collection of herbs are also a big draw. They carry not only the usual herbs — cilantro, basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, bay leaves, mint — but specialty varieties, such as lemon thyme and Thai basil, as well as both English and French lavender. Ceballos also brings a rotating selection of pre-cut, bagged vegetables — zucchini cut into pasta strands, green beans, carrots, and mixed beets.

Local resident Katie Williams has been a regular since Gourmet Specialties began coming to the Tuesday market. Her reason, she said, is pretty straightforward — no grocery market can measure up to the quality of the stand’s produce.

“The flavor in their greens — in everything, really — is just amazing,” she said. “You can actually taste it.”

Ceballos, an affable man, is also part of the draw — he clearly loves his produce, and he has helpful suggestions for how to put it to use in the kitchen. He makes tea out of the lavender, for example, adding a bit of honey. On his cell phone, he has videos of many of his favorite recipes — nothing too complicated, just simple preparations that allow the vegetable’s elemental flavors to reign. One shows him gently sauteing the fresh-cut zucchini pasta with roasted poblanos and carrots.

“It’s good,” he said. “People like it.”

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