Even if you’ve never been to Los Angeles, chances are you’ve seen photos or TikTok videos from the Studio City Farmers Market without realizing it. Maybe it was a viral shot of actor Jeremy Allen White back in 2023, struggling adorably to carry a massive bouquet, a now-iconic moment that even came up during his appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “I just love going there,” White told Fallon. “I love having flowers in my house.” So does the rest of Hollywood.
Studio City Farmers Market has quietly become one of LA’s most reliable places for celebrity sightings, not a red carpet or movie set, but a Sunday-morning grocery run. Since its opening in 1998, it’s evolved into more than just a local market; it’s a star-studded scene, attracting actors, musicians, and models week after week. Big names like Anne Hathaway, Jacob Elordi, Paris Hilton, Elle Fanning, and Dakota Johnson have all been spotted casually picking up produce there, sometimes sparking fashion trends in the process. Johnson once went viral simply for the way her jeans fit at the market.
The buzz isn’t just online. Photo agencies like Getty and Alamy have thousands of images geotagged on the market, and paparazzi frequent them like clockwork. Mike Arnoldi, a veteran celebrity photographer based in LA, calls the market one of his go-to locations. He arrives at 9 a.m., takes around 1,500 photos in a single visit, and narrows them down to a few dozen that agencies will buy. Pictures of Jeremy Allen White are among his highest earners, selling for around $400 each. Most other celebrity shots sell for much less, often just a few dollars. Arnoldi says he draws the line at photographing children, calling it unethical even though it’s not illegal.
With all this attention, the market has had to make changes. In 2008, after several incidents involving aggressive paparazzi, the organisers hired professional security, a team that now includes three uniformed staff and three undercover former police officers. Esther Walker, the executive director of the Studio City Chamber of Commerce, says paparazzi are more respectful now than they used to be. “The issues we had 15 years ago don’t really exist now. They tend to stay further away,” she explained.
Still, the market’s popularity means not just anyone can set up shop there. Walker says they receive five to ten vendor applications every week, but first-time sellers usually aren’t accepted. The foot traffic, which includes thousands of visitors each weekend, is considered too intense for inexperienced vendors. “Business is always nice for our vendors, but it is an extremely popular farmers market,” Walker said.
Not all celebrities enjoy public attention. Some, like those who shop at ReBroth, a popular bone broth stand, now order their groceries privately to avoid being chased around by cameras. “I used to do celebrity catering for 20 years,” said vendor Lindsay Dix. “And a lot of people who claim to be vegan or vegetarian do eat meat.” That, she notes, is another reason some stars prefer to keep their shopping off the record.
Still, others embrace the spotlight. According to Arnoldi, a few celebrities even give him a heads-up when they plan to visit the market, a kind of informal agreement that helps keep things friendly and controlled. It’s not about being flashy. For many stars, it’s simply about blending in, doing something normal, and maybe, just maybe, getting a great candid photo in the process.
So, whether you’re there for the organic produce, the bone broth, or the chance of bumping into someone famous, Studio City Farmers Market has become more than just a weekend errand. It’s a snapshot of LA itself, part glamour, part chaos, and a whole lot of flowers.