It was with a mix of sadness, nostalgia and, mostly, appreciation that I learned of the recent death of 92-year-old Andrew Balducci, scion and guiding force of the family that brought fruit and vegetable wisdom to countless New Yorkers, myself included.

The Balducci produce market provided a formative food and cultural experience for me. I moved into Greenwich Village in 1945 and that damply fragrant cornucopia of an open-front market with its dark dirt floor opened one year later between 6th Avenue and Christopher Street, at the point where 8th Street becomes Greenwich Avenue.