Volante Farms - Needham, Massachusetts

Aiden N.

Volante is one of my favorite places to shop for groceries or stop in for a sandwich!!! They literally have everything you're looking for, and the store is clean and well organized. I love their bakery and pastries, especially the cinnamon donuts 🤤🤤

Carol L.

Volante Farms bursts with fresh, local food. The farmstand is getting in the first produce of the season now, and it is spectacular. You can see the fields from the shop. The fresh lettuce is amazing, pure color and flavor and crunch. For anyone who has had a vegetable garden you can tell that they are the masters, great choice of varieties and perfect production.

Volante has lots of other goodies besides produce.The farmstand has a curated selection of local food, plus cheeses, fresh meat and entrees, frozen dishes and desserts, and a very fun bakery. The wine and beer selection has a focus on area and specialty producers, such as organic wines. There's a window for ice cream, and a deli with sandwiches made to order. Pleasant hospitality, too, with plenty of indoor seating, and outdoor seating under umbrellas. In the greenhouse here's a big selection of perennials, annuals, herbs, pots, mulch, planting soil, fertilizer and decorative plants.

There is handicap accessible parking, and all areas are handicap accessible. There's a bathroom for patrons, too. Children are welcome. Vegetarians, vegans and gluten free shoppers will appreciate the carefully considered selection for them.

Prices are in line with local merchants, and Volante is a great place to find treats like their vast selection of fresh apples from local growers. Short season and specialty produce, think fresh garlic, are priced for their scarcity, but sell out fast.

D T.

Most expensive Christmas trees for miles. They typically sell Balsam, Frasier, or Frasier-Balsam cross trees from a variety of out of state tree farms. Some years they have sourced trees from the Carolinas, others - like 2023 - from Canada. Trees this year range in price from $80 - $200. Most the 8-9 foot Frasier trees were about $130-$180. Netting a tree is an extra $2 and they have men who bring the tree to your vehicle and fasten it on with twine - so add in the $10+ tip for that as well. Their "barn" store has vegetables, baked goods, wine etc. The greenhouse has a variety of wreaths and pointsetta's. Also, the first weekend of December is the busiest with people nearly brawling for parking spaces. 5his isn't where you go for cute ambiance. There is t free drinks or food or fire pit or anything that rings "cute New England".

Bottom line: expensive trees from a garden center if you live nearby and don't want to travel far and feel like Home Depot or other local places are too low-brow for you.

D K.

One of the few places that carries my favorite healthy chocolate brand that I recently discovered.

Ben K.

Incredibly fresh produce, warm just-baked breads, amazing lunch counter, homemade ice cream, and specialty foods. Fantastic greenhouse. Just... all a little pricey. Well worth the trip.

RoadTrip N.

Volante Farms, now run by the fourth generation of the Volante family, traces its roots back to immigrants Peter and Caterina Volante from Atina, Italy. Their journey began in 1917 when they established Volante Farms on land along Dedham Street in Newton.

Initially, it primarily operated as a truck farm, supplying fresh produce to the Boston Produce Market each morning. Peter, renowned as "The Celery King," gained fame for his distinctive Pascal Celery, which he distributed across the eastern coast until the early 1950s.

Following World War II, Margie, Peter and Caterina's daughter, took a pivotal step by inaugurating the first physical farmstand right in front of their family home. This inaugural retail space started as a tent structure but soon transformed into a modest aluminum-roofed building. By the close of the 1950s, this farm stand became the primary source of income for the farm.

Jordan L.

Nice, pretty typical farm stand / country store. Roast beef deli sandwich was just okay, hoped for more flavor. Produce and other fresh items looked excellent. Staff was super friendly. Also had what appeared to be a decent craft beer and wine selection.

Cameron T.

Expensive farm store that offers the best of local fruits and produce. From fresh red currants, local grown peaches, to Quebec grown strawberries, this farm store has it all. They have a Deli, bakery, ice cream shop, beer and wine, greenhouse, and gardening section.