That time of year again! 2025 Hatch Chile Festival is upon us and my wife and I made the 30 minute trip from the Lakehouse for the fun! Usually we have a gang of us but everyone is out of town, so just the two of us to walk and see what it is that catches our eyes.
We headed there early again this year and it was already hopping when we arrive at about 10am. The parade had just finished and attendees were already perusing the vendors area. Definitely more vendors this year compared to the last two years, which is always fun to see growth. And, most of it was similar to what we’ve seen the past two years although I think there were a number of newer vendors selling their rubs and seasonings.
The Chile Ristra making demonstration was going strong, and when we walked by later, there were a number of people trying there hands at making the ristras famous in the area!
As we continued walking, found the places that wiped out our taste buds a few years ago! I didn’t try the hot stuff, but did try a nice BBQ sauce, Black Cherry Red Chile sauce, which was really good.
Then found a few of our favorite spots for a nice snack as we walked about. Always love the fresh green chile flavored popcorn! Something about a little sweet with the spice on this fresh made popcorn! And also picked up some red and green chile pecan and pistachio brittle! This stuff is outstanding! One of my favorite snacks from this event! And after that, we had to get a drink - so went with an Agua Frescas, Sandia con Fresas, which hit the spot!
And probably the most interesting item we found at the festival…..crickets?????? Hahahah! I don’t know if they were really crickets or not, I didn’t ask but as they say in New Mexico, you can put green chile on anything!
Then we hit the streets of Hatch, NM to see what the local shops had to offer. of course, every single shop has a few roasters going, so you walk a mile or so with nothing but the aroma of roasting green or red chile! It’s the best smell you could imagine! This shop is probably the largest in town, with 7 roasters going at once!
And of course the gigantic ristras available, and these weren’t the biggest we found!
We continued around, looking for some metal art, checking out the spots and walked by one of the most famous restaurants in New Mexico - Sparky’s. The line was probably 40-50 people deep to get into the restaurant…all for that famous green chile cheeseburger!
It’s neat to see what this weekend does for this town, and just what it means to everyone that attends the festival! It truly is the Chile Capital of the World!
And so once we found our one piece of metal art, we headed back to the car and made our way back home… We’ve been looking for an elephant for our lakehouse and found it this year at the festival, so another way to remember our trips to the Hatch Chile Festival!
Another fun year at the festival! Gonna make some green chile chicken tacos tonight for dinner
We headed there early again this year and it was already hopping when we arrive at about 10am. The parade had just finished and attendees were already perusing the vendors area. Definitely more vendors this year compared to the last two years, which is always fun to see growth. And, most of it was similar to what we’ve seen the past two years although I think there were a number of newer vendors selling their rubs and seasonings.
The Chile Ristra making demonstration was going strong, and when we walked by later, there were a number of people trying there hands at making the ristras famous in the area!
As we continued walking, found the places that wiped out our taste buds a few years ago! I didn’t try the hot stuff, but did try a nice BBQ sauce, Black Cherry Red Chile sauce, which was really good.
Then found a few of our favorite spots for a nice snack as we walked about. Always love the fresh green chile flavored popcorn! Something about a little sweet with the spice on this fresh made popcorn! And also picked up some red and green chile pecan and pistachio brittle! This stuff is outstanding! One of my favorite snacks from this event! And after that, we had to get a drink - so went with an Agua Frescas, Sandia con Fresas, which hit the spot!
And probably the most interesting item we found at the festival…..crickets?????? Hahahah! I don’t know if they were really crickets or not, I didn’t ask but as they say in New Mexico, you can put green chile on anything!
Then we hit the streets of Hatch, NM to see what the local shops had to offer. of course, every single shop has a few roasters going, so you walk a mile or so with nothing but the aroma of roasting green or red chile! It’s the best smell you could imagine! This shop is probably the largest in town, with 7 roasters going at once!
And of course the gigantic ristras available, and these weren’t the biggest we found!
We continued around, looking for some metal art, checking out the spots and walked by one of the most famous restaurants in New Mexico - Sparky’s. The line was probably 40-50 people deep to get into the restaurant…all for that famous green chile cheeseburger!
It’s neat to see what this weekend does for this town, and just what it means to everyone that attends the festival! It truly is the Chile Capital of the World!
And so once we found our one piece of metal art, we headed back to the car and made our way back home… We’ve been looking for an elephant for our lakehouse and found it this year at the festival, so another way to remember our trips to the Hatch Chile Festival!
Another fun year at the festival! Gonna make some green chile chicken tacos tonight for dinner
Comment