Hatch, NM: come for the chile peppers and stay for the photo ops!
March 2023: Hatch (population 1,648) is a small agriculture town located 40 miles north of Las Cruces, known as the epicenter of New Mexico Hatch chile peppers. While driving north from Las Cruces, we took the opportunity to visit to buy pepper products from a local market. However, what we found was much more interesting!
Hatch – A Brief history
The town of Hatch was settled in the mid 1850s. Early days were marked by clashes between Apache and Settler, which resulted in the US government establishment of nearby Fort Thorn. The fort was abandoned in 1859, and then the town reestablished in 1875 and given the name “Hatch” after Edward Hatch, commander of District of New Mexico.
Today Hatch is largely recognized as the chile capitol of the world – and are being marketed under their own name in most major urban markets in the US.
Downtown vibe / walkability
The business district runs along Franklin Street, which is an extension of the I25 exit through town. First, we stopped by a bright red chile market to pick up some Hatch Chile products. They had lots of great options for both food and gifts.
Hatch Chile Market – Google Maps
From there we continued down Franklin and were shocked to see a series of large figures – a green space alien, a bucket of KFC, a robot, a giant piggy bank – on one side of the road and a giant Uncle Sam on the other. How could we NOT stop? This photo op is too good to ignore!
While stopped, we noticed a stream of people heading into a business named Sparkys, which turns out to be this super-cool roadside diner with all sorts of amazing statue figures and Kitch art. Being a bit too early for our lunch, we settle on a mango and chile smoothie. Yum! Be sure to check this place out for food, drink, music and unique souvenir items.
Also, there is a popular brewery in town called Icebox brewing. From its website, it appears to be a new taproom location for Picacho Brewery which is located in Las Cruces. We didn’t stop by, but it looks like a good option for food and drink.
Icebox Brewing – Hatch Valley Taproom – Google Maps
Local Activities / Events
The Hatch Chile Festival is an annual (celebrating their 50th celebration in 2022!) event that occurs each Labor Day, sponsored by the Hatch Valley Chamber of Commerce. This popular event attracts people worldwide and is known to accommodate up to 30,000 people in this town of less than 2000. Festivities include music, a carnival, a parade – and lots of chile-themed food and drink!
Link to smalltownresearch.org – Hatch for more information.
