From left: Luke Mitchell, Preston Mitchell, Emma Mitchell, Bob Berridge, Judy Franzoy-Berridge, and Taylor Graciano of the Hatch Chile Store. Photograph by Gabriella Marks.
For generations, a few small farming families in the Hatch Valley have grown what has become New Mexico’s most iconic product, Hatch green chile. Hatch Chile Store founder Preston Mitchell’s grandparents, Bob Berridge and Judy Franzoy-Berridge, were born and raised in the valley and spent their lives farming chile, onions, corn, pecans, and alfalfa. Mitchell grew up working in their produce stand every summer in Santa Fe and roasted thousands of sacks of Hatch green chile. This experience made him realize just how deeply Hatch chile is intertwined in the fabric of one’s identity as a New Mexican. Customers weren’t just happy to get their annual chile fix, they were overjoyed and often told stories about how they had driven long distances or even flown to New Mexico for their perfectly roasted sack of Hatch green chile. With such demand for authentic Hatch chile, Mitchell decided to bring the chile grown in the humble valley directly to consumers by shipping it right to their door. Over the next 15 years, the Hatch Chile Store became the number-one online source for high-quality, authentic New Mexican products such as rellenos, tamales, chimichangas, sauces, and salsas.
Hatch Chile Store, Hatch; 575-635-4680.