Las Cruces is the only community in the region with a significant number and variety of restaurants although Silver City also has a few, but there's one seasonal alternative that's not to be missed. The small town of Hatch, about 40 miles north of Las Cruces, is the chile-pepper capital of the United States, if not the world. Great fields of chiles surround the town, which becomes a major center of chile commerce in late summer and early fall, with a "Chile Festival" (http://www.nmchili.com/ha...) in early September. The tiny town can swell in size by a factor of ten or more 2,000 up to 30,000! at Festival time. If in the vicinity then, definitely go to the Festival and see how much spice you can handle. Shops in Hatch have chile paraphernalia at other times of the year.
