(PUEBLO, Colo.) — The Pueblo Chile Festival is in full swing in downtown historic Pueblo, showcasing the city’s agricultural roots and vibrant community spirit.
The festival features over 50 musical acts across four live entertainment tents, more than 200 food and drink vendors, and unique events like the Chihuahua and Friends Parade and the Pueblo Chile Balloon Fest.
Festival-goers can enjoy a variety of activities, with tips from the bars benefiting CASA of Pueblo, a nonprofit advocating for abused and neglected children.
On Friday, September 19, the winners of the 2025 Chili & Salsa Showdown were announced, marking the official kickoff of the festival. The judges, including FOX21 Storm Team Meteorologist Nic Temple, decided the best green chili, red chili, and salsa in both non-commercial and commercial rounds, basing their decisions on flavor, appeal, balance, ingredients, and texture.
The winners for each round and category were:
Commercial
- Green Chili 3rd Place: Shah’s The American Gyro
- Green Chili 2nd Place: Gramps Kitchen & Catering
- Green Chili 1st Place: Pass Key ($500.00)
- Red Chili 3rd Place: Prime on a Dime
- Red Chili 2nd Place: Romero’s Cafe
- Red Chili 1st Place: Double D’s BBQ Shack ($500.00)
- Salsa 3rd Place: Heart & Soul
- Salsa 2nd Place: Cinfully Delicious Catering
- Salsa 1st Place: Gramps Kitchen & Catering ($500.00)
Non-Commercial
- Green Chili 3rd Place: Alaina Pettie ($50.00)
- Green Chili 2nd Place: Camille Calderon ($100.00)
- Green Chili 1st Place: Melissa Lopez ($200.00)
- Red Chili 3rd Place: Shari Abeyta ($50.00)
- Red Chili 2nd Place: Joshua Swancutt ($100.00)
- Red Chili 1st Place: Brandon Soto ($200.00)
- Salsa 3rd Place: Janelle Archuletta ($50.00)
- Salsa 2nd Place: Stacey Solano ($100.00)
- Salsa 1st Place: Tiffany Rotola ($200.00)
Saturday’s activities started at 10 a.m., with free parking available at South Main Street and Grand & City Center Drive.
A shuttle service is available at the Midtown Parking Lot, and handicap parking is provided at the Professional Bull Riders Parking Lot through the back entrance off Victoria Street.
All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by FOX21. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by FOX21 staff before being published.
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