Isleta Grill of Isleta Pueblo swept both major awards at the New Mexico State Fair Green Chile Cheeseburger Challenge, capturing the People’s Choice and Blind Judging championships.
The restaurant, which also won the Blind Judging title in 2024, emerged victorious from a field of nine competitors vying for recognition as the state’s best green chile cheeseburger.
Crowds gathered on Main Street to sample entries from restaurants across New Mexico during the annual competition. The New Mexico Department of Agriculture organized the event, with sponsorship from New Mexico Gas Company.
Eight other establishments competed in the challenge: Sparky’s of Hatch, Downshift Brewing of Ruidoso, Grill at the Monte Carlo of Questa, Laguna Burger of Laguna Pueblo, Craft Republic of Albuquerque, Owl Café of Albuquerque, Fuego 505 of Albuquerque, and The Grill at the Sheraton of Albuquerque.
The competition featured two judging categories — a blind taste test by expert judges and voting by fairgoers for the People’s Choice award.