The Fruit Basket — Local services in Espanola

Driving by we couldn't resist stopping here to get some fresh local fruit.

We got some peaches, cherries, plums, and apricot fresh. Dried kiwi and peach. Indian fry bread mix, fajita and taco seasoning mixes, as well as some Anasazi beans and blue pozole along with a growler each of peach and cherry cider. Also they have some delicious honey sticks and artisan crafted sodas (we had the vanilla cream and it was refreshing and delicious).

Everything tastes wonderful and was very fresh. The Velarde orchards are the oldest in the Sangre de Cristos mountain range and most is certified organic.

While I highly recommend them, I would caution the buyer that they do not provide any itemized receipts so you'll have to keep track of the pricing (and quantities) on your own as some prices aren't clearly marked and many packaged items do not have weights listed. That's the only thing I'd recommend the sellers to fix. Also, they can be a bit higher in price, but please don't let that deter you from getting some of their amazing produce...

Eye catching roadside stand. They definitely know the aesthetic that makes people want to pull over! The woman we spoke with was very pleasant. There are a variety of organic produce, jams, traditional baked goods, and powdered chile, etc. It’s fun to look around but the prices are steep so a few items can add up quickly. For example, we got a habanero ketchup and that alone was $11. We were also thrown off because we were told not to touch the produce. Generally, one must check the quality of produce before purchasing. I’m wondering if maybe it was a COVID thing? But we were allowed to handle all of the other items so not sure. I saw that another review mentioned that they discovered some of their produce was bad. I hope it was just a rare occurrence. Anyway, we came away with some apples, donut peaches, a Native American pastry, ketchup, and honey! Everything so far has been good and I would return if traveling through again. Also: This is a seasonal stand! I think it was mentioned that they lose from sometime in...

Horrible produce. I stopped for red chile and saw all the fruit. They hovered over me while I was selecting and made it very uncomfortable. I held a nectarine and said I was suprised to see them in October. She said, "Oh ya we have a late crop as we've had no frost". I said they seem a bit dry. She said "oh my mom eats them and they are very juicy." This was all a scam to sell old fruit. I was a sucker and believed her. They are disguisting hard as rock and turned moldy immediately. The plums are hard, taste spoiled, and aren't sweet. I am scared to try the apples. This place is a tourist trap. I fell for it but never again. She probably lied to about the chile being fresh. Shame on them. Trust me you can get better produce elsewhere. And yes I am local to Santa Fe and will...