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Local Colorado

Produce

A COMMITMENT TO QUALITY

Since 1978 Tony’s has been proud to showcase Colorado’s wide variety of fruits and vegetables. The unique combinations of Colorado’s hot days and cool nights bring out the best flavors and nutrients each fruit and vegetable has to offer. At Tony’s we are proud to support our local family farmers and bring their amazing produce to our shelves!

Peak Season: Late June - Early October

Palisade Peaches

Those famous Palisade peaches we sell at Tony’s taste so good because…

1. When produce is sold locally, it ripens on the tree, not on a warehouse dock or transport truck. The fruit can stay on the tree 4-5 days longer which is the BEST way to ripen fruit.
2. One branch may have 20 or more blossoms! Our farmers of choice hand prune these blossoms and baby fruit to about 4-5 per branch which helps them become larger, sweeter, and more flavorful.
3. Without mechanical removal of peach fuzz or waxing of the fruit, there is less handling & bruising.

Peak Season: Late June - Early October

Palisade Cherries

Our Palisade cherries are very proudly harvested, by hand, from Black Bear Orchards. Check out the quote from Brian Cox, the owner of Black Bear Orchards, as he talks about his process on the farm. Cherries are ripe when their stems are slightly green with pump skins that aren’t shriveled. When the stems are fully brown, cherries should be eaten right away for optimum flavor, sweetness,
and texture.

Unlike purchasing cherries from out of state, when you purchase local cherries, you are more likely to get the high-quality “firsts” rather than “seconds” or “thirds.” Firsts are the most abundant, beautiful fruit that have the highest brix content (sugar content). Seconds and thirds tend to be reserved for the commodity market. They still taste good, but they just can’t compare to the hand-picked local fruit you can get from Tony’s!

We’re out in the fields from sun up to 10pm (or later!) hand-picking our peaches and cherries to ensure quality and freshness. We are blessed with a unique micro-climate that provides hot summer days, and cool summer nights; the perfect recipe for outstanding flavor. But, to achieve the best possible flavor, the fruit must be picked at its prime. At Black Bear Orchards, we patiently wait to harvest until the fruit is at peak ripeness and then move it to our customers as gently and quickly as possible.

-Brian Cox, Black Bear Farms

Peak Season: Late July - Early October

Pueblo Green Chiles

When we shop for our green chiles, we make sure to bring in only the highest quality available locally. We personally sample each batch to ensure that our strict quality standards are met.

Once the chiles arrive, we roast them fresh at each market over the course of several weekends and we strive to make enough to last the whole year in our freezers. We roast a few different varieties of Anaheim peppers for our mild & hot chiles. For the true chile heads, we also roast limited batches of DYNAMITE! You’ll really be feeling the heat with those, but the flavor is amazing.

Many people consider Pueblo green chiles some of the finest green chiles in the world! Their only true rival are the Hatch green chiles out of New Mexico.

Peak Season: Late May - September

Olathe Sweet Corn

That sweet sweet corn is calling! Dave Galinat was the first farmer to bring the hybrid corn seed to Colorado known today as the Olathe variety. Olathe sweet corn can range from white to yellow to a bi-colored mixture of the two. The bi-colored corn is the most sought-after as it is generally sweeter than the other varieties.

Former mayor of the area, John Harold, started growing one of the original hybrids of Olathe sweet corn back in the 1990s. His business was called Tuxedo Farms! At Tony’s, we source our Olathe sweet corn from a number of local farmers, but the bulk of our Olathe sweet corn comes from Tuxedo Farms.

Peak Season: Early July - Late September

Rocky Ford Melons

Rocky Ford Melons are grown in a precise area of Colorado’s Arkansas Valley known as Rocky Ford (thus, the name!). Much like Palisade Peaches, Rocky Ford Melons experience big temperature swings with hot Summer days and cool Summer nights which
leads to up to 3% more sugar content than their California counterparts. The regional temperatures and dry air also help to combat many common water-related diseases such as mildew, Fusarium wilt, and rust.

Rocky Ford is known for their super-sweet cantaloupe, though they were originally founded as a watermelon farm. Since their founding, Rocky Ford has grown (thankfully!) and they now also grow an amazing variety of melons including honeydew, watermelon, and cantaloupe.

A Taste Of Summer

Peach Recipes

Make the most of your summer peaches with these recipes

Check out these recipes!