Our Story

Rill Foods is a second-generation family business based in the heart of Central Washington.

It all began in 1985 when Ninon, just 25 years old, bought a small grocery and café in Thorp. Her made-from-scratch soups quickly became local favorites, drawing in regulars from miles around.

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But there was a problem: customers didn’t just want a bowl of soup—they wanted to take it home.

 

They asked for recipes, to-go containers, anything to bring the flavors with them. That need sparked an idea. In 1995, Ninon packaged up two of her soups and brought them to a local fair. They sold out, and Rill’s Specialty Foods was born.

From hand-weighing ingredients to rebuilding after a fire, we’ve faced our share of challenges. But we’ve stayed focused on what matters: crafting hearty, flavorful soups that taste homemade—because they are. Today, we hand-pack every mix and use high-quality ingredients from Northwest farmers and co-ops whenever we can.

 

We’ve grown from a small-town café to shipping over 200,000 packages a year,

But our mission is the same: to make it easy to enjoy a comforting, satisfying meal.

Each soup is named after a real place in the Northwest and includes a short story inside, connecting you to the land that inspired it.

From our kitchen in Thorp to your table—thanks for being part of our story.

Timeline

Interactive Vertical Timeline
At 25 years old, Ninon bought a small grocery store in Thorp, WA called Thorp 6-10 because, as the previous owner said, “it wasn’t a 7-11”
1985
She added a deli counter and began serving homemade sandwiches, burgers, and of course soups.
1991
Ninon packaged her first two soups—Thorpellini Tortellini and Taneum Canyon Chili—and debuted them at CWU’s Ware Fair.
1995
Rill Foods joined the Seattle Gift Show and expanded to seven flavors in preparation for wholesale.
1997
We upgraded from hand-scooping all our beans to our first semi-automated weighing machine.
2003
The original store and deli were lost to a fire.
2007
Built a new building with a warehouse on one side and an apartment on the other—where Ninon hoped to grow old.
2009
We shipped our first pallet order.
2017
Rill Foods grew so much, we took over the whole building (sorry, Ninon!).
2018
We surpassed 200,000 units sold in a single year.
2024
Still small, still local, and still making soups from scratch—one batch at a time.
Now

"I just placed my second order with you and created an account. The flavors of your soups are outstanding and they are simple to make."

Carl Jenny

"My family absolutely loves these soups! Even in a HOT Texas summer, we serve them up. Thank you for making these available for purchase online. Waiting with baited breath for my delivery–all the way in South Central Texas!"

Xina Ortiz