Restaurant Events Westport Chowdafest 2012: Top Local Chefs Do Battle OmNomCT January 25, 2012 Local food bloggers Dan and Kristien Del Ferraro of OmNomCT.com ran this post on their site to announce the upcoming Chowdafest 2012. Why mess with a good thing? Here's their story... About a year ago Kristien and I got our chowda on and OD’d on soupy goodness. Yup, the Third Annual Chowdafest was awesome with tons of restaurants competing for the Classic New England Chowder, Creative Chowder, and Soup titles. Last year Mansion Clam House won Classic N.E. Clam Chowder, SBC won Creative Chowder with Corn & Poblano Chowder, and Nicholas Roberts won with their Lobster Bisque. So, who’s winning this year on 2/4/12 from 11-4 at Bedford Middle School in Westport? You get a spoon, then you om nom nom, vote, and help decide the winners. Yeah, you can even pretend you’re one of those judges from Chopped or Iron Chef. We won’t tell. Well, look at the talent pool here, first: Ash Creek Saloon, Blue Lemon, Bobby Q’s, The Brewhouse, The Boathouse, , Cactus Rose Cantina, Crab Shell, Dunvilles, The Ginger Man, Liquid Lunch, Los Cabos, Mansion Clam House, Mystic Soup Co., Nicholas Roberts Gourmet Bistro, Old Post Tavern, O’Neill’s, River House, Rory’s, Southport Brewing Company, Super Duper Weenie, Tavern on Main Look at that list! Some of Connecticut’s best restaurants competing for the fun of it but also to take home bragging rights. Tickets are a measly $6 for adults, $5 for 65+, and a puny $2 for children and go towards helping out The CT Food Bank. Also, bring down some nonperishable items to help boost up their food drive. Yeah, everybody wins on “SOUPer Bowl Saturday.” Kids will have even more fun this year, too. Stop & Shop is sponsoring a Kids Cove where there will be stickers, temporary tattoos (why not real ones?), and a chef hat decorating station! Also, have your kids meet the most savory “SOUPer hero,” Chef Quahog. There’s still some time to meet him before 2/4, too. Bonus: stop by after 3 and you’ll be entered into a special raffle. Some cool facts from Jim Keenan, organizer of both Chowdafest and Chilifest: • No restaurant has won the same category back to back. The Ginger Man almost did last year, coming in 2nd by a mere 5 votes. • We’re in CT, yes, but no one has been daring enough to enter in a Manhattan Clam Chowder. • There has never been more than one lobster bisque, but this year there are three on the way. • They are poised to break attendance records! How awesome is that? • Chowdafest is now one of the largest competitions going on in New England. Chowdafest IV 2/4/12 11 am – 4 pm $6 adults/$5 seniors/$2 children Bedford Middle School 88 North Ave Westport, CT 06880
