WHEB Chili Cook-Off Coming Soon

Prescott Park Arts Festival will present the 23rd Annual WHEB Chili Cook-Off on Saturday, Oct. 13. Once again, the WHEB Chili Cook-Off will be paired perfectly with Strawbery Banke Museum's Fall Festival, and held on the grounds of Strawbery Banke, directly across the street from Prescott Park.

Gates are set to open at 10:00 and the chili serving will commence at 11:30am, continuing until all the chili is gone. More than a dozen restaurants from the Seacoast area and beyond will serve up their best chili in decorated booths for thousands of attendees to sample and enjoy.

Restaurants will participate in both the Judge's Choice and the People's Choice award categories, including a Best Veggie category, that carry generous prizes of $1,500 advertising packages from event co-sponsors WHEB, Taste of the Seacoast Magazine, and The Wire. WHEB will be on hand to provide live entertainment throughout the event and Redhook Ale Brewery Beer will be served to complement the chili goodness and to round out the day.

The event will also be zero-waste through the use of compostable bowls, and real metallic spoons. "This event has typically used more than 10,000 bowls in the past," explained Prescott Park Arts Festival's Executive Director, Ben Anderson. "We are proud to be able to divert that from our local landfill, and know that attendees appreciate it as well." Audience members are asked to make a $1 deposit for their metallic spoon, refunded at the end of the event in exchange for the return of the spoon. Alternatively, patrons are welcomed to bring their own favorite spoon for tasting.

Each year, more than 4,000 residents and visitors attend the WHEB Chili Cook-off, the final event in Prescott Park Arts Festival's Summer of the Golden Ticket Season. This year's celebration promises to be a festive, tasty, lively, and successful close to an amazing summer.

Participating restaurants include a great mix of newcomers and seasoned Chili Cook-Off veterans. Competing restaurants include Riverworks, Zahtar, Thirsty Moose, Fat Belly's, Dos Amigos, Flatbread Pizza Company, Mojo's, Portsmouth Brewery, Old Salt, Press Room, Dolphin Striker, and The Kitchen.

As the weather turns cooler and the summer starts to fade away, local and tourists look forward to one more exciting event, warmed by spicy chili variations offered up by the various restaurants and chili enthusiasts alike. Judging the restaurants on their chili variations will be Keith Lemerise of Taste of the Seacoast Magazine, JR from WHEB The Morning Buzz, and Billy Smith, brewer at Redhook Brewery.

"This event is a great way to close out our season on a high note," says Prescott Park Arts Festival's Executive Director Ben Anderson. "The Chili Cook-Off always brings out a great crowd and we are always excited to see which Seacoast restaurants have generated new and interested chili creations. We couldn't ask for a better collaboration that the pairing of our Chili Cook-Off with Strawbery Banke Museum's Fall Festival."

Chili lovers can fill their bowls to the brim, enjoy a frosty brew, and the discover all the New Hampshire Fall Festival has to offer. The Festival features four centuries of tradition home and farm harvest festivities and visitors will be able to experience a traditional New England country fair like no other!

Exhibits will include live demonstrations of historic crafts, trades, and home activities. There will also be farm animal and livestock demonstrations as master gardeners and horticulture experts. Local artisans will be displaying and selling their work, and local food vendors will be on hand to provide great food and drink to supplement the chili.

Entrance is free for the Prescott Park Arts Festival and Strawbery Banke Museum members, and tickets are $15 for adults and $6 for youths (12 and under) for the general public. Tickets are available for an advance discount price at www.prescottpark.org

Since 1996, the Arts Festival has consistently been named by Yankee magazine as a "must see" tourist attraction. Prescott Park Arts Festival is an independent non-profit organization with a mission of serving the community with a diverse array of quality arts events accessible to all.

For more information on the festival, or to see a full schedule of events, visit www.prescottpark.org or call 603-436-2848.

Submitted by Ben Anderson, executive director, Prescott Park Arts Festival, Portsmouth