Chili Cookoff Warms Crowd, Aids Scouts

By Tim Kelly Hey, it’s been a chilly week. On Saturday there was a warming trend, but it was still a very “chili” day in Ocean City. More than 150 folks showed up for Boy Scout Troop 32’s third annual Super Chili Bowl fundraiser, which took place on Saturday afternoon. The Howard S. Stainton Senior Center in the Ocean City Community Center was transformed into a veritable Chili Central as people sampled some of the best chili recipes to be found in town. Boy Scout Troop 32, Ocean City, put together another successful Super Chili Bowl fundraiser on Saturday. The event was free to participating chefs. Those who wished to sample the goodies received more than their money’s worth for the $5 admission charge. Attendees could enjoy “unlimited samples” and most weren’t bashful about it. The idea began in 2017 as a way to capitalize on the popularity of America’s unofficial national Super Bowl holiday, all for the benefit of our local Boy Scouts. It was an instant success and really took off the following year, with our Eagles in the big game. But even though Sunday’s NFL championship will be contested by the LA Rams and New England Patriots, the Scouts once again built on their previous success. Chili chefs “cooked off” to compete for trophies for Best Chili, Most Unique Chili, Hottest, and Best Cornbread. Taking subjectivity out of the equation, winners were determined by votes submitted by the chili chompers in attendance. Trophies are nice, but most of the competitors would tell you the top prizes were bragging rights, and seeing the satisfied looks on the faces of those enjoying their creations. And from the looks of things when an OCNJDaily.com photographer stopped by, that’s exactly the way things were working out. Here are some of the trophies for the best chili.