Five East Lansing restaurants competed in East Lansing’s annual Downtown Chili Cook-Off on Saturday, showcasing their version of an old favorite.
Buffalo Wild Wings, Cosi, Beggar’s Banquet, Harper’s Restaurant and Brewpub and HopCat all took part in the annual event. From 1-4 p.m. Saturday East Lansing residents and Lansing area community members hit the streets to try the chili and vote on the winner.
Adorned with red chili pepper balloons, each location had stands with their chili. Done purposefully, the multiple location event offered residents a chance to explore downtown and get out on the town for the day. It also boosted business Saturday and might have put a couple of the restaurants on food junkies’ radars.
“We’re always pretty successful because of the fact that we’re HopCat,” Ryan Ostach, executive kitchen manager at HopCat, said. “We always get a lot of business flow and whether we win or not we get exposure.”
HopCat swept both Chili Cook Offs last year, wins that were bolstered by its usual heavy weekend traffic, though as of Sunday afternoon no winner was announced. HopCat’s chili, a five pepper style, seemed to be a fan favorite as they had a steady flow of traffic throughout the day. The other chili cook off is held in the summer.
“It’s just nice that you can walk to all the places and try out the different kinds and see the city as you walk around,” Holland resident Allyson VanderBush said outside of Cosi.
Cosi’s chili was a turkey chili and was the only restaurant on Grand River Avenue that partook in the event.
Harper’s chili was a tomato-based chili compared to the usual white bean chili and the restaurant held the event in conjunction with selling Girl Scout cookies on the patio. Harper’s has won the Chili Cook -Off before and hoped to win again on Saturday.
Beggar’s Banquet, tucked along Abbot Road, had a steady stream of visitors to its stand with three varieties of chilis – chicken, beef and vegan chili.
“Chili and pretty much anything that is hearty and sort of comfort food is something I kind (of) gravitate towards so making chili (is something) I feel fairly passionate about it,” Beggar’s Banquet Chef Marshall Sawyer said.
Buffalo Wild Wings boasted a spicy chili and employees running the stand said lines were out the door when the cook off started.
Lines for the cook-off might been helped by the MHSAA Class A basketball state championships held at Breslin Center on Saturday. Many fans of the teams competing for a title were seen at the multiple locations.
On a scale of one to five, with five being the best, residents tasting the chili judged the chili on four categories: color, aroma, flavor and heat. Points were added up to determine the winner.
