Are you thinking chili? Offering mouth-watering recipes of home-style chili ranging from mild and delightful to wild and adventurous, the City of Gatlinburg hosts its 21st annual Winter Magic Kickoff and Chili Cookoff on Wednesday, Nov. 10 from 10 to 9 p.m. on the popular Downtown Parkway.
Highlighted by the seasonal debut of the spectacular all-LED Gatlinburg Winter Magictm lights program and live entertainment, up to 20 vendors will serve up kettles of chili ready for you to sample as the event makes the jump to the Parkway between traffic light #6 and the Riverside Motor Lodge.
With the purchase of a ticket, receive a spoon and a voting ballot, then starting at 5 p.m. be pleasantly tempted and tested before casting your vote for the People’s Choice Award. Also, judges will select winners in categories including Best Taste, Booth Presentation, Apron Design and Most Unique Chili Name.
All Sauced Up is sponsoring several hot chili eating contests during the event. See if you can stand the heat!
Vendors for the 2009 Chili Cookoff included: Citizens National Bank, Corky’s Bar-B-Q, Crawdaddy’s Restaurant & Bar, Dixie Stampede, Downtown Grill & Chili Co., Flat Hollow Marina & Resort, Fox & Parrot Tavern, Gatlinburg Elks Lodge, Gatlinburg Fire Department, Gatlinburg Mass Transit and Parking Department, Gatlinburg Police Department, Gatlinburg Town Square, Hilton Garden Inn, Mountain Brook Village, Puckers Sports Bar & Grill, Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, River Stone Resort, Shabby’s Coffee & Tea House Cafe, Sevier County Utility District, Tennessee State Bank and TGI Friday’s. Mountain Rentals of Gatlinburg and Bug’s Wisconsin Cheese Co. will provided sampling.
Gatlinburg Winter Magic tm is the $1.5 million custom designed, one-of-a-kind lighting displays which now feature all LED, energy-efficient bulbs along the Parkway, adjacent River Road, the triangle juncture of the two, Cherokee Orchard and Hwy. 321. The City of Gatlinburg has converted its entire winter lights program to quarter-watt LED bulbs, replacing the 5-watt incandescent bulbs and reducing the City’s electricity cost for the program by some 85 percent.
A portion of the proceeds benefit the Pi Beta Phi Elementary School PTA.
For more information, call the Gatlinburg Chamber of Commerce at (865) 436-4178 or 1-800-568-4748.