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Local Restaurants to Participate in Volunteer Transportation
Center’s North Country Chili Cook-Off Pub Crawl February 1-21
Published: January 31, 2024
at 09:30 a.m.
By: Press Release from Volunteer Transportation
Center
North Country Chili Cook-Off to Celebrate 25th Anniversary
Tri-County Competition for Restaurants and In-Person
Event Return
 WATERTOWN, NY– The Volunteer
Transportation Center will mark the 25th anniversary of its Annual North
Country Chili Cook-Off this week with a hybrid format that again promotes
participation among local restaurants and its in-person event at the Dulles
State Office Building.
“We’re excited to
once again pair the restaurant-to-restaurant format for the cook-off with
our big in-person event the community has come to know and love,” said
Jeremiah S. Papineau, Director of Communications and Foundation Director
for the VTC. “We merged the formats last year and it went very well.”
The North Country
Chili Cook-Off had historically been a one-day event at the Dulles
State Office Building, held on the first Saturday in February. However, the
event was held in a modified format in 2021 and 2022 during the COVID-19
pandemic. The “pub crawl” format focused on hosting a month-long
competition among participating restaurants and businesses in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties throughout February.
This year, more than 30 locations are participating once again in an
abbreviated format from Thursday, Feb. 1, through Wednesday, Feb. 21,
leading up to the in-person event at the Dulles State Office Building on
Saturday, Feb. 24.
“We’re
overwhelmed by the participation from our local restaurants,” said Mr.
Papineau. “We’ve continued to see it grow and grow and it’s gratifying to
see how enthusiasm has grown for it, too. We love being able to shine a
spotlight on local business.”
The cook-off’s
pub crawl format will again involve participating restaurants and
businesses making available samples of their chili entries during regular
hours of operation, with the public able to vote for their favorites. The
following restaurants have signed up to compete:
• Spookhill Bar
& Grill, 12139 U.S. Route 11, Adams Center
• The Dockside Pub, 11 Market Street,
Alexandria Bay
• JRECK Subs, 210 State Street, Carthage
• The Church Street Diner, 107 Church
Street, Carthage
• Highmarket
Inn, 4441 Highmarket Road, Constableville
• The Cottage Inn, 9794 State Route 12,
Copenhagen
• Silver Leaf Diner, 3231 U.S. Route 11,
DeKalb Junction
• Meme’s Diner, 31606 State Route 3,
Felts Mills
• L.E.A’S Diner,
90 State Street, Heuvelton
• JRECK Subs, 7596 South State Street,
Lowville
• Lloyd’s of
Lowville, 7405 Utica Boulevard, Lowville
• munch., 7570 South State Street,
Lowville
• Ella’s On The
Bay, 209 Main Street, Morristown
• Smuggler’s Café, 54 East River Street,
Ogdensburg
• Hoof & Horn Butcher and Eatery, 32
Market Street, Potsdam
• Saint Larry’s Bar and Grill, 6 Elm
Street, Potsdam
• Nu Pier Restaurant, 13212 State Route
3, Sackets Harbor
• The Battlefield Eatery, 213 West Main
Street, Sackets Harbor
• The Sandwich Bar, 113 West Main Street,
Sackets Harbor
• Tavern230, 4173 West Road, Turin
• Empire Square, 65 Public Square,
Watertown
• Garland City Beer Works, 321 Howk
Street, Watertown
• Johnny D’s, 1 Public Square, Watertown
• JRECK Subs, 1201 Arsenal Street,
Watertown
• JRECK Subs, 605 State Street, Watertown
• JRECK Subs, 525 Mill Street, Watertown
• Panera Bread, 21872 Towne Center Drive,
Watertown
• Pete’s Trattoria, 111 Breen Avenue,
Watertown
• The Grille at Hilton Garden Inn, 1290
Arsenal Street, Watertown
• Hall Pass Tavern, 19 Bridge Street,
West Carthage
• Jose O’Connor’s, 15 Bridge Street, West
Carthage
Those wanting to
cast votes will be able to do so in person by paper ballot or online
through the VTC website beginning Feb. 1. The entry with the most votes
will receive a plaque denoting them winner of the
People’s Choice Award for the tri-county competition. In addition,
participating locations will again be able to compete for the Top
Fundraiser Award by collecting donations for the Volunteer Transportation
Center Foundation. The participating team with the highest amount raised
will receive this special recognition. Winners of both awards will be
recognized at the in-person event at the Dulles State Office Building on
Feb. 24.
“We’re once again
looking forward to the return of our in-person portion of this event, which
features amateur and professional chefs competing for top bragging rights,”
said Mr. Papineau. “We’ve got even more participants than last year, which
extremely encouraging, especially as we mark our 25th year.”
The in-person
competition on Feb. 24 begins at 11 a.m. and runs until 3 p.m. when awards
will be presented. Each entry at the in-person event will be scored by a
panel of local judges, with winners taking home plaques and cash
prizes. Attendees will be able to sample chili from each participant.
Admission will be $6 for adults and $2 for children 12 years and younger. A
family pass admission will be available for $15. This event is supported by
Operation Yellow Ribbon, a volunteer-based committee that promotes visible
signs of support for Soldiers and families. Therefore, military ID holders
will receive a discount on admission.
“We’re looking
forward to being back once again at the Dulles State Office Building,” said
VTC Executive Director Sam Purington. “It was great to bring this
family-friendly event back in-person last year, especially since it’s for a
great cause.”
The 25th Annual
North Country Chili Cook-Off is supported by:
Underwriting Level Sponsors: Excellus
BlueCross BlueShield, Watertown Savings Bank, Stewart’s Shops, United Food
Service Operators, Tim Wewer Tax and Accounting Services, WWNY-TV
7News/Fox28/MeTV, Tunes 92.5/Intrepid
Broadcasting, PixelIt, NNY360/Watertown Daily
Times, Victory Promotions, Advanced Business Systems, and The American
Legion Family.
Platinum Level Sponsors include: AmeriCU Credit Union, Colello Air Technologies, Credo
Foundation, Kinney Drugs Foundation, Price Chopper, Purcell Construction
Corporation, Samaritan Medical Center, The ARC of Jefferson-St. Lawrence,
and Watertown Internists.
Gold Level Sponsors include: Bob Johnson Auto
Group, Disabled Persons Action Organization, Keller Williams-Amy Kenney,
Knowlton Technologies, NFP Corp., North Country Insurance Company, Northern
New York Community Foundation, SeaComm Federal
Credit Union, State CS Employee Federal Credit Union, and Watertown
International Airport.
Silver Level Sponsors include: American Legion
Post 1788; American Legion Post 588 Sons of the American Legion; American
Legion Post 789 Auxiliary; American Legion Post 821 Auxiliary; American
Legion Post 832; American Legion Post 904 SAL; Brotherton Trucking;
Carthage Savings & Loan; Cazenovia Equipment Company; Cheney Tire;
Chimera Integrations; DOCO Quick Print/Midgley Printing; Fuller Insurance
Agency; GEICO Insurance; GYMO Architecture Engineering & Land
Surveying; Haylor, Freyer, & Coon; Hilton
Garden Inn; and RBC Wealth Management.
Friends of the Cook-Off Level sponsors
include: American Legion Post 162, American Legion Post 162 Sons of the
American Legion, American Legion Post 1757 Sons of the American Legion,
American Legion Post 586 Sons of the American Legion, American Legion Post
832 Auxiliary, AMVETS Post 282, Atlantic Testing Laboratories, CNY Office
Furniture, DGM Coon & Company, Hospice of Jefferson County, Jake
Johnson Properties, Johnson Lumber, LLC, Lowville Elks Lodge 1605, Meade
Optical, Syracuse Orthopedic Specialists, The Dockside Pub, Veterans of
Foreign Wars Post 6338, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7227 Auxiliary, and
Watertown Elks Lodge 496.
Proceeds of the
North Country Chili Cook-Off will benefit the Volunteer Transportation
Center, which provides essential rides to health care appointments, grocery
shopping, and other destinations for residents with no transportation
alternatives. Funds raised through the cook-off are earmarked to provide
transportation to veterans and their family members, which make up roughly
one-third of those transported by volunteer drivers through the
VTC.
For more
information about the 25th Annual North Country Chili Cook-Off, contact Mr.
Papineau at 315-303-2590 or via email at jeremiah@volunteertransportation.org.
Additional information is available on-line at www.volunteertransportationcenter.org/chili-cook-off.
ABOUT THE
VOLUNTEER TRANSPORTATION CENTER
The Volunteer
Transportation Center, Inc. (VTC), established in 1991, drives thousands of
miles each year assisting community members in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence Counties and beyond. Over the
last 30 years, this essential non-profit organization has provided rides to
health care appointments, food sources and other critical needs
destinations for residents.
In 2022,
volunteer drivers provided 26,487 charitable trips over 878,240 miles in
Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence Counties. Of those miles, 376,604 helped
those in Jefferson County, 137,743 in Lewis County, and 363,893 in St.
Lawrence County. That equated to approximately $439,120 in mileage
reimbursement for our volunteers. Data from 2023 is currently being
compiled.
The staff, boards
of directors and volunteer drivers look forward to a time when
transportation to community activities and services is accessible to all
North Country residents regardless of economic or specialized needs. But
for now the mission drives on — striving to
provide transportation to health, wellness and critical needs destinations
utilizing volunteers and mobility management for anyone who has barriers to
transportation.
For more
information about how you can help the Volunteer Transportation Center,
about its upcoming events, or to become a volunteer driver, contact the
agency in Jefferson and Lewis Counties at 315-788-0422, in St. Lawrence
County at 315-714-2034, or Western New York at 585-250-5030. Volunteers
drive their own cars, set their own hours and
receive mileage reimbursement but, more importantly, make a difference in
the community. To learn more, visit www.volunteertransportationcenter.org.
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