Winter may be hovering over our heads, gleefully rubbing its hands together, but we're pros at this, we know just how to deal. On Saturday, November 6, hundreds of Rochesterians made their way to the Genesee Center for the Arts & Education (713 Monroe Ave) for the coziest happening in town: the 7th Annual Great Bowls of Fire Chili Cook-off fundraiser. For a wee 20 bucks, patrons got to select one of hundreds of handmade ceramic bowls, were given a drink ticket for a local beer, and a form on which to record their favorites of 12 chilis in five categories.
Participating local restaurants included many eateries I didn't expect to have chili creations: India House, O'Callaghan's, Aladdins, Sol Burrito, DogTown, Jines, Nathan's, Jeremiah's, Sticky Lips, Owl House, and two entries from Stock Exchange Restaurant. The blind taste test and voting was paired with live tunes by Nate Rawls Band and The Tin Can Set, and the opportunity to buy raffle tickets for all sorts of prizes.
It wasn't easy to select just one bowl, but I snatched up a low and wide, faded blue bowl with a thick crimson lip, which I will most likely use to float candles in, instead of using it for future food consumption. My tasting buddy Claire picked out a tiny, almost egg-shaped yellow bowl. Pottery in hand and totally stoked, we wove in and out of the jovial sardine-crowd (I heard there were more than 200 people present during the first couple of hours, with a long waiting line) to the different tasting stations and caught up with other lovers of the Genesee Center. I also stopped in to the printing and book arts section of the center, and fell immediately smitten with their new multi-artist collaborative letterpress calendar, and had to get one.
Best Vegetarian and Most Unique went to Owl House, which paired its hearty spoonful with a dollop of dressing and corn-chip strips. India House's vegetarian dish was named spiciest, and was the first one I tried, and remained my favorite. My buddy oscillated between No. 2 (O'Callaghan's), which ran out before the others, and No. 9 (Sticky Lips), which was named Best Meat and Overall favorite. If you missed this year's event, show some love for local arts (and restaurants, music, and breweries) by seeking it out next fall. I'll be there -- I want to start a mis-matchy collection of the pretty, pretty pottery.