Great Petaluma Chili Cookoff

Sunday, May 1, 2005, 1:00-5:00 p.m.

Argus Courier, April 27, 2005, by Dane Golden: A yearly competition heats up again this Sunday at the eighth annual Great Petaluma Chili Cook-Off, where more than three dozen teams will offer samples of their chili and salsa recipes in a series of tasting competitions. More...

The 8th Annual Great Petaluma Chili Cook-off, Salsa and Beer Tasting fires up on Sunday, May 1 from 1:00-5:00 p.m. at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds in Petaluma. Thirty-five challengers compete for the People’s Choice Awards and the VIP judges’ decisions for the best chili, salsa, and beer on hand. This wildly popular afternoon event will take place rain or shine, and features music and entertainment along with unlimited tasting of chili and salsa. Beer tasting from some of Northern California’s best breweries is an added attraction. Proceeds from the Cook-off benefit the youth programs at Petaluma’s historic Cinnabar Theater. Prices are $18 for chili and salsa, $30 for chili, salsa, and beer tasting. Join us for music, entertainment and a raucous good time.

The official website for Cook-off is: http://www.greatchilicookoff.com

By the way, last year, on May 2, 2004, The Seventh Annual Great Petaluma Chili Cook-Off took flight at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds in Petaluma. The annual event, which has grown by leaps and bounds each year, boasted over 1,000 attendees, 40+ volunteers, 75 entertainers and 5 vendors. The Cook-Off is Cinnabar Theater’s largest annual fundraiser, and directly benefits the Cinnabar Young Repertory program. CYR serves Sonoma County Youth year-round with classes and camps in Drama and Musical Theater for children ages 4-18. In order to best serve these young artists, scholarships are made available so that no child is left out of the fun. Hence, the Great Petaluma Chili Cook-Off. The event netted the 30 year-old Cinnabar Theater over $16,000 for their scholarship program.

Entertainment was provided by a gloriously mixed bag of entertainers:
The Sofa Kings, FIERCE Dance Company, Wondertainment, Yoko’s Fiddle Kids, Salsa Dancing with Anne-Laure Crowley and Stefan Jarshel.

Generous Sponsors of last year’s Cook-Off were:
Waste Management, Press Democrat Celebrate Community, 97.7 The River, Aquafina, Pepsi Bottling Group, Sierra Nevada Brewery, Lagunitas Brewery, North Bay Bohemian, Yardbirds, Brodie’s Tire and Brake, Sonoma County Farmers and Ranchers for the Arts, The Rotary Club of Petaluma Valley, Exchange Bank.