This Saturday from 10 a.m.- 6 p.m., the Whitesboro Area Chamber of Commerce is holding its inaugural Chili Fest in downtown Whitesboro. The event will be sponsored by Holiday Chevrolet.
The event centers around a chili cook-off to be held in the parking lot behind the businesses on the north side of Main Street. About a dozen teams will have booths set up, cooking their best chili recipes. Attendees can get a punch card that will allow them to sample the different chilis and can cast their vote by donating $1 to their favorite booths. At the end of the competition, prize money will be awarded to first, second and third place entrants. All contestants will also receive a custom, laser-engraved, wooden cutting board courtesy of Bob’s Cabinet Shop.
In addition to the chili cook-off, an American Cornhole League (ACL) sanctioned cornhole tournament, sponsored by MB Electric, will take place throughout the day. Managed by TCL 455 Baggers and Deep South Baggers, the tournament will be a round robin competition in Social, Competitive and Advanced categories. Winners can receive up to $5,000 in cash prizes. Pre-registration is highly encouraged, but entrants will be accepted the day of (while spots are available). If interested, contact the chamber office at 903-564-3331.
This outdoor festival will also include a Kid Alley, overseen by OneChurch, at the ATM parking lot across Center Street from Past and Blast. Three bounce houses, a cake walk, field goal challenge, basketball challenge, dunking booth and many other games are sure to entertain kids of all ages. Dippin’ Dots, Funky Munky Shaved Ice, Uniquely ME Lemonade and Remember Me Freeze Dried Candy will be available for purchase.
Located near the chili cook-off booths will be DJ Jess, providing entertainment throughout the day from the 4U Credit Union stage. She’ll kick things off at 10 a.m. with the announcement of the rules for the day’s competitions, as well as introductions of the competitors. Other contests during the day include The McDaniel Air Conditioning and Heating Chili Dog Eating Contest and Jalapeño Eating Contest.
Also throughout the day, DJ Jess will announce over 30 give-aways, including a weekend stay at Walnut Creek Marina, four tickets to a Rough Riders baseball game with all you can eat and drink and, the largest prize, a four night/five day trip to Dreams Playa Mujeres Golf and Spa Resort in Mexico provided by Erica Whisenhunt Kingdom Elite Travel. Raffle tickets for the trip will be sold until 3 p.m. with the drawing being held at 4 p.m. the day of the event.
Main Street will be closed off to motorized traffic, and festival attendees can shop 40 vendors who will be set up along the road. Downtown retailers will also be open and ready to welcome shoppers.
In addition to entertainment and shopping, festival attendees will enjoy a variety of food vendors. Tender’s will be selling barbecue while Whitesboro’s food trucks (MaYa Family Foods, Food of Dreams and Namiku Hibachi) will be offering their fare, as well. Tangled Cotton will be selling frozen adult beverages and a variety of beer to be consumed within the confines of the festival lot.
“In the past, the chamber has hosted a series of smaller events throughout the year,” chamber board member Mike Burkleo said. “We decided that this year, we’d like to focus more effort on creating three major, core events for the town and community, like the Peanut Festival and Chili Fest.”
The chamber’s event ends at 6 p.m., but the fun doesn’t stop there. Cook’s Main Stage Music Hall and Event Center in downtown Whitesboro is holding a Chili Fest After Party featuring local favorite band, The Fortunate Sons, and food available for purchase from Southern Outlaw BBQ. Tickets are just $10 per person and can be purchased in advance from Cook’s Mercantile on Main Street or at the door the night of the event (while tickets remain available).
“The chamber is really excited to bring Chili Fest to the community,” Burkleo said. “We just want people to show up and have a good time.”
To learn more about the event or to register for any of the contests, please contact the chamber office at 903-564-3331.
