Shake off the mid-winter blues and celebrate local farmers and food growers! Your FREE ticket includes a chili dinner prepared with local farm ingredients by Essex Initiatives, cornbread, cookie, non-alcoholic beverage, live music, and a taste of select chilis in the cook-off competition!

This event is presented by Essex Initiatives in collaboration with the Whallonsburg Grange Hall.‍

When is it?

Sunday, March 15, 2026. (snow date: Sunday, March 22nd)

Where is it?

The Whallonsburg Grange Hall. (1610 NYS Route 22, Whallonsburg, NY)‍

How much does it cost?

We’re excited to invite you to this FREE event (more information coming soon!)

Entrance to the Event, Chili Dinner, Chili Tastings, & Live Music are all FREE! (charges apply for beer sales.)

A limited number of chili dinners are available; please  reserve your FREE ticket (reservation form coming soon!) to help us ensure there's enough for everyone.  Your ticket will be held at The Grange.

Main Attractions

• Chili Dinner, includes cornbread, cookie, non-alcoholic beverage!
• Taste the entries from competitors in the Crowd Favorite Chili category!
• Refreshments, including beer (NA beer available too) and hard cider!
• Live music by Too Tall String Band
• 50/50 Raffle to raise funds for Essex Day entertainment!

Sign up to Volunteer

Please use this link to fill out our volunteer sign up form and help set up, prep ingredients, or cook the chili!

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Cook-Off Contest FAQs

Who can enter?

Anyone! This competition is for everyone! Individuals, Farms, and Businesses are all welcome! We encourage you to get into the spirit of the event by using ingredients from our area farms!

How do I register as a contestant?

Please fill out this form.

How can I register to be a Judge for the Chili Cook-Off?

Please fill out this form to be a Judge.

Do I need to prepare my chili in a commercial kitchen?

‍All participants are encouraged to cook their chili in a commercial/licensed kitchen. Only chilis prepared in a commercial/licensed kitchen may be tasted by event attendees for the “Crowd Favorite” award category.

If I cook my chili at home, can I still participate?

Yes, but chilis cooked at home cannot be tasted by the public. A panel of judges will taste these chilis and award prizes.

What are the prize categories?‍

Our judges will award prizes for the following categories: Best Meat Chili, Best Vegetarian Chili, Most Innovative Chili, and Judges' Favorite Chili. All chilis are eligible for these categories!

Attendees will vote for the Crowd Favorite Chili category. Only chilis cooked in a commercial/licensed kitchen are eligible. 

How much chili should I make? ‍

Individuals cooking at home must provide enough chili for 6-9 judges to taste.

Contestants cooking in a commercial kitchen must provide enough chili for approximately 80-100 event attendees to taste a sample of your chili (we will provide 2oz sample cups & tasting spoons).

Do I need to prepare anything else?

Contestants serving their chili to the public may provide an accompanying bread, cracker, etc. so long as the food is also prepared in accordance with NYS Department of Health guidelines. This is a great chance for farms to highlight other farm products!

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Cook-Off Contest Rules

• All contestants must register for the competition by Friday, March 13th.
• All chili must be cooked on the day of the event (Sunday, March 15th, 2026).
• Contestants who wish to serve their chili to the public must prepare their chili in a licensed/commercial kitchen and submit a Temporary Food Service Permit Application to the NYS Department of Health and review the documents linked here. Contestants who cook their chili at home will not be able to serve their chili to the public, but they will be judged by the panel of judges.
• If you have an Catering License issued by Essex County, you do not need to apply for the Temporary Food Service Permit.
• All participants must follow food safety procedures.
• Commercial kitchen license holders must follow all food safety requirements according to their license.
• All contestants must label their chili for allergens and display a list of ingredients
• All chili must be at the Grange by 12 noon on Sunday, March 15th.
• All contestants must be present to win  - Contest winners will be announced at 3pm.
• Only chili cooked in a commercial/licensed kitchen may be sampled by the public. All other contestants will only be tasted by the panel of judges.
• Contestants may only provide samples with the cups and spoons provided by Essex Initiatives.  If your chili is not cooked in a commercial/licensed kitchen, it will be judged by a select panel of judges, but not by the public.

Some photos from the 2nd Annual Essex Chili Cook-Off in 2025:

Some photos from the 1st Annual Essex Chili Cook-Off in 2024:

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