ITHACA, N.Y. (WENY) — Pots of homemade chili lined the streets of Ithaca on Saturday, Mar. 7, for the city’s 28th annual Chili Cook-Off. All day, people filled up the Ithaca Commons to try almost 40 different types of chili.
Local businesses and groups competed in the annual event. Throughout the day, guests could vote for the chili they thought was best.
“We’re just a bunch of bozos who like to have fun and cook chili,” said Jeremiah Craig.
Craig and his team, Chili McChiliface, won the People’s Choice Award for best chili in 2025. He said his group is excited to be back again, as the day is all about supporting the Ithaca community.
“If you just take a look down The Commons, there is, packed amount of people here!” Craig exclaimed. “And it’s a beautiful sight. So we just love the community and the beautiful day that we have here to enjoy it with.”
For some businesses, the day gave them the chance to try something new. Some of them combined classic chili recipes with different items that people may not eat every day.
“We wanted to be a little bit outside of the box when we were thinking about doing it,” said Patrick Deely, director of food and beverage at Monks on the Commons. “Venison is actually a huge commodity in the area as well, with anybody that’s going out and hunting all fall long. So it’s actually been kind of more like raising their eyebrows, and they’re actually sitting there and excited for that.”
Event proceeds go to support the Ithaca Downtown Alliance. Organizers said it’s a great way to keep all their other programming free throughout the year.
Nan Rohrer is the CEO of the Downtown Ithaca Alliance. She said the group saw a large number of pre-sale tickets, as well as a large number of people who bought at the event. She said she’s grateful for the turnout, as well as the nice weather.
“It’s kind of that, mark of spring’s right around the corner for folks,” Rohrer said. “So to have it with the sun shining today just makes it all that much better. And I think [that] means that everybody who’s been cooped up inside in this pretty rough winter this year is super excited to be outside.”
This year’s event also featured a karaoke stage, as well as the return of the Beard and Mustache Contest. Many of the people at the event said they’re already looking forward to next year.
Dining and Cooking