Community Corner
Boardwalk Clam Chowder Cook-Off Nets $81K For Parks & Rec
The 2020 winners hailed from throughout the Bay Area and as far away as Idaho. A Scotts Valley food-truck chef took 1st in pro category.
SANTA CRUZ, CA —The Annual Santa Cruz Clam Chowder Cook-Off, now in its 39th year and held last weekend at the Beach Boardwalk, raised $81,000 for the City of Santa Cruz Parks & Recreation Department.
The proceeds will be applied to scholarship programs that allow children from low-income families to participate in the park activities.
The waterfront competition was divided by amateurs and professionals, who served up their tastiest chowder entrees — either Manhattan or Boston varieties — to the public and a panel of 10 judges.
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Snagging first place in the pro "Boston" category was a contest newbie from Scotts Valley, Chef Elbert Richard from Latin Asian Fusion Food Trucks and Catering.
“We loved the competition, it was so much fun,” said the business' owner Roddy Diaz. “It was a great opportunity to meet the community and many people from outside the Bay Area, including Sacramento, San Diego and Los Angeles.”
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Also in the "Professional Boston" category, Chef John Viray led San Jose-based JV’s BBQ to a second-place finish, while Sutter Health Chef Corby Chavez took third.
For "Best Professional Manhattan," Michael Midgley's Public House in Stockton won first, and Derek Rupp’s East Side Eatery from Santa Cruz took second.
After chowder sampling, the public picked their favorites with Chef Viray from JV’s BBQ and Chef Josh Martin with the UCSC Chowder Slugs receiving the top “People’s Choice” awards.
In the amateur division, Tim Dellgard’s Spud Brothers from Idaho won "Best Amateur Boston," and longtime competitor DragonMama from Fremont won "Best Amateur Manhattan" for a family recipe dubbed "Portuguese Red."
The 2020 competition was the fourth year the cook-off was held over two days, with amateurs competing on Saturday and professionals on Sunday. Since the event began in 1981, more than $1,659 million was raised for the parks and-rec department.
For a complete list of this year's winners, follow this link.
If any contestants want to share their prize-winning recipes, they can email them to susan.schena@patch.com.
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