This year’s Chili Cook-off title will remain with the same duo that nabbed it last year, as Richard Brodziak and Bryce Balmer of Northern Source Rentals became two-time champions of the popular rodeo week lunchtime event.
Judges Brenda Rosychuk of the MS Society, St. Paul Fire Chief Trevor Kotowich and Fountain Tire owner Jason Quinney were given the difficult task of taste-testing 15 different varieties of homemade chili on Thursday, along with choosing the eventual winners.
Just past 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, as teams were preparing for the noon hour rush, a sudden wind storm blew through the Co-op parking lot, causing a bit of chaos to some of the teams.
But, once the wind passed, and a few small rain clouds hurried by, it was sunny skies for the remainder of the event.
Shortly after noon, judges finished taste testing and went indoors to discuss who the winners would be. When they came back out, the lineup of locals who were eager to taste the chili was already moving through the 15 teams set up, with large pots of chili ready to be eaten.
Once again, it was Northern Source Rentals leading the way with their sweet chili. The St. Paul Fire fighters would claim second place, with Community Futures coming in third.
“He had the wow factor,” said Kotowich, when asked why he chose Northern Source as the eventual winner.
“The taste of their chili is so defined,” said Rosychuk.
Overall, each of the teams offered something unique, and each chili had its own defined ingredients, whether it was sausage, roast beef, pork, large chunks of vegetables, or other special ingredients.
Rosychuk and Kotowich agreed that it was tough to judge, since each team did great.
When asked why they thought they stood out yet again, Brodziak and Balmer repeated the same single word as last year – “bacon.”
“Why ruin a good thing?” said Brodziak, noting, the duo decided to stick to the same game plan as last year.
Balmer added that some last minute trash talking from a couple of the other teams the day before the competition helped motivate the pair to put their best foot forward.
The pair laughed, noting that their other key to success was to “show up last,” and be near the end of the line of teams.
St. Paul & District Co-op’s Janelle Faryna said that despite the unexpected weather earlier in the day, the rest of the event “turned out awesome.” Picnic tables were filling up as locals were filling up their bowls and grabbing a seat.
All proceeds from this year’s chili cook-off will go to the St. Paul Light Horse Club.
