As a senior here at Ithaca College, I have managed to make it to all of the festivals held downtown in the Commons, but somehow Chili Fest is the only one I’ve missed each year. I recently realized this and came to the conclusion that this year I absolutely need to make it or I won’t be able to live with myself for missing yet another—and sadly my last— year of amazing local chili and an all-around awesome festival.
I’m ridiculously excited to head downtown next Saturday (February 11th), for the 19th annual chili cook-off between almost 30 different restaurants in Ithaca where you can vote for your favorite. There is also going to be a whole host of local wineries, breweries, and local farmers with samplings to try from. Students from the Finger Lakes School of Massage will be giving free massages, and there will also be free activities like roller sakting in Center Ithaca. I hope to see you all there, supporting our awesome community and the wonderful people who make it so!
For more information and to see which restaurants are participating, check out the Facebook page dedicated to the event or the Downtown Ithaca website where you can read more about scheduling and tickets under their events section.