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rom Feb. 13 to 23, residents and visitors can explore the city of Syracuse through a mix of activities, concerts, shows and more at Syracuse Winterfest. One of the main ways patrons can get to know the Syracuse culinary scene is through a variety of mixology competitions and food tours open to participants for $5.

Bill Cooper became the president of Syracuse Winterfest in 1985, and while the committee has changed over the years, Cooper has continued to coordinate events and plan activities for the annual festival.

“It’s a great way to see the community, learn about new areas that you’ve never been to or might want to revisit,” Cooper said. “It’s a family environment, it’s an adult environment, fun games, being out and enjoying life.”

Culinary Cruise

This past Saturday, attendees participated in the Culinary Cruise, where they visited restaurants around Armory Square for samples. Restaurants in the cruise lineup were Cathy’s Cookie Kitchen, Clinton Street Pub, Eleven Waters, Liehs & Steigerwald, Maxwells, The Mission, PressRoom Pub, Provisions Bakery, Saltine Warrior and San Miguel Mexican Restaurante.

One of the contestants, Clinton Street Pub, offered up a three course sampler for attendees. The Armory Square staple served an onion petal, a roast beef sandwich and a churro for dessert. Katie Beckett, general manager of the Clinton Street Pub, says that they’ve been participating in Winterfest for about 15 years now.

“A lot of people who participate in Winterfest are people who don’t necessarily normally come downtown,” Beckett said. “So for us, it’s a great opportunity to sort of let them see who we are and what we do.”

The Culinary Cruise consisted of three categories: entree, appetizers and dessert. Participants in the food tour voted for the best dishes in the three categories after tasting samples from ten restaurants.

The first-place winners in each category won cash prizes, and all winners received plaques. The winning restaurants also get a year of bragging rights, Cooper said.

The Mission received first place in the entree category, followed by PressRoom Pub in second place and San Miguel Mexican Restaurante in third. In the appetizers category, Eleven Waters took first place, followed by Liehs & Steigerwald in second and PressRoom Pub in third.

Eleven Waters received the first place award in the appetizers category for its smoked mozzarella meatballs. Sean Folck, the restaurant supervisor, said he was excited to tell the culinary team, including head chef Dan Hudson, about the award.

Emily Steinberger | Design Editor

Winterfest gives community members an opportunity to discover new restaurants in Syracuse, and a lot of people eat local, Folck said.

“It definitely expands people’s knowledge of what’s going on in Syracuse, you know, trying out new things, finding new, different places,” Folck said.

The Mission served a Nashville hot chicken taco. Steve Morrison, chef and owner of The Mission, said the taco included a breaded chicken tender with ranch crema, a dill pickle, lettuce and a “sweet and sassy sauce.”

Cathy’s Cookie Kitchen received first place in the dessert category, with Provisions Bakery in second and PressRoom Pub in third. Cathy Pemberton, owner of Cathy’s Cookie Kitchen, won for her Heath bar crunch cookie. She had previously won first place for her s’mores cookie in 2018 and second place for her Milky Way cookie in 2019.

Pemberton says she tries to use all natural and organic ingredients for her products. While the bakery itself has only been open for three years, Pemberton has been in business for over seven years.

“We started out in my home, baked from the wall oven a dozen cookies at a time, brought it all around, sold it at fairs, festivals and all that kind of stuff,” she said.

Cathy Pemberton’s Heath bar crunch cookie won first prize in the dessert category at the Culinary Cruise. Her s’mores cookie won first place in 2018. Emily Steinberger | Design Editor

Cooper said that the lineup of restaurants changes each year and often includes restaurants that just opened. Other restaurants, such as Eleven Waters have participated multiple times.

“You never know who’s going to be in the mix,” Cooper said, “and how many restaurants have left town or how many started in town.”

Martini Mix-Off and Cosmopolitan Mix-Off

Downtown restaurants also competed in Martini and Cosmopolitan Mix-Offs, receiving awards in two categories: taste and presentation.

Syracuse Suds Factory received first place for both taste and presentation in the Martini Mix-Off, and PressRoom Pub received first place for both taste and presentation in the Cosmopolitan Mix-Off.

Wild Will’s Saloon received second place for both taste and presentation in the Martini Mix-Off, with Maxwells and Orbis Lounge receiving third place in the taste and presentation categories respectively. Will Minney, owner of Wild Will’s Saloon, said they gave out 650 samples of their Caribbean-themed martini.

Maria Mercer, events coordinator for Maxwells in Hanover Square, said their new mixologist developed their mix-off entry, a pecan bourbon pie drink. The creation earned Maxwells bar, which has been open for five years now, third place in the taste category of the Martini Mix-Off.

“Our slogan is eat, drink, chill, and we just want people to feel relaxed and just at home,” Mercer said. “But not at home with the hustle and bustle of having to take care of people. That’s our job.”

At the Cosmopolitan Mix-Off, Gilded Club received second place in the taste category and third place in the presentation category, while San Miguel Mexican Restaurante received third place in the taste category and second place in the presentation category.

Allyson Mclyman is a bartender at Clinton Street Pub, which served around 2,000 shots of each cocktail, according to general manager Katie Beckett. Emily Steinberger | Design Editor

Beckett estimated that Clinton Street Pub would give away about 2,000 shots of each cocktail and a thousand samples of each of the food items. For the Cosmopolitan Mix-Off, the pub served a “Thumbprint Chocolate Raspberry Cosmopolitan,” which contained vodka, creme de cocoa, raspberry syrup and cranberry juice.

She said that the other bars in the area enjoy the friendly competition that Winterfest brings on. Beckett has even tried some of the other bars’ drinks to see what they’re up against and vice versa.

“The other bartenders and other managers of Armory get along really well,” Beckett said. “So, it’s sort of a fun competition between us.”

Chili Cook-Off and Beer Tasting

After a day filled with mixologists and restaurateurs being put to the test, Sunday allowed patrons to sidle up next to a hearty bowl of chili at each of the nine competing establishments.

This year, individuals paid $5 for a Chili Cook-off card in the Marriott Syracuse Downtown, enabling them to participate in voting for the “Best Tasting” chili and the “Best Decor” for each establishment.

At the same time, the beer tasting competition was occurring at various bars and pubs, some of which were also in the Chili Cook-Off. Talking Cursive Brewing Company was named the winner, as Syracuse Suds Factory took second and Shaughnessy’s Pub placed third.

Soup R Salads, which made its debut in the Chili Cook-Off this year, won first place in the “Best Tasting” category. The chef behind their chili was Nicole Smith, who said that there were only a few crucial ingredients to a good chili: “Meat and beans and love.” The restaurant celebrated its eighth year of operation on Feb. 15 and prides itself on its homemade meals, Smith said.

As for the secret behind her recipe “it’s a little bit of sweet and a little bit of heat,” Smith said. The restaurant had over 100 people walk into the shop.

PressRoom Pub took second place in the “Best Tasting” category with Syracuse Suds Factory coming in third. For the “Best Décor” category, Syracuse Suds Factory took home first place as Wild Will’s Saloon placed second and PressRoom Pub third.

At Wild Will’s Saloon, owner Will Minney was serving his own chili that gave eager samplers a taste of Texas. Minney said that Texas chili traditionally contains no beans and before this year, the Chili Cook-off judged chili without beans.

“When they used to have it in the square, they would do the judging without beans and then they’d put the beans in for a filler to give out to the public,” Minney said.

Minney added that the Chili Cook-off was the signature event for Winterfest. For 30 years, people from the surrounding area would congregate in downtown Syracuse and cook chili to be judged by some of the city’s own celebrities.

Tucker Kucsan (left) and Mikayla Stevants taste chili from Soup R Salads, which made its debut at Winterfest this year. Madison Brown | Contributing Photographer

However, the event was nearly shut down for safety sanitation reasons. It was then that Minney suggested the walking tour model to the organizers in order to keep the event alive.

While Minney did not put beans in his chili, he did reveal his secret ingredient: George Killian’s Irish Red Beer. He added that winners for “Best Taste” are awarded a plaque and $100.

“Even though they’re plaques, I joke that they’re the most expensive pieces of wood in the place,” Minney said.

Meanwhile, after navigating through the rows and rows of cornhole games to enter the Orbis Lounge, chili cook Peter Bisson was trying to ensure that the plaque would be his.

“My chili if you eat it, it’s not one taste flat, it’s all the different waves of tastes,” Bisson said. “Hot and sweet and it’s different with each bite.”

Bisson said that what may set his chili apart from the others, in addition to “a lot of care and love,” is that he uses three varieties of meat. He said that he uses beef stew tips, ground beef and hot sausage. He added that he uses 11 different peppers that range from sweet bells peppers to habaneros.

The recipe comes from his father, who used to make it when Bisson was young. Eventually, Bisson began modifying the recipe in a five-quart Crock-Pot to where he feels that he has taken it “way beyond the original recipe,” Bisson said.

“It’s great, you’re meeting new people, you see your friends and stuff,” Bisson said. “But you’re seeing people you’ve never met before, purely independent, unbiased, and they give you their opinion on chili.”

Published on February 17, 2020 at 12:14 am

Contact Mandy: ackrayna@syr.edu | @MandyKraynak