NORWICH – Chenango County Habitat for Humanity’s first soup tasting event, CCHH Souper Bowl was a terrific success! People came in droves to support this very deserving non-profit organization. They sipped soup, ate bread, had coffee from Java Joe’s an More and dessert, took notes and voted. No, they weren’t voting for a governmental election, but for their favorite soup from the participating restaurants (mostly) from Chenango County. With three tickets, they determined first, second and third places.

It was a great opportunity for food purveyors to give a taste of what they have to offer, in their special style of cuisine! They were encouraged to distribute coupons, business cards, catering information or even menus for their establishments. Several provided bread, rolls, crackers or croutons to go with their soups.

Participating restaurants were Bob’s Diner, Bainbridge; Caboose Restaurant, Norwich; Canasawacta Country Club, Norwich; Carmen’s Café, Norwich; Deer Path Restaurant, Edmeston; Dusty’s Dairy Barn & Grill, Norwich; Gus’ Steak House, Norwich; Hoppie’s, Oxford; Karolyn’s Krossroads Café, Norwich; Lewis’ Restaurant, Sherburne; Lucky Kitchen, Norwich; Main Street Bakery & Grill, Afton; Mary’s On The Corner, Norwich; New Berlin Diner, New Berlin; New York Pizzeria, New Berlin; Nina’s Pizzeria, Norwich; S & S Café, Bainbridge; Suzi’s Café, Sidney; The Silo Restaurant, Coventry; and the Village Café, Greene. (Due to CCHH some mishaps, soups from Garf’s Deli, Norwich; and Serendipity Café, Norwich; were not available.)

At the end of the two hour event, the voting tickets were counted. Many were very close, but first place had a clear margin! Winning the bronze award with 30 votes was Dusty’s Dairy Barn & Grill with their S.W. Chicken Chowder. Winning the silver award with 34 votes was Mary’s On The Corner with their Baked Potato Soup with bacon and cheddar cheese toppings. Winning the golden award with 63 votes was S&S Café with their spicy Sausage Toscana Soup.

Other soups receiving high votes were the Caboose’s Creamy Butternut Squash Soup (29), Nina’s Deluxe Seafood Chowder (27), Gus’ Lobster Bisque (25), the Deer Path’s 3-Cheese Cherry Pepper Soup (24), and Karolyn’s Seafood Chowder (22). All in all, however, every single soup was a winner due to the fact they all were sipped, tasted, and finished off before the end of the night!