TOMAHAWK - The Tomahawk Chamber of Commerce sweetened the pot for shopping locally. For the second year downtown businesses opened their doors for a chili showdown.

Contestants pulled out all the stops- from secret spices, to old family recipes.

"Well, I wanted to make something different,” said Michelle Cherney, Chili Chef for Tomahawk Furniture, “A lot of people make the red chili so I decided to go with a White Chicken chili recipe...Chicken, half-and-half, chicken broth, and special seasonings," she said with a smile.

Across the road at Family Traditions, 8th grader Alley Rowell carried on a family tradition of their own. "It's a homemade recipe,” she said, “We always have made it this way… We put a little bit of cinnamon in it, so it's got its own unique taste."

The cook-off seems to be a recipe for success for downtown businesses. Some shops went through gallons of chili. They hope new shoppers will appreciate their goods and services as much as they appreciated carefully crafted chilis.

"I think the cumin, the cumin stood out and I think there was a lot of garlic in it,” said George Voorhees at Scarlet Garden, “And I think the spice was um, to the palate, it kind of, sustains itself on your tongue for a little bit."

"It's sweeter, it's like a BBQ,” said Christopher Bickford at Hometown Feed Mill, “It's very delicious. Definitely getting my top vote."

"Zing! It was a WOW. Definiltey, it was WOW," said Voorhees and Lori Cordis.

The chili deserving of the ‘Golden Spoon’ award may be in the eye of the beholder though. The Chamber of Commerce will tally the votes and post this year's winner on www.GoToTomahawk.com

Story By: Kailey Burton