Ludlow benefit barbecue, hoedown set for Saturday
Toolbox
By Josh O'Gorman STAFF WRITER - Published: October 8, 2009
LUDLOW — Come on down Saturday night for a foot-stompin' and finger-lickin' good ol' time during the Throwdown at the Charity Hoedown, featuring auction items, square dancing and some of the best barbecue in Vermont.
The event, from 6 to 10:30 p.m. under a tent behind Pot Belly Restaurant on Main Street, is a fundraiser for Ludlow Streetscapes, a group founded in 2001 with the goal of making Ludlow an attractive place to work and play, said President and Event Chairwoman Liz Crowley.
"We are a committee of local citizens, whose goal is to enhance and beautify the streets and parks of Ludlow," said Crowley, whose group has planted trees and flowers, installed new streetlights and a brick sidewalk in front of The Mill.
World travelers won't want to miss the auction, which will include a seven-night stay for four at a Tuscan villa in Manciano, Italy, and a six-night photo safari for two in South Africa. Other items include framed landscape photos by Stanley Brick, a dozen milking stools made by Clear Lake Furniture and decorated by local artists, and six uniquely crafted benches.
The central event, however, is the "throwdown" between the Okemo Valley's twin titans of barbecue: Squeels on Wheels of Mount Holly and Curtis' All-American Restaurant of Chester and Putney.
"I know we had a fella come up last weekend all the way from Springfield because he said we have the best barbecue in the area," said Cindy Dilworth, who co-owns Squeels on Wheels with her fiancé Angelo "Tump" Chiari. "It's the wood that makes it good. We use a wood-fired slow-roasted method and it's the indirect heat that makes all the difference."
Curtis' All-American restaurant co-owner Sarah Tuff said her father's barbecue is no slouch either.
"I've been eating it my whole life and Curtis has been making it for 40 years," Tuff said. "He's mastered it and he's handed the recipe down to me."
The final decision of just who makes the tastiest barbecue will be decided by a panel of celebrity judges — Democratic Sen. Alice Nitka, Republican Rep. Dennis Devereaux, Democratic Rep. Ernest Shand and Rutland Herald editor Randal Smathers.
Following the barbecue dinner, which will include chicken from the Ludlow Side Hill Cronchers, coleslaw from The Killarney and beans and cornbread and cookies from Ludlow Streetscapes members, diners will square dance the night away with music from Middlebury's Run Mountain.
Tickets for the dinner are $25 in advance and $30 at the door. General admission tickets, which do not include dinner, are $10 in advance and $12 at the door. Tickets can be purchased in advance at the Book Nook, the Wine & Cheese Depot and at Chittenden Bank.
For more information, including descriptions and photos of items for auction, visit www.ludlowstreetscapes.org.
josh.ogorman@rutlandherald.com
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