Russo Corp. wins Exceptional Foundation 2019 Chili Cook-Off at Brookwood Village

An estimated 13,000 to 15,000 people showed up at Brookwood Village Saturday for the Exceptional Foundation’s annual Chili Cook-Off.

The event filled up the upper parking lot near Macy’s and raised an estimated $450,000 for the foundation, which serves about 450 mentally and physically challenged adults and children each year, Executive Director Tricia Kirk said.

There were 152 teams competing this year to see who could cook the best chili, Kirk said.

The grand champion this year was a team from Russo Corp., a Birmingham-based drilling foundation and excavating company. The team won with a recipe from Daryl Henderson.

“It’s just a recipe that’s been in my family for years,” Henderson said. “It was my grandmother’s recipe. She handed it down to my mother, and my mother handed it down to me.”

The recipe included certified Angus beef, Tennessee Pride hot sausage and 10 spices, including cayenne, onion powder and garlic powder, he said. Team members warned him not to share the entire recipe because they hope to use it again in competitions in the future.

The team from Russo Corp. was formed about two years ago and also has won awards at the wild game competition at the Birmingham Zoo the past two years, Henderson said.

“We’re all just a bunch of guys that like to cook,” he said.

Other team members included Jake Brown, Sam Brown, Jeremy Hall, Mike Roberts and Wheeler Sewell.

The first runner-up in the Exceptional Foundation Chili Cook-Off was MortgageBanc, the title sponsor for this year’s event, while a “Rev Up The Spice” team from Jay Industrial Repair was second runner-up. A team from Marathon Electrical Contractors won the People’s Choice Award, while the Homewood firefighters won the Participants’ Choice Award.

Davis Architects won the spirit competition, with KBR coming in second place and Waste Management coming in third.

There were two rain showers Saturday morning while teams were cooking, but Kirk said she was relieved that the rain held off during the event itself, which lasted from 10:30 a.m. to about 3 p.m. “The skies parted,” she said.

This year’s cookoff surpassed last year in terms of money raised and seemed to run smoothly, Kirk said.

“To have this many people in one area and not have one person complain to you, I count that as a success,” she said.

Kirk said the event could not have happened without the support of the cities of Mountain Brook and Homewood, including their police and fire departments. She also thanked the many corporate sponsors and judges, which included corporate leaders, restaurant representatives and TV personalities.