Slurp chili, devour chocolate and sip wine, all for a good cause.
Three local fundraisers will let you indulge your tastes this month.
•Can local lawyers bring the heat? You be the judge. Voting early and often will be encouraged during the third annual “Trial by Fire Chili Cook-off” on Monday. The event, a fundraiser for Fort Wayne Toys for Tots, will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the PNC Center’s 12th floor, 110 W. Berry St.
Categories are: Fire Alarm, White, Wild About Mild, No Beans About It and You Name It. Cornbread, crackers, cookies and beverages also will be available.
Admission is $5; votes for your favorite chili are $1 minimum. For information, call 444-4864.
•Feast on a sweet buffet during the 17th annual DeBrand Fine Chocolate Extravaganza at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 11 at the Masonic Temple ballroom, 216 E. Washington Blvd. The benefit for Family & Children’s Services also will have appetizers from local eateries, including Agaves Mexican Grill, American Gypsy Dog, The Friendly Fox, The Lantern and Splendid Fare.
The silent auction will feature artwork, jewelry, gift certificates and golf and trip packages, including one to Traverse City, Mich. All auction proceeds and half of ticket sales go to the counseling center.
Advance tickets are $35 each or $60 for two. Reserve them by calling 744-4326.
•The eighth annual Lutheran Health Network Wine Opener, a benefit for the Indiana Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, will be Nov. 19 at Tower Bank, 116 E. Berry St. The event, which will include an auction and marketplace, will begin at 7 p.m.
Appetizers and other fare will be provided by Bandido’s, Blondie’s Cookies, Casa Ristorante Italiano, Catablu Grille, Club Soda, DeBrand’s, Goeglein’s Catering, Joseph Decuis, Mad Anthony Brewing Co. and The Olive Twist.
Advance tickets are $55 for general admission, which includes a commemorative tasting glass. VIP tickets are $250 and include admission to a pre-event reception that starts at 5:30 p.m.
To reserve tickets, call the foundation at 317-202-9210.
More restaurants on the horizon
•Jenny’s Bakery/Panaderia has opened at 4151 Hessen Cassel Road, in the plaza with El Paraiso Supermarket. Hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
•Little Caesars Pizza will open a location at 902 Goshen Road, at the corner of Sherman Boulevard.
•A sign for Sushi West Japanese Steakhouse is up on Coldwater Road, across from Glenbrook Square.
•King Hibachi Buffet will open at 6011 Bluffton Road.
Thanksgiving menus, hours
If your restaurant will be open on Thanksgiving, please let me know. I’ll run more lists in future columns.
•Hall’s Triangle Park, 3010 Trier Road, will be open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The menu will feature several choices, including roast turkey and dressing, mashed potatoes, vegetables, cranberry sauce and choice of soup or salad. (Children can substitute chicken strips for turkey).
It also will have Ossian ham, raspberry-pecan chicken or baked scrod; each is served with two sides.
Prices – for turkey, ham, chicken or scrod – are $13.99 adults, $11.99 seniors and $5.99 children 11 or younger.
Or enjoy New York strip or filet mignon with two sides. Prices are $16.99, $14.99 seniors and $7.99 children 11 and younger. For reservations, call 482-4342.
•Albright’s Meats & Deli, 4924 S. Calhoun St., is selling turkeys, ducks, hams, stewing hens and prime rib roasts for the holidays. Hours are 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays. To order, call 456-9009.
Peony Tea House serves turkey lunch
If you can’t wait until Thanksgiving to feast on the traditional meal, Peony Tea House, 503 W. Wayne St., will serve a Thanksgiving lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Nov. 19.
Enjoy roast turkey and dressing, homemade cranberry sauce, salad, tea and baked goods.
The lunch is $17.01, which is all-inclusive.
Reservations are recommended; call 426-4832.
Homestead plans Victorian Christmas
Celebrate a Victorian-style Christmas during a Settlers Inc. fundraiser series that will run from Dec. 1 to 3 at Swinney Homestead, 1424 W. Jefferson Blvd.
Besides the program on holiday traditions, there will be a buffet of cakes, cookies, syllabub and other sweet treats. The Hearthstone musicians will perform carols.
The event starts at 2 p.m. each day; doors open at 1:30 p.m.
Admission is $15. Pre-paid reservations are due by Nov. 23; call Katie Bloom at 483-0083.
Proceeds will support the maintenance and restoration of Swinney Homestead.
Soup’s on at B. Antonio’s Pizza
B. Antonio’s Pizza has added soups and sourdough bread boules to its menu, which also features pasta, sandwiches, wings and salads.
Initial soup flavors are minestrone and cream of potato with bacon; more will be added soon.
During November, you also can try the pumpkin, bacon and apple soup – or pizza. The pizza version is topped with mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
To order, call 485-2400 (Chapel Ridge) or 490-9222 (Lima Marketplace).
