Stark Bites: Walthers to host chili cook-off; Bojangles, Biggby opening this spring

Walthers Twin Tavern is hosting its first Chili Cook-Off

Walthers Twin Tavern, 430 Applegrove St. NW in North Canton, is hosting its first Chili Cook-Off at 2 p.m. Jan. 28.

There is a $10 cash-only entry fee to participate, and Walthers is still accepting entrants for tasting and registering chili.

“We are super excited to see how creative our participants get,” said Emilee Clites, one of the front of house managers Walthers.

There is a cash prize for the first place winner, and there will be a Taster’s Choice Award.

The tasting fee is $10, and there will be $10 beer buckets.

The guest judges will be some of Walthers’ regulars.

For more information, find Walthers Twin Tavern on Facebook.

Stark County lunch:Great lunch spot can be hard to find: Try these 10 in Stark County

Bojangles, Biggby Coffee to open this spring in Belden Village area

A new Bojangles location will be opening this spring in front of Red Roof Inn on Everhard Road NW.

After initial reports that the fast-food chicken chain would open last fall, franchise owner Chris Maggiore confirmed ground has broken and progress is being made on this location.

“We broke ground about three weeks ago, and we’re doing all the site work now − sewer, water, etc. And we’re hoping for April/May opening. It depends on the weather … and how quick we can get the materials,” Maggiore said. “Everything is looking good, and we’re moving as quickly as we can.”

Along with Bojangles, there will be a Biggby Coffee opening at 4537 Everhard Road NW. These are two separate buildings on the same property, with Bojangles on one side and Biggby Coffee on the other.

Bojangles will be about 3,200 square feet, and Biggby Coffee will be about 2,000 square feet. There also will be a 2,000-square-foot retail space connected to the Biggby Coffee location. Maggiore said they’re still working on a couple different deals, so he can’t disclose what company will be leasing the retail space.

How many jobs will Bojanges, Biggby Coffee bring to Stark County?

The chains are expected to bring about 135 jobs to the county.

“We’re going to be employing around 110 people for the Bojangles, and Biggby will employ around 25 and not sure on the retail, how many they will employ,” Maggiore said.

Although Jackson Township has a few fast-food chicken chains nearby already, including Raising Cane’s and Chik-fil-A, Maggiore is not worried about the competition.

“I’m going to focus on running my business the best way I can, focus my energy on that, instead of always looking over my shoulder to competition,” Maggiore said. “I have a great franchise in Bojangles. They have over 800 stores in 17 states.”

He also noted this location will have the new frontier menu Bojangles is launching.

“This will be like the sixth location to have the new frontier menu. So I’m very confident in the menu, in the product, the food, and then it’s on me and my team to execute and give great service, which we plan to do,” Maggiore said.

The Everhard Road Biggby Coffee will be Maggiore’s second Biggby Coffee location, with the first opening within 30 days at 4015 Hills and Dales Road NW in Plain Township.

When Bojangles and Biggby Coffee open at Everhard Road NW, which will be at different times, there will be grand opening events for both.

Stark County restaurant news:Stark Bites: Indoor farmers markets this month; Aeonian Brewing to host dinner

Pioneer Coffee Roasters finalist at world’s largest coffee roasting competition

Pioneer Coffee Roasters, at 7924 Hills & Dales Road NW in Jackson Township, was a finalist after competing at the Golden Bean World Series, the world’s largest coffee roasting competition in Kona, Hawaii.

Pioneer received four medals in multiple categories: silver and bronze in the milk-based category, a bronze in the espresso category and a bronze in the filter category.

With the silver medal, Pioneer was entered into the first Golden Bean World Series, a highly exclusive competition open only to the top coffee roasters in the world. The competition, which was held in late November and early December, included 150 entries.

Stark County coffee:Cold coffee popular at Stark County shops; Walkie Talkie shares inspiration for unique drinks

Pioneer scored 32 points, only four behind the highest-ever score of 36, with its Ethiopian Gera Estate single-origin coffee. The coffee beans are sourced from a farm in the Djimma region of Ethiopia at an altitude of over 2,000 meters above sea level.

Coffees are scored based on four categories, including sweetness, acidity, body and balance. Tasting notes of this coffee included watermelon, pineapple, papaya and blueberry, among others.

To start 2023, Pioneer has five new single-origin coffees sourced from all over the world, including Rwanda, Bali, Mexico, Kenya and Colombia.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Walthers to host chili cook-off; Bojangles, Biggby opening this spring