Chowder chowdown
Portsmouth’s 97.5 WOKQ Chowder Festival returns
Nearly a dozen area restaurants will be vying for your palate in downtown Portsmouth this weekend with their mouthwatering chowders, but only one will take home the coveted “Golden Ladle” award. It’s the return of the 97.5 WOKQ Chowder Festival, presented by Avery Insurance — the annual pre-summer cook-off is back for a 37th year on Saturday, June 1, in the city’s Prescott Park.
According to Tyler Goodwin, Prescott Park Arts Festival board member and chair of its Young Professionals Group, the event will serve as the official start to the nonprofit’s highly anticipated 50th anniversary season, which will feature family-friendly programming all summer long. Last year’s Chowder Fest marked the first time it returned since pre-Covid in 2019.
“We’re always really excited to see everybody out and about for this event,” Goodwin said of Chowder Fest. “Obviously, being in New England, we have so many chowder lovers, and it gives us a good excuse to taste some of the best stuff in the area.”
Although a limited number of day-of festival tickets are expected to be available, Goodwin recommends grabbing those Chowder Fest tickets in advance online to ensure your attendance. With tickets in hand, chowder lovers are free to sample all of the available options from participating eateries and make their selections on the best. The People’s Choice award winner will receive the Golden Ladle, while an official panel of judges will name a winner of their own.
Among this year’s restaurants will be The River House in Portsmouth, a reigning Chowder Fest People’s Choice champion. With their seafood chowder, The River House team retained their title for the eighth consecutive year in 2023 and are looking to bring home the gold once again.
Also on this year’s roster are several other eateries hailing from Portsmouth — 250 Market, Martingale Wharf Restaurant & Bar, and the newly opened Waterview Grill, to name a few — and a couple just over the state line in southern Maine.
Part of the fun of attending Chowder Fest each year is that you never know what restaurants may come up with next. Goodwin said past events have been known to feature everything from corn chowders to Manhattan chowders, smoked scallop chowders, and just about any other types one can think of in between.
“It really is a blank canvas for them,” he said. “They can do whichever chowder they want, which makes it exciting … and definitely adds some nice variety to the event.”
But even if chowder just isn’t your thing, there will be plenty of other activities to enjoy in the park. Ticket holders will also receive access to a tie-dying station, face painting, and lawn games such as giant Connect Four, giant Jenga and cornhole. The park’s Wilcox Main Stage, meanwhile, will host a live performance from Maine-based group Jacob McCurdy and His Large Adult Sons.
New to this year’s Chowder Fest, Virgin Oyster Co. of Dover will have farm-fresh oysters on the half-shell available for preorder — they’ll be shucking oysters in the park all day long.
Following Chowder Fest, Goodwin said, the Prescott Park Arts Festival will move into a season filled with live entertainment, including The River House Restaurant Concert Series and its Movie Night Series, the latter of which is expected to feature a mix of classics and newer releases. Starting the week of June 21 and through Aug. 11, most Thursday through Sunday evenings will also feature live performances of Legally Blonde: The Musical.
37th annual 97.5 WOKQ Chowder Festival, presented by Avery Insurance
When: Saturday, June 1, 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. (a rain date is scheduled for Sunday, June 2)
Where: Prescott Park, 105 Marcy St., Portsmouth
Admission: Free for Prescott Park Arts Festival season passholders; $20 per person for non-passholders. Purchasing tickets in advance online is recommended.
Participating local restaurants
• 250 Market (Portsmouth, 250market.com)
• Buoy Shack Lobster & Drinks (Kittery, Maine, buoyshack.com)
• Martingale Wharf Restaurant & Bar (Portsmouth, martingalewharf.com)
• Napoletana Pizzeria & Bar (Portsmouth, napoletanaportsmouth.com)
• The River House (Portsmouth, riverhouse53bow.com)
• SALT Kitchen & Bar (New Castle, saltkitchenandbar.com)
• Waterview Grill (Portsmouth, waterviewgrillnh.com)
• The York River Landing (York, Maine, theyorkriverlanding.com)
— Matt Ingersoll
Photo courtesy of 2023 Chowderfest
