The Port Washington Chamber of Commerce invites everyone to the town's 1st annual SOUPer BOWL to be held on Saturday, Feb. 2 from noon to 3 p.m. The event will take place at the Port Washington Senior Citizens Center at 80 Manorhaven Boulevard.

Nineteen of our wonderful local restaurants and food markets will be donating their best soups for the contest and hope to be voted Port Washington's 2008 SOUPer BOWL Champ. The public is invited to "Buy a Spoon" and become tasters. Upon paying the admission fee, each person is given a spoon, a hand stamp and a ballot. The hand stamp allows them to receive bowls with 2 ounces of each of the soups donated by the restaurants. The participating restaurants also provide bread and crackers free to the tasters. The tasters then vote for their favorite soups, and when all the ballots are tallied, the 2008 SOUPer BOWL Champ is determined. The winner will receive the "People's Choice Award."

There will also be a select Judges' Panel. The judges are: Iron Chef Alex Lee; personal chef Wendy Collett, owner of Creative Cuisine by Collett; Dolores Kazanjian O'Brien, restaurant reviewer for the Port Washington News; Anne Arter, gourmet and representative of the Head Coach sponsor Daniel Gale Sothebys International Realty, and Roger Poulin, a gourmet and deaf-blind student from the Helen Keller National Center. The winner, as determined by a vote of the panel, is given the prestigious "Judges' Choice Award."

The participating restaurants and markets are:

Amalfi

Ayhan's Fish Kebab

Ayhan's Mediterranean Marketplace

Ayhan's Shish Kebab

Bistro Du Village

Bistro Toulouse

Finn MacCool's

Frank's Pizza

Grill Room at Harbor Links Golf Course

Livorno

Louie's Oyster Bar & Grille

Main 415

Pomodoro

Prime View

Stop & Shop

Sullivan's Quay

Tava

Uncle Guiseppe's

The Waterview

While the tasters are sampling and rating the best soups in Port Washington, they can enjoy viewing an art exhibit by members of the Senior Citizens Center and organized by The Art Guild. To add to the fun of the event, there will be a big screen TV playing a Super Bowl game, courtesy of Harvey Electronics.

The chamber of commerce is grateful to the sponsors who make this event possible. The Head Coach Sponsor of the SOUPer BOWL is Daniel Gale Sothebys International Real Estate, located at 350 Main Street. The Assistant Coach Sponsors are Gold Coast Family Dental, located at 2 Cow Neck Road; Harvey Electronics, located at 44 Glen Cove Road in Greenvale, Port Washington Federal Credit Union, located at 157 Main Street, and State Bank of Long Island, located at 960 Port Washington Blvd.

The chamber of commerce wants you to be a part of this fun new event. "Buy a Spoon," become a taster, and vote for your choice for the 2008 SOUPer BOWL Champ. Pay at the door, just a $7 "touchdown" fee for adults and a $3 "field goal" fee for children under 12. The chamber will donate a portion of the net proceeds to the Port Washington Senior Citizens Center. There is plenty of free parking. For more information, call the chamber of commerce at 883-6566.