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SATURDAY: Old Hampton Store’s 36th Annual Cornbread Cook-Off Returns to the High Country

Cornbread is a staple food item in the south, and without it, what would we all eat on Thanksgiving, Christmas or other dinners and holidays? Whether it’s cooking it or eating it, cornbread really plays a role in the kind of food culture in our lives. 

Well, if you like to cook cornbread, eat it or simply like to enjoy the company of others, look no further, there is an event out there this weekend for all of you community-involved cornbread lovers. 

On Saturday, June 24, the Old Hampton Store in Linville will be hosting its 36th Annual Cornbread Cook-Off, from 10:30 a.m. until 11:00 p.m.

All throughout the day, you will be able to hear artists and bands, such as the Shelby Rae Moore Band, James Raymond, Daniel Foster Johnson and Blake Bostain. Along with this, other artists will demonstrate their crafts, and there will be a 1700s reenactment of old fashioned ash corn cakes. While there is live music, artistry and craftsmen, there will also be a rabbit roast over a fire pit.

“There will be music all day long,” Taylor said, “and local artists and crafts.”

The way the Cornbread Cook-Off works is that all the entries must use the Old Hampton Store’s cornbread. There are two categories – traditional and non-traditional.

“The competitors cook the cornbread at home,” Taylor, an employee at the Old Hampton Store, said, “and then they bring it to the Store by noon the day of the cook-off.”

Once all the competitors have brought their cornbread in, whether it falls in the traditional or non-traditional categories, winners will be announced by 2 p.m. and prizes will be awarded.

“Our only requirement is that you use our cornbread,” Taylor said, “and we recommend you use the self-rising one.”

For more information about the Cornbread Cook-Off, call 828-733-5213.