Recap: A Full Plate's 5th Annual Rib Cook-Off and Vegetarian Quick-fire

You couldn't have asked for a more beautiful, sunny day for A Full Plate's 5th Annual Rib Cook-Off and Vegetarian Quickfire at Liberty Land's park in Northern Liberties.

Shannon Dougherty and Liz Petersen, owners of A Full Plate Café always make sure their cook-off competitions are vegetarian-friendly with a buffet of veggie sides and at least one vegetarian cook-off category.

This year the ladies added a vegetarian quickfire, à la Top Chef, where contestants were tasked to create a dish from a table of vegetables and kitchen staples. It was a mad dash to raid the table I hear (as a judge, I stayed away from the fest until my services were needed in order to keep the judging blind) , then back to the grills for intense cooking.

Nine teams, both professional and amateur, competed in the vegetarian quickfire. Each dish was so different from the next, and they were all delicious. There were a few standout, though, all of which came from amateur teams!
This grilled watermelon gazpacho with cilantro and jalapeno oil from amateur team Pork Sword was perfectly balanced and absolutely delicious. Not sure if I've had a better gazpacho from a restaurant!
Amateur team Kimball Street put up an excellent caramelized onion, mushroom, cheese and basil flat bread with a perfectly grilled crispy crust, and harmonious toppings.

This eggplant curry from amateur team The Girls From Ipanema was totally unexpected from a grilling competition, and, man, was it good! This dish put to shame the curry dishes I ordered last week from a restaurant I shall not name.
With more room in my stomach, I moved directly from the judges tent to the buffet of sides from A Full Plate and desserts from Flying Monkey Bakery. The women behind A Full Plate and Flying Monkey do not scrimp on free food!

I had a great time judging the event, and think it's pretty cool that A Full Plate puts on cooking competitions that everyone — meat eaters and vegetarians — can enjoy. Don't miss next year's!

Update on winners:

Veggie Quickfire
1st - North Bowl (Professional)
2nd - Darlings Diner (Professional)
1st - Kimball Street (Amateur)
2nd - The Girls From Ipanema (Amateur)

Ribs
1st - Kyber Pass Pub (Professional)
2nd - The Blind Pig (Professional)
1st - Pork Sword (Amateur)
2nd - Rack Attack (Amateur)

Anything Goes
1st - Sonata Restaurant (Professional)
2nd - Khyber Pass Pub (Professional)
1st - Pork Sword (Amateur)
2nd - Kimball Street (Amateur)

Crowd Favorite (Best Dish of the Day)
Sonata Restaurant