Month: November 2021

Been to Peppers a number of time and had the chili before but it has been a while. I was kind of expecting a bland, mushy, average cup of chili and this exceeded those expectations. It did come with cheese and sour cream on the side and really didn’t need it.

Just a good solid cup or you can get a bowl for a meal. It was more on the tomato side of flavor town with notes of chili powder. Usually there are bigger chunks of tomato in it but I had a few smaller ones along with some onion and celery and maybe there were some tiny peppers. Good amount of meat and little more bean count than I’d like. It was piping hot temp wise and could have been a little spicier. If you are looking for a good side instead of fries then get this. Or, just the bowl for a meal and you won’t be disappointed.

Overall Flavor 6/10

Spice Level 5/10

Heat Level 4/10

IT Factor 3/10

Value 5/10? A bowl is like $6 so not sure what the cup ran

first time visiting Bar Down so I was looking forward to a burger and some chili and a few beers. I’ll say I was pleasantly surprised on the chili as it was pretty unique. I wanted to ask my waitress what was sprinkled on top but forgot. It was like a cojita cheese or something like that. As you can there were some raw jalapeños (with seeds) and boy did that ratchet up the heat. There were a few other veggies in the cup but now too much, onion, tomato, pepper. Good ratio of everything…meat, bean, veg. The flavor was really nice, after my mouth cooled down. If you are looking for a really good, not your “run of the mill” cup of chili (or bowl), head over to Bar Down. Safe to say, this is one of the tops I’ve had in the Fargo metro area.

Overall Flavor 8.2/10

Spice Level 7/10

Heat Level 9/10 (eat the jalapeños)

IT Factor 8/10

Value 6/10 …believe the cup was $4 and decent amount

I don’t get too many chances to review a white chicken chili so I was anxious to try this. I don’t think there is too much to alter with white chicken chili so what did Naomi do to her special recipe? I think it was pretty classic being broth based with some cream cheese added to give it a more velvety texture. She used “roaster chicken” which gave it better flavor. There was a nice mix of spices that gave it a rich, deep baseline. Then there was the acid of the lime and green chiles that really complimented it nicely. Overall this is the best white chicken chili I’ve had! Good heat, awesome flavor, nice chunks of chicken, white and dark beams with a little corn. After my initial tasting I did add some cheese and a little salsa verde then mix in some tortilla chips. Looking forward to having this again soon!

Overall taste 9.4/10

Spice level 8.8/10

Heat level 6.7/10

IT Factor 7/10

Value 10/10

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Another home entry from highly acclaimed, Chef Katie from North Dakota. She brought a whole lotta ingredients so I was anxious to see and taste the final product. I did start with a small helping of her turkey chili (not pictured) and I’d say I couldn’t tell it was turkey instead of ground beef so if you looking for something healthier this is a great options.

For her ground beef chili (pictured) there was a nice mix of vegetables among the hearty supply of meet. I typically don’t add jalapeños but after tasting hers I thing I’ll be adding in the future. There was also some nice bell peppers and not a lot of beans, which was great. There was a nice tomato base and a “secret blend” of spices that weren’t labeled but I’m assuming chili powder and paprika were there. It was a really solid chili and something I would eat again, just need to amp up the spices and heat a little, but that depends on who else is eating and how much they can tolerate…lol

Overall Taste 6.7/10

Spice level 6/10

Heat level 2.8/10

IT Factor 8/10 – jalapeño!

Value 10/10

Round 2 from chef Judy as she was confident in this new and improved batch. It was highly touted from other patrons. It did bring all the necessary requirements I like, good tomato flavor, heat, consistency, meat ratio and solid blend of spices. She had a nice mix of chili powder, paprika and there was a good amount of heat.

Overall flavor 8.9/10

Spice level 8/10

Heat level 7/10

IT Factor 7/10

Value 10/10

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First time at Jack’s in Fargo but was expecting the same from other locations.

This was a “spoon stands up in the bowl” consistency. Very thick so if you planning on scooping some with a chip it would surely break, or if you dunked some bread it would come up dry. I don’t mind it when it isn’t as runny as long as the flavor is there. For the most part it tasted pretty good. It was a little “mushy” so hard to discern all the ingredients. If you are looking a for a heart side besides fries I’d recommend getting.

Overall Flavor 6/10

Spice level 5/10

Heat level 5/10

IT Factor 8/10 – just based on thickness…

Value 4/10