A Big Surprise in the Stone Soup Kitchen

A Big Surprise in the Stone Soup Kitchen
Fontana Free Press
J. Glenn Eugster
October 22, 2001

Leonardtown, MD. The 35th Annual St. Mary's County Oyster Festival Saturday was the setting for what was billed as the battle of the "Cooking Pisanos". Charles "Petro" Petrocci of Chincoteague Island, Virginia was scheduled to meet Alex "The Dish" DeSantis of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the main bout of the National Oyster Cook-off. Although De Stantis and Petrocci received top-billing and months of newsprint from far and wide, it was Dawn "Downtown" Brown of Baltimore, Maryland that stole the show in the "Stone Soup Kitchen". Brown won the hearts and stomachs of the standing room only crowd with her "Grilled Oysters Athena" and left the audience wondering, who are those two other guys?

The Cook-off, the centerpiece of the Oyster Festival for the last 22 years, pits the top 12 oyster chef's in the United States against each other in four categories of competitive oyster cooking. This year's contestants came from Oregon, Illinois, New Jersey, Connecticut, Mississippi, Vermont, North Carolina, Louisiana, and the Chesapeake Bay region.

Three contestants are picked by a panel of experts for each of four oyster cooking categories--Main Dish; Soups & Stews; Hors D'oeuvres; and Outdoor Cookery & Salads. Each of the contestants has one hour and fifteen minutes to cook. Contestants present their food to five unforgiving judges and then present their dishes to the hungry and oyster-crazed audience.

Workers, in white rubber gloves, ladle small amounts of oyster dishes into little white cups and hand it to the audience which lines-up in single file the length of the auditorium. The procession, which some call "the religion of oysters" seems hauntingly similar to communion at a Roman Catholic Church. In Southern Maryland, the Land of Religious Freedom, this procession to receive oysters
seems only natural.

Petrocci's return to competition after an extended absence drew a large number of spectators to the County Fairground Auditorium. Petro’s appearance, plus his being placed in the main event versus DeSantis made this cook-off one of the most anticipated and talked about cooking competitions in St. Mary's County history. Spectators started filling the concrete block auditorium early
in the morning to take their place to witness this part of Southern Maryland food history.

The Cook-off was also covered by the Food Network which is scheduled to produce a television show on Oyster Festivals later this year. Camera-people, reporters and extras swarmed the stage, photographed minor cooking details and talked constantly with the contestants as they prepared their dishes.

The audience sat patiently through the Main Dish, Soups & Stews and Hors d'oeuvers competition waiting for the arrival of Petro and The Dish. Members of the audience talked of the time when Petro forgot that the each of the outdoor cooks are provided with impregnated coals. People recalled that Charlie soaked his charcoal briquettes with lighter fluid, lit a match to the grill and set the side of the auditorium on fire. Even now there is debate among the cooking aficionados as to whether Petros fire was accidental or planned to give him a competitive advantage.

As if the excitement of the cook-off wasn't enough, during the event the Grand Master of the Cook-off introduced the "King Oyster" to the crowd. As the King made way to the podium to make a few welcoming remarks the Grand Master called for the audience to acknowledge this icon of oyster land. Unfortunately the King was really a Queen--a fact that wasn't acknowledged until the King was seen leaving the building with the Grand Marshall in a headlock.

Unfortunately Petro and The Dish could have used a diversion this year. Downtown Brown, a relative unknown chef from the heavily polluted Port City of
Baltimore captured the gold medal for Outdoor Cookery and Salads. With style, grace and a splendid selection, Ms. Brown made DeSantis and Petrocci, who finished second and third respectively, look like two older guys who can look but can't cook. Brown's "Grilled Oysters Athena" clearly outdistanced Petro's
"Flambéed Oysters, Squid & Mushrooms" and The Dish's Touch of-Thai Grilled Oysters with Mango Salsa". Ms. Brown did Charm City proud as she pulled
down a unanimous score from the judges and an overwhelming majority of votes from the audience.

The crowd was stunned by Brown's performance. Their shock was short-lived however, for as soon as they sampled her dish they realized that there is a new oyster chef in Leonardtown. It didn't take the audience long to get over the disappointment that the DeSantis and Petrocci contest just never materialized. Many of the audience believe that Petro and The Dish were thinking too much about the next level of oyster cooking competition. Winners from the St. Mary's Festival take home $1,000 in cash, an oyster bowl, bragging rights for a Year and get to go to Ireland to compete against international shuckers and chefs at the Global Oyster Festival.

DeSantis took the competition and his second place finish in stride. The Dish said, "I've been here quite a few times. I usually finish second. You never know what the judges will like, one year it's this, one year it's that". Petrocci, surprisingly obtuse this year, seemed disconnected about the
event. He said, "I'm not organized this year. I don't have a costume. I have to get in touch with my coals. There's too much going on right now--I can't focus".

Petrocci's return to Southern Maryland was much anticipated and heralded. Petro has single-handedly carried the oyster-cooking-honor of the Eastern Shore into this competition many years and has done the Delmarvians proud. Although Charlie has proven to have Jordanesque powers, making these types of comebacks over, and over again, each time he creates an expectation that is Neptunian. Perhaps Petros third-place finish can be chalked up to the stress that has permeated all of our lives since September 11. Then again maybe Petro's longtime Oyster Festival companion, Chef Marie, said it best, "Charlie's only human, you know--and we do have a good time coming to Leonardtown".