Martinsville, Virginia

Blog

Dippers Advances to Round Three of Culinary Madness

It's been a busy April for local business owners Tracy and Rodney Cox and their son Andrew of Dippers Ice Cream. The Ridgeway business is typically busy on warm spring days but it has been exceptionally busy since being featured in Culinary Madness, a state-wide contest presented by Virginia is For Lovers / the Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC).

Dippers Ice Cream made it through round one which featured 76 dishes from around the state of Virginia. Their submission was the Peanut Butter Bang Sundae which consists of a freshly baked chocolate cake cup filled with homemade Peanut Butter & Brownie Explosion ice cream and topped with homemade hot fudge and peanut butter sauces.

In round two, a head-to-head match, Dipper's Peanut Butter Band Sundae beat Tommy Leggett's York River Oysters from the Waypoint Seafood & Grill in Williamsburg. In round three, the field has been paired down to just eight dishes and Dippers is in a head-to-head match against Black & Bleu Medallions, an entrée from The Tavern in Abingdon.

Other Virginia communities remaining in the contest include Fredericksburg, Hampton, South Hill, Harrisonburg and Leesburg.

According to Jennifer Doss, Director of Tourism for Martinsville-Henry County, "It has been exciting to follow Dippers' progress through this contest. Being able to hold their own while competing against businesses from much larger cities is quite an accomplishment for Dippers and it showcases Martinsville-Henry County and the surrounding region as an up and coming destination for foodies to visit."

Round three voting will continue through midnight on Friday, April 18th, 2014. Area residents are encouraged to stop by Dipper's Ice Cream and try the Peanut Butter Bang Sundae if they haven't already, and then cast their vote by visiting www.virginia.org/culinarymadness/.

According to the rules, the winners of the Enticing Eight round will move onto round four of the competition, the Flavorful Four. Contestants will be eliminated after each round of voting until just two finalists remain. The winner will be crowned the "Virginia is for Lovers Culinary Madness Champion" on April 29th.