CELEBRATING 56 YEARS | WHEAT RIDGE, COLORADO | Family Fun SINCE 1969

Specialty Food Events

Chili Cook Off

Chili Cook Off

Attention avid chili chefs and fans! Our Chili Cook-off is on Saturday at 2:00pm.
Sign up to show off your favorite recipe - $10 registration per chili. (Sign up closes on Thursday, August 7)

- Saturday, August 9th from 2-5pm
- Red and green chili categories
- Proceeds will be donated to a local cause (TBD)

Pancake Breakfast

Saturday (before the parade) from 7:00am to 9:30am at Grange Hall, 3850 High Ct. (behind Wheat Ridge Cyclery).
Breakfast includes ham, eggs, pancakes, coffee and juice. Donations encouraged.
Benefits the Grange Foundation.

Spaghetti Dinner

The famous spaghetti dinner, served by the West Metro Fire Rescue takes place on both Friday and Saturday nights from 4:30-8:00pm in the food court.
Cost is $14 for adults & $7 for kids under 12.

Pie Baking Contest

Pie 🥧 & Cookie Baking Contest

Is your pie or cookie the best in the city? This is your chance to bake what makes Wheat Ridge sweet! Sign up for the bake-off and compete for the Carnation Festival Blue Ribbon.

Saturday at 3pm in the Spaghetti Dinner Tent, Anderson Park

Entry Fee: $10 per pie or dozen cookies

  • Divisions: Adults & Kids
  • Theme: “What is Wheat Ridge?”
    • Tell a story of how your sweet treat represents Wheat Ridge. Please bring a printed copy.

View Contest official rules >>

Spaghetti, Wine, Beer & Pie Oh My!

Food choices will abound at the Wheat Ridge Carnation Festival.  In addition to the vendors on the festival grounds, there will be food events and tents for the whole family to enjoy.        

A traditional Spaghetti Dinner will be served both nights, August 8th and 9th. The dinner is the longest-lived event of the festival and is so big that it has its own tent. It will be served 4:30–8pm in the food court area, which is near the Beer Garden, so the two most popular food treats will be next to each other. (If you have any German heritage, you know that beer is considered a food for adults and is almost as necessary as bread.) The dinner benefits the Colorado Professional Firefighters Foundation, and two dozen volunteers from West Metro Fire Rescue will work in shifts to feed the crowds.

The Beer Garden, despite the name, will not be limited to beer and will offer a wide variety of beverages for the entire family. The Wheat Ridge Rotary Club, Optimist Club and Kiwanis Club have teamed up with Coors to offer a great selection. This is the biggest major fundraising event for the Rotary Club each year. Funds raised at the festival will remain in the community by way of scholarships and funds for local non-profit organizations.

Another great Wheat Ridge tradition is the Pancake Breakfast held on Saturday morning before the Carnation Festival parade. The breakfast, 7-9:30 am, includes ham, eggs, pancakes, coffee and juice. There is no cost but a donation per person is always welcome and greatly appreciated. The breakfast is a chance to meet and greet neighbors at the Wheat Ridge Grange Hall.  It is also the perfect time to view a fine historical building while filling up on carbs that will sustain you throughout the parade. Funds raised from the breakfast will help the Wheat Ridge Grange continue the exceptional work that it does with youth in the community.

To polish off the day, check out the Pie & Cookie Contest.  At the previous year's event, competitors ranged from 16 to 90 years of age and all the pies were sweet/fruit pies. To compete for the blue ribbon please fill out the application below. The public is invited to buy the cookies and pies after the judging is complete.

Enter Homemade Pie Contest

  • Rules and Information

    Event Schedule (Spaghetti Dinner Tent, Anderson Park): • Pie & Cookie Drop-off: 1:30 PM – 2:50 PM • Judging Begins: 3:00 PM • Winners Announced: 4:00 PM • Pie Slices & Cookies for Sale / Raffle Winners Announced: 4:30 PM o Raffle winners can pick up their dessert at the spaghetti dinner tent. o Winners will be texted and all pies/cookies must be picked up that day. Entry Fee: $10 per pie or dozen cookies • Categories: Adults & Kids • Theme: “What is Wheat Ridge?” o Tell a story of how your sweet treat represents Wheat Ridge. Please print your story when dropping off. Pie Rules: 1. Open to all ages (choose Adult or Kids category) 2. Pies must be 8-10" round, on a disposable plate/pan with a cover 3. Must be handmade by the contestant 4. Each contestant can enter up to 3 pies 5. No cream pies (no refrigeration available) 6. Include: baker’s name, pie name, recipe, and story 7. Bring a duplicate of the same pie for the raffle ($10 entry fee will be reimbursed) Cookie Rules: 1. Open to all ages (choose Adult or Kids category) 2. Submit 1 dozen cookies in a disposable container with a lid 3. Must be homemade by the contestant 4. Each contestant can enter up to 3 dozen cookies 5. Include: baker’s name, cookie name, recipe, and story 6. Bring a duplicate of the same dozen for the raffle (entry fee will be reimbursed)

  • Prizes

    (Adults & Kids Divisions): • 1st Place: $50, gift basket, 1st place ribbon • 2nd Place: $40, gift basket, 2nd place ribbon • 3rd Place: $20, gift basket, 3rd place ribbon
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Chili Cook-Off Entry Form

  • After you submit this form, you will be directed to the payment page to pay the entry fees. Entries without payment will not be processed. Proceeds will be donated to a local cause (TBD)

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.