Oskaloosa’s Restaurant Search Going Well
Iowa’s Best Bite Restaurant Challenge
OSKALOOSA – Four weeks into Iowa’s Best Bite Restaurant Challenge and restaurateurs are starting to tour Oskaloosa and make plans for entering the contest, organizers said Monday.
“The real excitement is just beginning,” said contest manager Bryan Schultz. “We’ve had a handful of contestants tour the old Dr. Salami’s location and they’ve also been investigating the city in general.”
Schultz said that the early stages of the contest involve a great deal of research for the contestants and that more tours and applications are likely in the coming weeks.
“We’re asking for a lot of information and good restaurateurs are, by nature, perfectionists,” he said. “So it takes time for them to put together their plans and submit the application.”
According to Schultz, contestants have been impressed with the building and have universally noted the potential for hosting events and collaborating with the golf course. Schultz also said the contestants have been varied in their experiences, from seasoned restaurant veterans to entrepreneurs from other fields who want to apply their skills in a new area.
“Every person has been even more excited when they leave,” he noted. “It’s great that they are as excited about the community and its potential as they are about the prize package.”
Oskaloosa area residents also seem to be excited, Schultz said, with more than 100 applicants to be tasting judges in the finals.
“We’ll take applications until April 22 and start contacting our selected judges then,” he said. “Our criteria is to first have a wide range of ages and interests represented, then we’ll narrow it down more by their answer of why they wanted to be a judge.”
Schultz also said that organizers have been receiving questions about the contest becoming a reality television show, but noted that there are no plans at this time.
“We think it would make great TV, but we don’t have any offers on the table,” he said. “We’re always looking for new ways to promote the contest and the city.”
In addition to the local media, Schultz noted the contest had been featured in many state-wide media broadcasts and publications. All Iowa-based culinary schools have received information about the contest, as well as many culinary schools in surrounding states.
“We’re on the national job site for Le Cordon Bleu Academy and we push our message out on social media sites, from Facebook to LinkedIn,” he said. “The more we can spread the word, the better. The public can help, too, by letting their favorite restaurants know about the contest – you never know who’s looking to expand or for greener pastures.”
Schultz said the contest website has been viewed more than 2,000 times; with 1400 visitors from Iowa, 130 from Wisconsin and 54 from California.
“We also get a lot of Facebook activity,” he said. “In March alone, we reached more than 1,700 people, with only 400 of them being from Oskaloosa. That means word is definitely spreading. As the contest goes on and we get video submissions, those numbers should increase quite a bit.”
Restaurateurs can submit their applications until May 6. The semi finals will be on May 15 and the finals on May 16.
For more information on the contest, visit www.iowasbestbite.com or follow the contest on Facebook.
