The Super Bowl isn’t always a good game, but it’s always a good excuse to make a pot of chili. Even if the game is a stinker, you can count on a fine bowl of red or a bowl of green or whatever.

Achili’s worth, many believe, can be found in its “gravy,“ the dish’s liquid foundation. “With this vegetarian chili recipe,“ writes Jason Guard, aka RVA Foodie, “you’ll get a soul-warming gravy that goes great with cornbread, and you’ll find a uniquely memorable texture in the form of tenderized peanuts.“ When I put out a call for favorite chili recipes, Guard, who maintains a food blog—http://caramelizedopinions.blogspot.com—came through with Peanut Chili, a recipe he discovered some years ago in Vegetarian Times magazine and has adapted over the years.

If you don’t want to make your own pot of chili, numerous restaurants around town are ready to serve you theirs. In a completely unscientific survey, we asked readers last week to vote for their favorite place in the Richmond area to get a bowl of chili. The winner was Cary Street Café, 2631 W. Cary St. Other places receiving votes include Melito’s, 8815 Three Chopt Road; Freckles, 5724 Patterson Ave.; Perly’s, 111 E. Grace St.; Dot’s Back Inn, 4030 MacArthur Ave.; and Seven Hills Market, 3516 Forest Hill Ave.—Bill Lohmann

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Every guy who thinks he can cook has a chili recipe. What’s yours?
For an upcoming pre-Super Bowl story, please send your recipes (and accompanying chili-cooking stories) to Bill Lohmann at
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or P.O. Box 85333, Richmond, VA 23293.