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40th Annual Cherokee Strip BBQ and Chili Cook-Off

2026 Cherokee Strip Cook-off  Help us Celebrate our 40th year!....Join us for fun, food and a weekend full of entertainment and competition at one of the most beautiful cook-off venues anywhere! The 40th Annual Cherokee Strip Cook-off will once again be held on the banks of Lake Ponca in Ponca City, Oklahoma. The cook-off is a State Championship and sanctioned by KCBS. You will have an opportunity to taste some of the best barbeque available cooked by professional cooks. Activities include musical entertainment, and a People’s Choice award given to the crowd-selected favorite BBQ and Chili.  This year’s raffle will be announced soon.  There is FREE ADMISSION to the event. Tasting kits will be sold in advance for $7 and can be purchased from a Professionals Today member or the Chamber of Commerce. If you wait to purchase at the cook-off the cost will be $9. Each tasting kit will include two ballots to vote for your favorite BBQ and Chili teams. The top three winners receive cash prizes. The Cherokee Strip Cook-off is now a OKBS Cleaver Team of the Year Event. The event organizers, Professionals Today, (a local women’s service organization) have donated over $430,000 to Hospice of North Central Oklahoma from proceeds of this event. Hospice NCO offers medical and emotional support to terminally ill patients and their families. Their services are individualized to meet family and patient needs and range from social services to 24-hour emergency care. The non-profit support includes all of Kay, Grant, Noble, and Osage Counties. Friday 4PM-8PM Saturday there will be live music by M-Pyre from 10:30 - 2:30, Vendors 10:00 - 3:00, and BBQ & Chili tasting from 12:30 - 2:30.Space is limited for vendors and food trucks so sign up early.