SAN CLEMENTE : Chowder Contest Is Duck Soup for Chef

By the end of the afternoon Sunday, it was apparent that Charles B. Collins III held one of San Clemente’s most prized secrets.

Collins, chef at the Ramada Inn in San Clemente, won the most top honors at the third annual San Clemente Chamber of Commerce Chowder Cookoff with his family’s New England clam chowder, a recipe that has been handed down for three generations. But what went into his chowder, called Chef Charlie’s Gold Clam Diggers, will forever remain a mystery, as far as Collins is concerned.

“There’s a couple of secret ingredients,” he said, holding two trophies in the shape of a chowder cup for top honors in the People’s Choice and Restaurant--New England Chowder categories. Would he reveal what they were? “No way.”

Before the votes were counted and the judges made their decision, about 5,000 people lined the San Clemente Pier with small white cups of New England and Manhattan clam chowder. Most of the samples were gone within two hours.

Collins’ booth was relatively modest compared to others. The city clerk’s office offered Cajun-style Manhattan clam chowder, hyping its combination of celery, onions, green peppers, tomatoes and spices with banners and costumes that read “I’ll Take Manhattan.” The group hoped to repeat their success of last year, when they won a trip to Las Vegas, by making a few adjustments to their recipe.

“We made it a little less spicy,” said City Clerk Myrna Erway.

Farther down the pier, the Del Mar Chiropractic Health Center offered 15 gallons of a New England chowder including Tabasco sauce, bacon, onions and milk, along with free spinal examinations.

“I think bacon grease is the key,” Dr. Richard D. Behlen said, “even though it’s bad for you.”

Ironically, a traditional chowder team won an award for originality. The Sweet-N-Sour Goodtime Harmony Four, the local chapter of the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America Inc., served pier-goers a simple clam chowder while serenading them with tunes such as “Down Our Way.”