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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Cherry cobbler is in the running to bring the Taste of America title back to Utah for a second time.
Utah's cherry cobbler beat out Wyoming’s Buffalo burger by 1,747 votes to make it to the "Elite Eight" of Roll Call’s 4th annual Taste of America competition. The winning dish will be selected in a bracket-style challenge by participants who vote for their favorite regional cuisine online.
The "Elite Eight" will be the last round of online voting before the winner is announced at a reception held before the Congressional Baseball Game for Charity on June 25 at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.
Utah: Cherry Cobbler
Oregon: Blackberry Pie
Iowa: Bacon
Illinois: Deep Dish Pizza
Maine: Lobster Roll
Maryland: Crab Cakes
Kentucky: Fried Chicken
North Carolina: NC BBQ
Employees from Roll Call, a news service in Washington, D.C., went to the Senate and House offices of each state to select which food best represents each area. Some delectable dishes, like cherry cobbler, have remained the same from year to year, while others have changed.
Utah’s cherry cobbler was named the “best food in America” in 2012. Each regional food item has a tie to the state it represents. The cherry is Utah’s official state fruit, and the Dutch oven is the official state cooking pot.
The cherry cobbler may face tough competition against the Oregon blackberry pie, which just survived a tough round against Montana’s steak and garnered 14,854 votes. Utah’s cherry cobbler received 4,595 votes in the Sweet Sixteen.
"We've had a great response (to the contest)," said Michelle Rideout, director of advertising and marketing at CQ Roll Call. "We've had some states that have rallied and pulled ahead."
The other competitors in the eight are Iowa’s bacon, Illinois’ deep dish pizza, Maine’s lobster, Maryland’s crab cakes, Kentucky’s fried chicken and North Carolina’s barbecue.
