Rib Fest to Return to Casablanca This Weekend

Mesquite Gaming, owner of the CasaBlanca Resort and Virgin River Hotel, will be hosting the 6th annual Rib Fest event this weekend from Friday, Sept 8 through Sunday, Sept 10!

For the first time ever, the 3-day family fun event will be held inside the Casablanca Resort’s newly remodeled 9,000 sq. ft. Grand Ballroom to eliminate any weather concerns.

Some of the country’s best barbecue vendors will be returning to this year’s event in a top-notch cooking competition serving up delicious ribs and meats.

Beginning at 1 pm on Friday and at 11 am on Saturday and Sunday, attendees can enjoy barbecue and carnival-style food vendors, fun tailgating games, daily eating contests, a live DJ, and delicious dessert treats from Sin City Kettle Corn.

A whole series of open watermelon-eating contests for kids will be held on all three days of the event. On the line are some great prize giveaways. The contests go from 4:30 to 7 pm on Friday; and from noon to 5 pm on the other two days with three different age divisions for youngsters.

At noon on Saturday, the principals from Virgin Valley High School and Hughes Middle School will face off in a watermelon-eating contest for the ages with an education grant for their school on the line.

Then at 2 pm on Saturday, it will be Mesquite Police Department against Mesquite Fire in an annual grudge-match showdown.

Admission to the CasaBlanca Rib Fest is free and open to the public.
“I’m already hungry!” said Christian Adderson, assistant general manager at Mesquite Gaming. “That’s because the best BBQ all-stars in America will be back this year to compete for the prestigious Rib Fest cooking awards. Events like this one are the reason we hold the Gold Award for Best Destination in the Best of Las Vegas Readers Poll in the Las Vegas Review-Journal.”

Notable food vendors participating in this year’s event will include Chicago BBQ Company, Texas Outlaw BBQ (with more than 250 first place awards in its 25 years), and Austin’s Texas Lightning (with over 30 years of serving award-winning barbecue).

Attendees will choose which barbecue they love the most and vote for the People’s Choice award. Participants can vote once per day on casablancaresort.com and the team with the most votes by Sunday evening will win the $2,000 cash prize.

The CasaBlanca Rib Fest is free and open to the public. For more information, visit CasaBlanca Rib Fest or follow Mesquite Gaming on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.