N.C. Azalea Festival street food is only part of this weekend’s delicious action. Nine Cape Fear-area restaurants face off Saturday in the 18th Annual Pleasure Island Chowder Cook-off in Carolina Beach.

First-come, first-served tastings begin at 11:30 a.m. and include samples by 2013 People’s Choice winner Havana’s Fresh Island Grill.

The 2013 judges’ favorite, Shuckers, won’t return. That north Wilmington restaurant closed suddenly in late March because of what owners said were heating, ventilation and air conditioning system problems.

Other entrants are Gibby's Dock & Dine, Pop’s Diner and Nikki's Gourmet Sushi Bar, all in Carolina Beach; Hilton Wilmington Riverside and Ogden Tap Room, both in Wilmington; Jebby’s on 17 in Hampstead; Mermaid's Island Grille in Holden Beach; and The Grille in Shallotte.

Admission costs $6 and is free for kids age 12 and younger. The Mark Roberts Band performs. No coolers or pets are allowed at the event site, Carolina Beach Lake. A trolley runs from Carolina Beach parking lots to the cook-off grounds between 10:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. The event ends at 5:30 p.m.

For more information, go to facebook.com/PleasureIslandChowderCookOff or call the Pleasure Island Chamber of Commerce at 458-8434.