Westerly - Food and football, aside from riding the same alliterative boat, are among the co-stars of Thanksgiving (after, of course, the "giving thanks" thing), right there with turkey and tradition. Food and football are fodder for good conversation, the best backdrops for homecomings and good diversions, perhaps, when you decide "quality time" with extended family is overrated.

Which is what made Alan Sheehan's suggestion - a Stonington-Westerly eat-a-thon before the renewal of the football game next week - deserving of some applause. Sheehan, the manager at The Brazen Hen in Westerly, cooked up the idea to, well, cook up two nights this week.

Tuesday night at The Hen from 5-9 p.m.: Invite all the Westerly folks in for a Westerly-themed meal.

Wednesday night: The Stonington folks for a Stonington-themed meal.

Each school would get a cut of the proceeds. And the school that ordered the most dinners got an extra 10 percent.

Winners, all.

(Westerly, by the way, got the extra 10 percent, proving again that we Italians don't need to be told twice to mangia).

"Alan approached me about it over the summer," Stonington principal Mark Friese was saying Wednesday night, greeting his people as they entered the hip eatery on Canal Street, wearing a sportcoat and a Stonington football jersey underneath.

"Alan was talking about a celebrity chef thing," Friese said. "We had a staff meeting a few weeks ago and I told everyone we're adding a new twist to the rivalry. I'm not really cooking, but we need to come up with a dish that says 'Stonington.' The whole Portuguese thing came out."

The Stonington meal: Portuguese soup with sweet bread, followed by clams over linguine with linguica, tomatoes, onions, grilled focaccia and parmesan. Dessert was warm apple crisp.

The Westerly meal: Fried calamari with garlic, hot pepper relish and marinara, followed by chicken breast stuffed with prosciutto, garlic and roasted peppers, on top of roasted garlic mashed potatoes and marsala demi glace. Dessert was a chocolate chip cannoli.

Let's leave it here: Chef Donny Highland was on his game.

Sheehan also bartends at The Harp & Hound in Mystic, the region's "Cheers," where everybody knows your name and they're (mostly) glad you came. He can make a martini that could take down Vince Wilfork. And his "celebrity chef" ideas have been a valuable - sometimes inspirational - links to the communities.

"We did first one with a local guy who said he made great meatballs," Sheehan said. "I said 'put your money where your mouth is.' So he made his own meatballs and we turned it into a thing for the Westerly Fire Department and gave them a donation."

The Hen did a similar event recently for the Terri Brodeur Breast Cancer Foundation.

The Hen, Harp and Black Sheep in Niantic, the troika owned by Leo Roche, aren't merely about good nights out or places to watch the game. Interacting with the schools create better community.

"One of the things that I want us to be known as is a community school," Friese said. "I want our school to be the hub of the community. And when I can get community business to partner with us, it's even better. This was a great event."

Friese wasn't done.

"We've been reaching out to companies to try to get the kids some experiences about the world before they graduate so they have a better understanding of what they're getting themselves into," Friese said. "Experience helps you make a more informed decision. It's part of the whole mission of high school. It's not just all about the classroom."

Friese was clearly enjoying himself Wednesday night. And it's pretty cool when First Selectman-to-be George Crouse walks in and orders "The Stonington." Perhaps they could make it a permanent meal at The Hen.

Other eateries throughout the region might want to do this next year. Maybe an East Lyme-Waterford night at Filomena's? A Ledyard-Fitch night somewhere in Mystic?

Food and football.

Fabulous.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro.

Twitter: @BCgenius