Sara Stadem | Editor
Although January brings the end of the holiday season, there is something that January does provide….The Burger Battle.
This is the third annual Burger Battle which runs for the month of January from the 1st through the 31st. Chamber member Amy Larson stated, “This is a great way to promote our restaurants in the cold month of January when some restaurant’s numbers go down.”
This year, there are six restaurants that are competing in the Burger Battle; four in Hartford and two in Humboldt. The contestants include The Goat Bar and Grill, Big J’s Road House, Main Street Humboldt Bar, Hartford Steak Co. Tavern, Stomping Grounds Inc. and The Dugout Sports Bar and Grill.
Larson indicated that each year a new burger is created by each participating restaurant and it can be anything from simple to extravagant. She stated, “The restaurants do an amazing job with this and doing something different every year.”
According to Larson, there are four categories that people vote on pertaining to each burger: originality, presentation, service and overall taste. Each burger sold gets a ballet and they vote on each category, rating them one to five, five being the best. Votes are tallied at the end and a traveling trophy is given to the winner.
With this being the third year and adding more restaurants, Larson said they are hoping to get even more participation as the community loves to do this. “Last year was our second year and we saw an increase in participation. I spoke to two restaurants the other day and they are already ahead of their numbers from last year at this time,” Larson stated. She continued, “We had others come from smaller communities in the area and said they like ours (Burger Battle) because they are able to get to try all of the burgers. They indicated Sioux Falls’ burger battle is getting so big.”
Stomping Grounds Inc. is in their second year of the burger battle competition with their specialty burger being the Trojan Horse Burger. This burger has a Belgian pearl sugar waffle for a bun and includes an egg, sausage patty, pecan smoked cottage bacon with pepper/ghost smoky cheese topping it off.
When asked what he enjoys most about the Burger Battle, owner Justin Eich indicated, “Trying new ideas and watching people try it and hopefully bringing in new customers.” He continued, “This is a fun way for the community to participate. Thanks to the Hartford Chamber for all of their work.”
This is the third year that The Goat Bar and Grill has been a contender in the competition. In previous years, The Goat had burgers named the Hawaiian Burger and the All American Goat Burger. This year their burger is called The Goat B.O.B. Burger. This burger also features breakfast ingredients. It starts with their hand-pattied burger and includes hash browns, fried egg, bacon and some secret Goat sauces.
Owner of The Goat, Dawn Schoenfelder, indicated they have seen an increase in traffic for the competition. “We have had about 50 already. It just keeps growing.”
Schoenfelder said she enjoys coming up with something different, yet something that would appeal to their customers. She also stated, “We appreciate all of the work that gets put into this battle. It increases foot traffic and brings people in that haven’t been here before.”
Customers are not only able to cast their vote for their favorite burger, they can also be eligible to win $25 Hartford Bucks. “To help promote the contest, we encourage those out eating to snap a picture and post it on social media and tag #HartfordBurgerBattle.” Larson stated. She continued, “The committee pulls those each week and draws for $25 in Hartford Bucks that can be used at any place that is a chamber member.”
Larson said Hartford Steak Co. Tavern has been the winner the last two years and are very excited to see the results this year. Larson indicated, “Last year was a very close race and we can’t wait to see the turnout this year.”
For more information on the Burger Battle, you can visit their Facebook page which is 3rd Annual Burger Battle Challenge.