Steinbach Burger Days kicks off

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This article was published 11/09/2023 (602 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

You may be looking for a burger patty made of steak, ground beef, chicken, or pork.

Your favourite toppings could include chorizo, Pico de Gallo, barbecue sauce, an egg, green chili poppadums, onions, cheese, maple bacon jam, mustard, mushrooms, or peppers.

You may be looking for a pizza burger (a burger that tastes like a pizza) or a burger pizza (a pizza that tastes like a burger.)

You may even prioritize the sauce, be it chipotle, hot honey, pizza, beer cheese, barbecue, ranch, adobo, red wine aioli, mango coriander aioli or whiskey barbecue.

Whatever it is that draws you to that perfect burger, Steinbach Burger Days, running from Sept. 9 to 16 has it in spades.

The sixth annual event features 17 participants this year and the burgers cover the full range of artistry and taste.

Hosted by the Steinbach Chamber of Commerce, the annual event has grown into something many want to sink their teeth into.

“It’s kind of taken on a life of its own,” Chamber president Christine Beaumont said. “The amount of community engagement that it generates I think is far greater than we originally anticipated.”

The event was successful from the start, giving people a chance to taste and vote for their favourites.

Once again this year, members of the public can vote for the best tasting burger, most creative burger and best presentation by going to steinbachchamber.com.

Those categories were won respectively by Di Reggae Grill, Burrito Hut and Bigg Smoak BBQ Smokehouse & Grill in 2022.

The event is also an economic boom for the community, generating $160,000 in sales in last year’s event with over 8,600 burgers sold.

In fact, Beaumont said they’ve been told by several restaurants that Burger Days doubles their sales from a typical week, with one even reporting triple sales.

“It definitely highlights some of the local restaurants in our community,” she said, adding that many ingredients are also sourced locally.

“We always get really terrific feedback from the restaurants.”

So how does one go about testing 17 burgers in just eight days?

Beaumont said people often order from several places to have a tasting menu of sorts, something that can be done with families, workplaces or friend groups.

Full descriptions of the burgers available can be found on steinbachchamber.com.