If eating is your idea of a good time, and around here, it sure seems to be, then you’re in luck. It’s time for Burger Battle, the annual event sponsored by Downtown Sioux Falls and the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Foundation. This year is bigger and better than ever with 16, count ‘em, 16 competitors vying for fame and glory. That’s up from 12 last year and as few as 6 competitors in prior years. That’s a lot of burgers. We, and by “we,” I mean “me,” gobbled through all 12 last year and I couldn’t even look at another burger until July.
Burger Battle: Burger interest set to outpace previous years
Apparently, the increased competition isn’t slowing anyone down, because by all accounts this year’s competition is going like gangbusters. If you can get through all 16, good on ya. This year, we are out there getting after it, but are using a divide and conquer strategy and sending task forces out. And I am going to break it to you now that we probably aren't going to get everywhere. That’s just the reality of it. Instead we are hitting favorites and some of the competitors getting buzz in the community.
Tommy Jack’s. If you haven’t tried a burger at Tommy Jack’s, you need to get there. The burgers are freshly-ground and hot and tasty. And, Tommy Jack’s usually puts up a tasty battle burger. This year they have offered the Censored Burger. If you want to know more about the name, go ask about it. We aren’t spilling the beans here. The burger itself is a bacon-pepper jack-egg combo with sautéed peppers and onions. The twist is in the form of hemp infused in the patty and in the aioli. When the Secret Soup Spoon and the Secret Shot Glass tried it, they unfortunately encountered a cold bun and an overall gooey experience. If you’re expecting some flavor blast from the hemp, send us a note if you find it. Of course, some people don’t get that hemp isn’t marijuana. If you’re looking for that, there are direct flights to Denver.
More: What's on the menu for this year's Downtown Burger Battle?
Fernson Downtown. We’ve enjoyed many great food and beer experiences at Fernson’s downtown location. So, we were pretty excited to see them jump into Burger Battle with their Flamengo Burger. The patty is half beef and half chorizo (a highly seasoned sausage with mild spicy notes) and topped with a soft ripened cheese, an olive-roasted pepper-salsa concoction, house-made pickles and pickled jalapenos. The whole idea is to capture some Latin American flavors. So, how was it? Well, we liked the pickles. Other than that, the consensus was The Flamengo looks better on paper. The burger was a tad charred and overall a tad rubbery as far as texture went. The olive relish on our burger contained a pit, which thankfully wreaked no havoc on dental work. For me, this is an odd miss for Fernson’s otherwise stellar culinary team.
M.B. Haskett. Meanwhile next door, Chef Michael Haskett is offering a Truffle and Trumpet Burger. Basically, this is a kicked-up mushroom Swiss/gouda cheeseburger on a house-made onion brioche roll. I appreciate the straight-forward approach with this one. The patty is 5 oz. That’s just a little over a quarter pound and quite sufficient. The toppings are flavorful and don’t overwhelm your palate or your plate. If you want to see thoughtful editing at work in the Burger Battle, this is it. I must be channeling Anthony Bourdain here, because I found the truffle more reliant on truffle salt than shaved black truffle. And that stands to reason. Fresh truffles are ridiculously expensive. But unlike my experiences with some ridiculously expensive wines, liquors, or other ingredients, there is nothing quite like a truffle. Unfortunately, my further explanation of that is rated NC-17. Salts or oils infused with truffles offer a more affordable way to get some of that flavor, but it is not the same as a generous pile of truffles like a snowdrift from flavor heaven. Still, good burger.
Blarney Stone. Across the street, Blarney Stone is offering the Fuisce Burger. I’ll save you an internet search and tell you “fuisce” roughly translates to “whiskey.” That’s because this burger features a sauce made from Irish whiskey. It also incorporates smoked cheddar and bleu cheeses, bacon and onions caramelized with Guinness. Oh, and some mixed greens, because vegetables. I guess. Good burger, but come hungry for this one. The bleu cheese really amps up the richness factor. The curveball on the Fuisce is the sauce. It looks like a nice, rich BBQ sauce which makes my brain tell my mouth to prepare for that flavor. But, that isn’t what you get. The sauce is a little lighter, and, frankly a tad bitter. I was happy to share this with the Secret Shot Glass, because I don’t think I could put one of these away by myself.
Bread & Circus Sandwich Kitchen. Every time I visit Bread & Circus, I ask myself why I don’t visit the place more often. I love what these guys do with all sorts of food, and their burgers are no exception. This year, B&C is offering a Raclette burger. Raclette is sort of a European apres ski treat of melty cheese. B&C puts a nice slathering of the cheese on their burger along with black garlic bacon, lettuce, aioli and bread and butter onions. Although I thought my burger was a little salty (and I narrowed that to the bacon), the Raclette Burger checks a lot of boxes. I really appreciated the acidity hit from the pickled onions and the textural notes from the shredded lettuce. I really appreciated the bun made with spent grain from Severance Brewing. Nice touch and a great way to use a byproduct from our growing brewing industry. (You can get those buns at Breadsmith, by the way.) Good burger.
Ode to Food and Drinks. We always give Ode’s burger a try. Over the years, they’ve had a few really great entries, and some we didn’t like as much. This year, Chef Bob whipped up a Sweet Jamaican Burger. Start with Ode’s reliable house grind cooked to order (and spot on medium rare this time!!!) add a rum sauce, jerk-seasoned bacon, Swiss cheese, a spicy pineapple sauce and top it with a cheddar jalapeno bun. If you’re stuck on the pineapple or worried this is a spice bomb, get over it. Yes, there is a little heat there with a lot of the components of a respectable Jamaican jerk seasoning, but this one really comes together. Juicy, subtly sweet and spicy will get me every time. All I needed was a Red Stripe and a Bob Marley album.
We ain’t done yet. We’ve got several more to try, including the offering of four-time champ, The Market. Have fun and get after those burgers!
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January 18, 2020 at 03:05AM
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Secret Fork: First batch of Burger Battle entries a mixed bag - Argus Leader
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