SAN ANTONIO — San Antonio's burger enthusiasts will be in good hands if they find themselves at Alamo Beer on the evening of Oct. 18, where 10 local chefs will throw down to see which can flip their patties the highest (metaphorically speaking) at Burger Showdown 5.0.
The culinary competition will be well-seasoned with familiar talent now shining their spatulas and sharpening their knives in preparation. Both the Best Burger and People's Choice Best Burger victors from 2023 – Chef Justin Bluhm and Chef Kaius, respectively – are returning to try and defend their crowns with the juiciest, tastiest slider.
Bluhm grilled his way to victory last year with his Oktoberfest slider, featuring premium smoked brisket and lathered in beer queso. This year he's going with what he's calling the Live Fire SteakBurger, complete with mesquite-grilled ribeye and "vibrant" chimichurri.
"This year we felt we needed to step it up a notch, so we will be entering a whole new burger," he says. "I definitely respect the competition, but we are prepared to steal the show again."
Judging this year's tender contenders are Alan Williams of Flavors of Texas (which organizes Burger Showdown) and Alamo City influencers San Antonio Stephanie and Joe The Lost Local.
Whoever wins, attendees also come out on top—especially the hungry ones. You'll be able to sample each of the burgers in competition at the event, tickets for which are going at an early-bird rate of $55 until Sept. 15. General admission will then go up to $60 a ticket, while VIP admission – which includes early entry to Burger Showdown, a free drink ticket and a free plant from Gardopia Gardens – is available for $100.
Visitors, of course, will also have the job of determine the People's Choice winner.
The full list of chefs participating this year are:
- Chef Diana Anderson of JD's Chili Parlor
- Chef Justin Bluhm of STXBBQ
- Chef Gabe Cardenas of Built for Burger
- Chef Jared Cattoni of Dos Sirenos Brewing
- Chef Adrian Davila of Davila's BBQ
- Chef Rick Greenfield of Smash'd
- Chef Kaius of The Chef Kaius Xperience
- Chef Joseph Thadeus Martinez of Tributary
- Chef Brian Randolph of Dorrego's at Hotel Valencia
- Chef James Richard Smith of Too Hot For TABC
Proceeds from Burger Showdown 5.0 will go towards the east-side nonprofit Gardopia Gardens, which works to "grow healthy communities through garden-based learning."
