Vegan Burger Battle Winners Announced!

Last month, we invited restaurants in Grass Valley and Nevada City to join the county’s first ever Vegan Burger Battle! Created to encourage restaurants to offer healthier, more compassionate food choices and give customers one more reason to frequent and support local restaurants, nine restaurants joined the friendly competition. Each restaurant served a special vegan burger throughout the month of August, and provided a small entry fee that benefits the rescued animals at Animal Place.  Hundreds of burgers were enjoyed, and it was a huge success! 

Customers voted on a number of categories, from taste to customer service. Below are the winners! 

California Organics was voted Best Overall Vegan Burger, Best House-Made Burger, and Most Photogenic Burger! They served a Hearty Sunflower patty on a sourdough bun with chipotle vegan aioli, sweet grilled corn salsa, crisp arugula, zesty red onion mojo and tomatoes. The corn salsa was definitely a crowd-pleaser, and was mentioned by many diners as the highlight of the burger. 

Jernigans won Tastiest Vegan Burger! Described by one customer as “the best vegan burger I’ve ever had”, it’s safe to say their Bahn-Mi style burger impressed patrons. They served a sweet chili glazed black bean quinoa burger with ginger, coconut veganaise, sprouts, cilantro, green onion, pickled carrot, cucumber and peanut sauce on sourdough.

Fudenjuce took the crown for Best Beyond Burger, topping it with red onion, romaine lettuce, fresh tomatoes, sesame-tamari grilling gravy, three slices of hickory-sage smoked Sweet Earth bacon, and Super Special vegan burger relish sauce. 

Thirsty Barrel was voted Best Impossible Burger and Most Viewed Burger on Social Media. Their plant-based creation came topped with Vegan Thai Curry Aioli, cilantro chimichurri, pickled carrots, pickled local cucumbers and jalapenos, sweet peppers and radish sprouts.

Congratulations to Pine St. Burgers for winning Best Side and Great Service. They offered a Hungry Planet vegan patty with vegan Lightlife Bacon, chipotles, grilled onions, veganaise, lettuce, tomato, mushrooms, and Field Roast Chao vegan cheese all served on a grilled vegan bun. 

Afternoon Deli won the Most Voted on Burger! Our whole staff tried this burger during our monthly meeting, and loved it! The housemade nutburger patty, was topped with grilled onions, Violife cheddar cheese,  Vegan Burger sauce, tomato, pickles and baby organic spinach.

Ike’s Quarter Cafe won Most Creative Burger! They offered a Persian inspired herb and vegetable burger, topped with vegan tzatziki, fresh tomato and lettuce on a house-made bun.

Congratulations to Briar Patch Co-op for Best Promotional Material! Between sharing on social media, and putting a large customized sign at their entrance, they did an incredible job promoting the burger battle! They were also the only competitors who submitted two burgers: a classic vegan burger using Beyond Meat,  and a housemade Veggie Patty made with organic quinoa, nuts, seeds, and veggies.

Three Forks Bakery and Brewing Co. won the Friendly Staff Award! Customers experienced warm & helpful staff, when they tried the housemade nutburger. The burger was topped with lettuce, tomato, bread & butter pickles and brava sauce on a sesame sunflower roll.

Winning restaurants will receive their awards at Community Day, on October 12th. You can get tickets to Community Day here. 

Though the Vegan Burger Battle has come to a close, many of the restaurants are still offering their creation. We absolutely loved this opportunity to get involved in the community and eat delicious vegan food. We’re already looking forward to next year’s Vegan Burger Battle! 

A special thanks to all participating restaurants: California Organics, Fundenjuce, Ike’s Quarter Cafe, Jernigan’s Tap House & Grill, Three Forks Bakery and Brewing Co, Afternoon Deli, Briar Patch Food Co-op, Pine Street Burgers and Thirsty Barrel.

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