It’s five o’clock somewhere. But tonight, it’s burger time in SoFlo. The South Beach Wine and Food Festival is back and Burger Bash is one of the hottest tickets in town. This year marks the 25th for the festival and 20 for Burger Bash. Deco’s burger king Alex Miranda spoke with some of the chefs in the competition to see who has the best buns.
The South Beach Wine and Food Festival is back and turning 25 years old.
James Taylor: “Kind of amazing to be a part of it. We’re like a stone’s throw away so, like, you just feel the energy.”
So, we hope you saved up an appetite because Thursday through Sunday chefs are cooking up their best at 105 events.
But Thursday, starting at 7:30 p.m. and hosted by Rachael Ray and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham, it’ll be between two buns only at Burger Bash.
Alex: “So I love a juicy cheeseburger. It sounds like you do too.”
Romero Britto: “I love juicy. Amazing, delicious.”
Pop art superstar Romero Britto admiring the beauty of this juicy burger from Coney Burger in downtown Miami.
Alex: “How do you judge how good a burger is?”
Romero Britto: “Oh, my God. It’s like what happening on my tongue and my, oh, I can’t wait to see what happens on my tongue.”
Alex: “I have never heard it described better than that because, to be honest, that’s exactly what it is.”
It turns out, Romero and I love big buns and we can not lie.
Alex: “How would you describe the energy of South Beach Wine and Food Festival? Obviously, there’s several events over several days.”
Romero Britto: “Life, because imagine to be close to water and then, here in South Beach, in this beautiful time of the year, like this is a true blessing to be here.”
It’s all a mouthful, with big names like James Taylor.
Alex: “I know you get this joke all the time.”
James Taylor: “Yeah, I can sing. I can sing.”
Alex: “So he is the king of singer-songwriters, you are the king of burgers in South Florida this year? What do you think?”
James Taylor: “I don’t know about that; I guess we’ll see.”
From The Joyce restaurant in Miami Beach competing.
James Taylor: “The restaurant is sort of a modern ode to American dining. It’s actually, like, there’s a lot of nostalgic notes to the menu. We have Sundays, we have banana splits, the burger obviously.”
Judges and guests critique their creations.
James Taylor: “What makes this burger very special is the balance of it. Every bite, you get the same amount of every ingredient. You get the same crunch from the pickle, the same crunch and freshness from the onions and the melty cheese. It’s Australian wagyu patties, 80/20 blend, so 80% beef, 20% fat; it’s just the right amount of juiciness and also allows for us to get that crispy sear that seals in the juices. And then a custom bun from a local bakery.”
Win or lose, everybody’s happy.
James Taylor: “Proceeds are going to the FIU Chaplin School of Hospitality. It kind of gives it a little bit more meaning than just making burgers for people.”
You can eat, you can drink, you can even get your digital caricatures.
It is the South Beach Wine and Food Festival but there are events through Sunday throughout Miami-Dade County and Broward.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
South Beach Wine and Food Festival
To learn more about each event and tickets, click here.