Chef Ryan Davey took out the winning title of the AHA South Australia’s Best Pub Burger 2024 amidst stiff competition from forty other venues.
Davey, who was representing the Belgian Beer Café from Adelaide’s East End, won the final round with his Black Angus Wagyu burger.
“I am very proud to win this award. I couldn’t have done it without my entire Belgian Beer Café team,” he said.
His secret was said to be taking a standard burger and using exceptionally high-quality ingredients.
Davey, who has been in kitchens since he was 15, wasn’t shy about sharing the winning recipe: a wagyu beef patty, bacon jam, cheddar, pickles, onion, tomato, lettuce, Dijon, and Belgian mayonnaise, all on a potato bun.
Anna Moeller, Australian Hotels Association (AHA|SA) CEO said the aromas during the competition were amazing.
“A huge thank you to all our sponsors for making this event possible, putting the best of South Australia’s hotels and their burgers well and truly on the map,” she exclaimed.
The twelve finalists were selected from a blind tasting two weeks ago, battling it out at the Griffins Hotel for the final round.
Aside from taste, the finals saw the burgers judged on presentation, ingredients, meat content and value for money.
The judging panel were some of AHA|SA’s Gold Corporate Partners: Tom Rehn from FIVEAA, InDaily Food & Wine editor Claudia Dichiera, and Natha Lazaroff from Thomas Foods, which was the competition’s major sponsor.
The eleven other finalists were:
- Arkaba Hotel
- Globe Hotel Mount Gambier
- Golden Grove Tavern
- Maylands Hotel
- Mount Gambier Hotel
- Pier Hotel Glenelg
- Seven Stars Hotel
- Stamford Grand Adelaide
- Strathmore Hotel
- The Griffins Hotel
- Torrens Arms Hotel
