Opelika Rotary

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See y’all in Downtown Opelika at 11 AM for the 10th Annual Burger Wars!

Since their first burger grilling competition in 2015, members of the Opelika Rotary Club have hosted this annual food event in historic downtown Opelika. From the start, Burger Wars was a hit with both the grillers wanting to show off their best burgers and the hungry crowd that would purchase tasting tickets and attempt to sample as much as possible.

This year the 10^th Annual Burger Wars will be held Saturday, June 8, 2024, at 11:00 AM and will once again take place right across the tracks from another popular event earlier that morning, Opelika Main Street’s Touch-A-Truck.

Tasting tickets for the event will go on sale at 10:45 and will be sold until burger samples run out. Tasting tickets are $2.00 each, and one tasting ticket can be exchanged to sample ¼ of a burger at any of the many grilling stations. Burger Wars Chair Brooke Kastner noted, “Due to the event’s popularity in recent years, we anticipate that burger samples will go quickly, so we recommend arriving right at 11:00 for the best chance at trying all the burgers.” So, get there early before tickets run out.

In addition to getting to sample as many of the amazing burgers you can handle, attendees will also get to cast their vote for Crowd Favorite in each of the three categories (Pro, Corporate, and Tailgater), which is a treasured trophy amongst the grillers. After tasting some burgers, attendees will use a QR code to vote for their favorite burger and the grillers with the most
votes will win the coveted Crowd Favorite trophy!

While guests enjoy tasting burgers, judges will taste and rate burgers throughout the day, and winners in the three grilling categories (Pro, Corporate, and Tailgater) will be announced at 2:00. Winners get a trophy and bragging rights for the entire year.

Aside from being a fierce food competition, Burger Wars is first and foremost an event to raise money for food-insecure children in the area. Proceeds from previous Burger Wars have enabled Opelika Rotary to adopt local schools through the Food Bank of East Alabama’s backpack program. Opelika Rotary treasurer Nathan Kastner noted, “Thanks to the success of last year’s event, the Opelika Charitable Foundation was able to provide more than $7,000 to support this program and sponsor Southview Primary in Opelika and Ogletree Elementary in Auburn.” It is the club’s hope that Burger Wars remains a successful event so that they can continue to partner with the food bank to provide meals for many years to come.

Toward the end of the event, make sure to head over to the Big Bite Battle between the Opelika and Auburn fire departments. Burger Wars committee member Christy Cochran stated, “Watching the two fire departments battle it out is one of the best parts of the day and worth sticking around for!” The eating competition will start at 1:00 PM. Opelika Rotary hopes you come to Downtown Opelika on Saturday, June 8th for this family-friendly event and enjoy some amazing burgers for a great cause.

Contact Brooke Kastner at brooke@aotourism.com for questions or to sign up as a griller or sponsor.