{"id":8202,"date":"2014-07-20T15:26:51","date_gmt":"2014-07-20T15:26:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/?p=8202"},"modified":"2014-07-20T15:27:38","modified_gmt":"2014-07-20T15:27:38","slug":"and-still-champion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/and-still-champion\/","title":{"rendered":"And Still Champion"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"072014a-1\"
\n(Tracy has been cooking all afternoon. That is not the winning burger- it is the trophy. Last year’s was a four-foot-tall bowling trophy. Photo Willow).
\n\u201cA GROUND ROUND SMACKDOWN FEATURING TEN OF THE BEST BURGER SLINGERS IN THE DMV.\u201d
\nNo, not the Department of Motor Vehicles. That would make no sense. DiMarVA, they mean- the District, Maryland and Virginia.
\nThat was the blurb for the big burger competition this year. The guys over at Big Buns- an occasional treat when we worked in the building almost next store in Ballston- were the sponsors and clearly itching to avenge their defeat.
\n\"072014a-2\"
\n(A not-so-mini burger with Brian’s hand. Photo Willow).<\/p>\n

Last year\u2019s contest of the titans was right here in Arlington, and Willow kicked burger ass to win it all- a surprise for anyone used to thinking about Tracy O\u2019Grady\u2019s place as exclusively a venue for fine dining. Tracy had the unenviable task of defending her title after winning with a double-smoked, pan-seared-in-duck-fat masterpiece.<\/p>\n

It went down this year on Florida Avenue in the hip Shaw neighborhood. I missed it- I was engaged in weed eradication projects at the farm, and was amazed last night to discover they had done it again.
\nTicket holders to the event got to try FIVE or ALL TEN \u201cnot-so-mini burgers,\u201d depending on how much you paid. The grounf rules said that the custom-built gourmet creations contained 3 oz. of blended beef bliss and up to five toppings. The competing restaurants were loaded for bear.
\nThe crowd munched while \u201csampling great craft beer and enjoying live tunes in the sunshine.\u201d
\nThere was a vote at the end of it all, and y popular vote, Willow Restaurant won FIRST PLACE at the DC BRGR BASH! The winning cast of culinary masters included: Tracy, Brian Wolken, Debra Spetz Rubin, Heather Small, Kate Jansen and Miguel Antunez.
\n\"072014a-3\"<\/p>\n

Honorable mention goes to some great also-rans from:<\/p>\n

\"072014a-4\"<\/p>\n

Cafe Saint-Ex
\n14th Street
\nKnown for their local, dry-aged burger, this contemporary French-American bistro represents 14th Street with pride.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/cafesaintex<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-5\"<\/p>\n

BIG BUNS
\nArlington
\nCustomized burgers earned this Ballston favorite a WaPo \u201cBest Bet\u201d and WTOP \u201cTop 10 Burgers in the DMV\u201d.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/eatbigbuns<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-6\"<\/p>\n

Boundary Stone
\nBloomingdale
\nAll-natural, hand-ground burgers from this neighborhood gem named a Best of DC \u201cBest Place to Eat at the Bar\u201d.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/boundarystonedc<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-7\"<\/p>\n

Old Ebbitt Grill
\nDowntown
\nExecutive Chef Sal Ferro showcases updated American cuisine (and a mighty tasty locally raised grass-fed beef burger) at one of DC’s oldest and best-known saloons.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/oldebbitt<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-8\"<\/p>\n

Burger Tap & Shake
\nFoggy Bottom
\nOne bite of the house ‘Six Buck Chuck’ and you’ll see why that line snaking down the block on Washington Circle is worth standing in.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/burgertapshake<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-9\"<\/p>\n

GUGS
\nGeorgetown
\nThick, juicy, no-frills burgers from the Georgetown University Grilling Society have made this local crew a G\u2019town institution.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/gugs_georgetown<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-10\"<\/p>\n

Granville Moore’s
\nH Street
\n\u201cA gastropub with a healthy Belgian Fetish\u201d, this popular H Street tavern run by Chef Teddy Folkman needs little introduction.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/granvillemoores<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-11\"<\/p>\n

1905
\nShaw
\nDouble-patty delights and signature bacon-fried onions have earned this intimate bistro newcomer a reputation as \u201cOne to Watch\u201d.
\nhttp:\/\/twitter.com\/1905dc<\/a><\/p>\n

\"072014a-12\"<\/p>\n

Fainting Goat
\nU Street
\nRun by Chef Nathan Beauchamp, this popular U Street gastropub does simple food with a gourmet twist and was recently praised by WaPo critic Tom Sietsema.<\/p>\n

Willow\u2019s Burger Battle winner secret ingredient? I had a tip from Heather on Friday: roast garlic duck confit butter.<\/p>\n

Come and get it!<\/p>\n

Copyright 2014 Vic Socotra
\nwww.vicsocotra.com
\nTwitter: @jayare303<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Tracy has been cooking all afternoon. That is not the winning burger- it is the trophy. Last year’s was a four-foot-tall bowling trophy. Photo Willow). \u201cA GROUND ROUND SMACKDOWN FEATURING TEN OF THE BEST BURGER SLINGERS IN THE DMV.\u201d No, not the Department of Motor Vehicles. That would make no sense. DiMarVA, they mean- the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8202","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-daily-socotra"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8202"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8202\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8216,"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8202\/revisions\/8216"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vicsocotra.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}