Congratulations to Green Bar & Kitchen on winning the People’s Choice Award and Chef Todd Erickson of Haven for winning the Judge’s Award at Seed Wine & Food Festival’s first-ever Plant-Based Burger Battle last night.
The Eden Roc Hotel in Miami Beach hosted the nation’s first Seed Wine and Food Festival Plant-Based Burger Battle on November 19th, 2015, where chefs from across the country competed to create the best “vegan burger.” Todd Erickson of Haven South Beach and Huahua’s Taqueria took home the top prize with his beet, barley, and black bean patty topped with sweet soy and garlic, pickled English cucumber, scallion, lotus root chips, and spicy mayo on a potato roll.
Chef Todd Erickson is not exclusively a vegan or vegetarian chef. He said he was worried that his burger might not be up to snuff, but he focused on creating a dish with delicious flavors, fun textures, and a nice presentation.
Other chefs who competed in the battle include Ryan Echaus of Atlas Meat-Free Deli, Darren Laszlo of Jugofresh, Rose Flynn of Choices Cafe, Oliver Ponce of Good Seed Burger, Angelique Santana of Love Beets, Jay Astafa of Jay Astafa NYC, Daudi McLean of 2 Good Veggie, Nedal Ahmad of Pincho Factory, and Carla’s Nut Burgers.
The panel of judges for the evening were: Burger Beast Sef Gonzalez, former NBA star John Salley, Nic Adler, the founder of the Vegan Beer and Food Festival, Mary Mattern from Nom Yourself, John Lewis, the Bad Ass Vegan, and Derek Sarno, a chef from Whole Foods Market in Austin.
On December 10th, Erickson’s winning burger will be on the menu at Haven.