King of the burgers crowned at national awards

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The UK's best burger - Joe Leckie's 'Venimoo' - a fusion of beef and venisonThe UK's best burger - Joe Leckie's 'Venimoo' - a fusion of beef and venison
The UK's best burger - Joe Leckie's 'Venimoo' - a fusion of beef and venison

The winners of the best burgers in the country have been crowned at the National burger Awards 2016.

Joe Leckie, of burger joint Mac & Wild has been crowned the burger champion of Great Britain, with his signature 'Venimoo' burger earning him the grand prize of £1,000.

The event also saw two other chefs win accolades. Simon Xavier from Chiquito won the Technical Burger award, which involves the 16 National Burger Awards finalists creating a burger out of ingredients that are provided to them on the day; and David Fernandez from Stock Burger Co. claimed the Signature Burger award with his Ox Jus Burger.

Joe Leckie of Mac & Wild with celebrity chef Andy Bates (right) and Tristan OHana, editor of Casual Dining Magazine (left).Joe Leckie of Mac & Wild with celebrity chef Andy Bates (right) and Tristan OHana, editor of Casual Dining Magazine (left).
Joe Leckie of Mac & Wild with celebrity chef Andy Bates (right) and Tristan OHana, editor of Casual Dining Magazine (left).

Joe Leckie, winner of the National Burger Awards 2016, comments: “I’m really shocked to be honest. I’m used to doing 200 burgers at lunchtime, but it was a different type of pressure with everyone looking at you. In the restaurant, I’m in my own little zone and I can do what I want, but when people are watching you it’s very different.

“Competitions like this are really important. It was great just to be in the final with so many different chefs – it makes you a lot more aware of what everyone else out there is doing. I was speaking to a few of the guys before we came in today and now I think I’ll definitely be checking out their restaurants and hopefully they’ll come to ours too."

The judging panel, which featured a host of burger aficionados and was headed up by celebrity chef Andy Bates, came to a unanimous decision when naming the Venimoo burger as the winner.