That Burger Place, the burger restaurant in Swinton, has scored itself a place in the finals of the National Burger Awards. Burger chef Ryan McDermott will now have to go head-to-head with 15 other finalists in a live cook-off taking place next month in London.
Chefs from all the finalist restaurants will head to the Islington Metal Works where their burgers will be judged by industry experts. Finalists are a mix of independent restaurants and larger scale operations. So That Burger Place will be facing off against the likes of Bleeker, which has eight locations across London, Burger & Lobster, which has branches around the world (but closed its Manchester site barely a year after opening) and MeatLiquor, one of the originators of the resurgence in burger cooking, and which has 11 locations.
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, founder Ryan McDermott said: “We were just astounded. We’ve put in for it a couple of times with different burgers, but we didn’t get anywhere, and then the email dropped in. It’s everything we’ve been working for, just to be on that list. We’re going to try and win it for Manchester.”
“Burgers have been a firm favourite among Brits for decades, with their popularity soaring throughout the pandemic – so much so that they have been confirmed as the nation’s most ordered lockdown dish,” said Genna Ash-Brown, editor of Dine Out Magazine, which organises and runs the event, now in its eighth year. We were thrilled to see so many high-calibre recipes submitted for this year’s National Burger Awards, though it certainly didn’t make shortlisting an easy job! It’s always a joy to see familiar faces return and just as much of a pleasure to welcome new challengers into the ring. We can’t wait to bring these awesome businesses together and see those sizzling patties start flippin’.”
The burger that has got them into the final is its California Dreaming signature - a double cheeseburger with crispy bacon, onion, lettuce, bacon mayo and its own ‘Big Bob’s sauce’, an adaptation of a sauce McDermott’s grandad Bob used to make for family barbecues.
Also on the menu are the likes of the Getting Piggy With It, which features pulled pork and onion rings, and the Mac Daddy, which boasts a three cheese mac and cheese topping. There are also regular specials. Recently this manifested itself in the doughnut burger, in which three beef patties and maple candied bacon were sandwiched between two pink doughnuts, made by Bury’s Little Blonde Bakes.
Of all the competition, McDermott says he’s most nervous about Bleeker. “Bleeker is my go-to,” he went on. “They won it last year, or the year before, but it’s just amazing to be on the same radar. And from the backstreets of Swinton?!” He launched the That Burger Place in 2017, but saw business go through the roof during the pandemic, as takeaway orders rocketed. McDermott then opened a second location in Walkden and there’s a third planned for Salford, at Irlam o’ th’Height, due to open in the summer.
