Best burgers at Zagreb Burger Festival – winners announced

by croatiaweek
September 18, 2023
in Food & Wine

This was voted best burger at the Zagreb Burger Festival

(Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

On the final day of this year’s Zagreb Burger Festival, Sunday, September 17th, the best of the best were declared.

Out of a total of 20 stalls at the Zagreb Burger Festival, an impressive 16 diligently prepared burgers that everyone wanted to delight their taste buds and win the hearts of visitors.

Throughout the ten days of the Festival, attendees had the opportunity to savour extravagant combinations, such as burgers with jam or wagyu and txogitxu beef, lamb burgers with mint, as well as burgers made from tuna and salmon, those with shrimp, and exclusively plant-based burgers.

The selection of classics and burger variations, like Pannicarna and faširanac, was exceptionally rich and imaginative. From the opening of the Festival to the last day, visitors could vote for their favourite stall and burger using QR codes displayed at the stalls.

The voting results were eagerly awaited by all Festival participants, including renowned culinary figures like Ivan Pažanin, Marko Palfi, Mate Janković, Melkior Bašić, and Deni Srdoč, the only Croatian chef to be awarded a Michelin star in two restaurants.

Strong burger brands like Submarine, 4Burgers, and Burger Bar were equally excited, alongside gastronomic wizards from Picnic Mingle & Fun, Boogie Lab, Mrs. Fogga, Burger Jama, Cheesy Burger, Beg’s Plant Based, and Bistro Funk from Zrenjanin.

All of them had their fans during the Festival, and many thought that the winner could be predicted from media reports. However, the final and most important word belonged to the audience. The title of the best at the Burger Festival is a matter of prestige among participants who proudly display this award for years, so it’s no wonder that excitement was palpable on Sunday evening.

The public revealed the most successful ones at the grand finale of the Festival, with Ida Prester making the announcement during a phenomenal closing concert held in a packed Park dr. Franje Tuđmana with the band Lollobrigida.

(Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

Third in the public’s votes at the Zagreb Burger Festival 2023 was Burger Bar, an experienced Zagreb team from Velesajam and Zavrtnica, making a spectacular comeback at the Festival. Second place in the audience’s votes went to Picnic Mingle & Fun. The geniuses from Zadar once again delighted the taste buds of visitors, and their Blackie Burger also secured second place in terms of points.

(Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

First place, with the most votes and the highest number of points, went to the Burger Institute by Mate Janković. The audience rewarded them with a generous number of votes for their excellent combination of experience, quality, and consistency. Furthermore, the Institute’s Bacon Jalapeno Burger received the most points, making it the best burger of this year’s Festival, with the same stall also holding third place with the Spicy Korean burger.

This was voted best burger at the Zagreb Burger Festival (Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

The winners, along with everyone else, deservedly toasted and celebrated the end of this year’s Burger Festival, which many have already hailed as the best ever. This is attributed to the quality of the participants and the offerings, as well as the never-before-seen rich accompanying program – featuring five concerts, two culinary workshops, two silent cinema screenings, an array of activities for children, and the Zagreb Street Art Festival, which brought together 183 artists from 36 countries around the world.

The winners (Photo: Sandro Sklepić)

As soon as the stalls are dismantled, we are certain that these culinary wizards will begin preparing new recipes and ideas. We are already looking forward to the next Burger Festival.

Stall with the most votes:

#1 Burger Institute by Mate Janković