Downtown Burger Battle: International award winner
Sept. 1, 2021
Sioux Falls diners aren’t the only fans of the annual Downtown Burger Battle.
The event organized by Downtown Sioux Falls Inc. has been awarded the Downtown Achievement Award of Excellence by the International Downtown Association.
The award, judged by peers, acknowledges “an excellent response to an urban place management challenge, demonstrating application of industry knowledge and exceeds the jury criteria,” DTSF said in a statement.
This year’s Downtown Burger Battle was among 31 qualified entries in the category of marketing, communications and events that the IDA identifies as one of the seven professional urban place management practice areas. The category features unique organizational approaches and projects in the areas of branding, public relations, marketing strategies and communications plans.
“DTSF has demonstrated skillful application of urban place management principles with their project 2021 Downtown Burger Battle,” said David Downey, IDA president and CEO. “The 2021 Downtown Burger Battle should serve as a framework to all member communities within IDA.”
By the numbers
The Downtown Burger Battle has become the most engaging DTSF promotion in the past eight years, the organization said. This year at 24 restaurants, more than 31,000 burgers at were sold in the Downtown Burger Battle compared with more than 19,000 in January 2020. This resulted in $436,606 spent on burgers alone, a 63 percent increase compared to $268,344 in January 2020. The estimated total economic impact from Burger Battle neared $1 million at $940,850, based on the Arts & Economic Prosperity Study for Sioux Falls.
The event was bolstered by a pledge from MarketBeat to donate $1 to a nonprofit organization for every burger sold.
“Burger Battle has blossomed into an absolute cultural phenomenon in the past few years. 2021 was a new high-water mark for the event with more restaurants, participants and economic impact than ever before. DTSF is grateful for the community support, far and wide, that has made Burger Battle the highlight for so many businesses during what would otherwise be a slow time of year,” DTSF president Joe Batcheller said in a statement.
The next event
The next and newest food competition in Sioux Falls, Downtown Pork Showdown, takes a similar approach. It begins Friday, and participants will vote on signature pork dishes until Sept. 30 at 16 downtown restaurants. The restaurant with the highest rated pork dish will be crowned Downtown Pork Showdown Champion.
