On Sunday, September 22, NFA Burger is bringing back The Burger Benefit: the second annual, all-day burger showdown among top chefs & burger aficionados from around the country, all in support of the Atlanta-based nonprofit built for hospitality workers, Giving Kitchen.
How it works: beginning at 11 a.m., up to four burger masters will command a grill for 90 minutes, preparing their signature recipes. Guests are invited to purchase tickets for a select time slot in advance, before anyone – the purchaser or the chef – knows which chef will be assigned to which time slot. The chefs will be provided a random time slot the day before the event, creating a fun and exciting surprise for which burger guests get to enjoy!
Tickets start at $30, including one burger + one side, and proceeds will be donated to Giving Kitchen. Tickets go on sale at noon on Tuesday, July 23, and early-bird tickets will be made available on July 22, to those who sign up for the Burger Benefit newsletter here. Upon checkout, attendees will also have the option to purchase an additional ticket to be gifted to a food service worker.
Who: participants thus far include:
Billy Kramer, owner & founder, NFA Burger (Atlanta)
Andrew Zimmern, Emmy-winning and four-time James Beard Award-winning TV personality, chef, writer and passionate global citizen (Minneapolis)
Andy Gonzales, chef & owner, the Companion (Atlanta)
Chris Hall, chef & partner, Unsukay Restaurant Group (Atlanta)
Danny Cerqueda, executive chef, The Hansen Group (Atlanta)
John Benhase, chef & partner, Starland Yard (Savannah)
Jonathan and Justin Fox, co-owners, Fox Bros Bar-BQ (Atlanta)
Mia Orino and Carlo Gan, Co-chefs and owners of Kamayan ATL (Atlanta)
Nick Barrington, executive chef, East Lake Golf Club (Atlanta)
Nick Leahy, executive chef & co-owner, Vice Kitchen (Atlanta)
Robert Owens IV, pitmaster & co-owner, Owens and Hull (Atlanta)
Shai Lavi, chef, The Third Space (Atlanta)
Why: NFA owner & founder Billy Kramer is always looking for ways to bring the community together, and what better way to do so than around a burger? "In 2023, at the inaugural Burger Benefit, we raised over $53,000 in just nine weeks and sold over 1,100 tickets with more than 20 chefs that came together from all over the world for one purpose - to aid those in the food service industry who need help the most. I am so proud of what we’ve done in such a short amount of time and look forward to the impact we can make this year and beyond,” shares Billy.