To enter contest
Any food establishment interested in entering the Green County's best-burger contest can register online at greencountybeefproducers.wordpress.com or by calling (608) 214-9799. A $25 fee is required, as is the donation of a $25 gift certificate.
MONROE - Don Lepper Jr.'s "Dream Burger" is formidable to say the least.
It features a ciabatta bun, which is buttered and grilled, and stacked upon it is a burger, onion rings, Swiss cheese, corned beef, bacon and his signature sauce.
"Plus, I stick an umbrella down the middle - it makes for a nice presentation," said Lepper, manager of Papa Don's Horseshoe Saloon on 10th Avenue in Monroe. "OK, and I'll admit it also helps hold it together."
His mountain of meatiness is the reigning champion of last year's best-burger award, named as such by voters in a first-ever contest sponsored by the Green County Beef Producers.
Eleven establishments competed last year, with each one selecting a single burger as its entry, and it resulted in the consumption of more than 1,400 burgers by patrons who had a postcard punched each time they ate one. At the end of the competition, votes were cast as part of the post card, which were mailed in to a committee. The results were announced in the hospitality tent at last year's Green County Fair, as Papa Don's took first and Pancho & Lefty's took second.
In Lepper's case, the designation brought much more than a blue ribbon and the giant spatula trophy he has mounted on his wall.
"We're a bit off the beaten path, and before the burger competition many people didn't know we had a kitchen and some didn't even know where we are," said Lepper, who estimated the number of Dream Burgers consumed last spring and summer at "hundreds" thanks to the contest. "It was a win-win for me even had we not been voted best, because it brought me business I would have never seen.
"I'm still getting business as a result. I've got a couple who comes up from Illinois once a month just to have a Dream Burger."
The competition will be greater this year, however, as last year's success has prompted organizers to take the contest countywide and extend the voting from May 1 through July 31 - a month longer than last year.
"It's a possibility to get 40 to 45 restaurants on board," said committee member Deb Bidlingmaier. "We'd be happy with 25, but either way we think it will get bigger and bigger."
Business participation was free last year, but this year a $25 entry fee will be required along with the donation of a $25 gift certificate, to serve as a prize during the award ceremony. The registration deadline is March 31 and can be done online at greencountybeefproducers.wordpress.com or by calling (608) 214-9799.
"We took on more cost than we thought (last year), like advertising and the creation of posters, post cards and tri-folds for tables, so we hope businesses won't mind (the fee)," Bidlingmaier said.
Said Lepper: "I'll be happy to pay it."
The winner will be announced Aug. 20 at the Green County Beef Producer's Great Steak-out event at the Fairgrounds.
It features a ciabatta bun, which is buttered and grilled, and stacked upon it is a burger, onion rings, Swiss cheese, corned beef, bacon and his signature sauce.
"Plus, I stick an umbrella down the middle - it makes for a nice presentation," said Lepper, manager of Papa Don's Horseshoe Saloon on 10th Avenue in Monroe. "OK, and I'll admit it also helps hold it together."
His mountain of meatiness is the reigning champion of last year's best-burger award, named as such by voters in a first-ever contest sponsored by the Green County Beef Producers.
Eleven establishments competed last year, with each one selecting a single burger as its entry, and it resulted in the consumption of more than 1,400 burgers by patrons who had a postcard punched each time they ate one. At the end of the competition, votes were cast as part of the post card, which were mailed in to a committee. The results were announced in the hospitality tent at last year's Green County Fair, as Papa Don's took first and Pancho & Lefty's took second.
In Lepper's case, the designation brought much more than a blue ribbon and the giant spatula trophy he has mounted on his wall.
"We're a bit off the beaten path, and before the burger competition many people didn't know we had a kitchen and some didn't even know where we are," said Lepper, who estimated the number of Dream Burgers consumed last spring and summer at "hundreds" thanks to the contest. "It was a win-win for me even had we not been voted best, because it brought me business I would have never seen.
"I'm still getting business as a result. I've got a couple who comes up from Illinois once a month just to have a Dream Burger."
The competition will be greater this year, however, as last year's success has prompted organizers to take the contest countywide and extend the voting from May 1 through July 31 - a month longer than last year.
"It's a possibility to get 40 to 45 restaurants on board," said committee member Deb Bidlingmaier. "We'd be happy with 25, but either way we think it will get bigger and bigger."
Business participation was free last year, but this year a $25 entry fee will be required along with the donation of a $25 gift certificate, to serve as a prize during the award ceremony. The registration deadline is March 31 and can be done online at greencountybeefproducers.wordpress.com or by calling (608) 214-9799.
"We took on more cost than we thought (last year), like advertising and the creation of posters, post cards and tri-folds for tables, so we hope businesses won't mind (the fee)," Bidlingmaier said.
Said Lepper: "I'll be happy to pay it."
The winner will be announced Aug. 20 at the Green County Beef Producer's Great Steak-out event at the Fairgrounds.