There is something to be said for an amazing traditional burger, but at Relish, chef and owner Trevor Ditzel is putting a tasty spin on the old classic.
Relish’s popular Uncle Buck burger is in the running for Nelson’s Best Burger along with the Hume Hotel, Jackson’s, Finley’s Pub, Bite, Bogustown Pub, Uptown Tavern and Kootenay Time. Diners have a chance to their vote where there mouth is in selecting for who they think has the city’s best.
Ditzel — who opened Relish in the winter — said he has the best burger because of what is in the patty itself.
“My patty alone is really unique which I think makes it Nelson’s best,” he said. “You don’t really see the dried figs and the other flavourings anywhere else. We hand make it all here, it’s not just a store bought burger with toppings.”
In addition to the handmade patty — which Ditzel said is a variation of an old meatloaf recipe — the Uncle Buck has Swiss cheese, bacon bits, sweet potato chips and hot peppers.
“I wanted there to be that sweet, salty, spicy mix all at once,” he said. “Inside my burger I have dried figs for sweetness, Swiss cheese, scallions, spices like chili pepper, paprika and stuff like that to give it some spice and flavour and obviously a good ground meat and we use chuck. It’s juicy and it spills all over the place, which really highlights my idea of a good burger.”
Ditzel has taken time to eye up his competition and has picked out a couple top rivals.
“Before I saw the votes coming I thought the Hume would be stiff competition with it’s 100 Mile Burger, and I really didn’t know but I figured Bite would be high up in the votes too,” he said.
To vote for Nelson’s Best Burger visit nelsonstar.com and click on the contests tab. Voting closes on September 1. The winner will be announced shortly after.