The Inaugural Kalbi Burger Challenge

On Sunday, June 24th, the smell of grilled kalbi patties and excitement were wafting through the air in Koreatown, L.A. as six competitors stepped up to the plate to take on 4 of the hood’s favorite burger in 10 minutes, in hopes of claiming the title of being the first Kalbi Burger Champ. O.N.E. Coconut water was on the scene cooling people off with drinks while the foursquare mayor of Kalbi Burger, Heather Johnson, mc’ed the event. With burgers and barf bags at the ready, Kalbi Burger’s Hawk Lee set the timer at the 10 minute-mark and gave the challengers the word they had been waiting for all afternoon: Go!

Ten minutes seemed to fly in a flash as the contestants worked their way through each 10.2 oz burger made up of 100% fresh sweet marinated Angus Beef patty topped with cheese, red onion, romaine lettuce, tomato, and a drizzle of creamy aioli sauce, all sandwiched between two toasty buns. Towards the end of the burger battle, wild cards Chris Corning and Dexter Douglas were neck and neck, but since neither competitor completely finished their last burger by the 10 minute-mark, the debauched remains were each weighed to determine a winner.

As tweets and second-by-second updates buzzed around and heightened the anticipation, the winner was finally announced: ladies and gentlemen, winning by a mere 0.8 oz, Chris Corning has been crowned K-town’s 1st Kalbi Burger Champ! After the win, Corning—who ate his first Kalbi Burger on the day of the challenge—talked to us about his first Kalbi Burger experience: “It was delicious! From the very first bite I noticed how amazing it was with the special seasoning sauce they use! I write for blogging.la, and I’m going to let them know I made L.A. proud today!”

With the good turnout on Sunday, owner Hawk Lee is already asking prospective eaters to start training for next year: “This is definitely going to become at least a yearly thing, so see you back next year!”

Haven’t tried a Kalbi Burger, yet? You can check out their website for menu and location details: http://kalbiburger.com

[Photos: Audrey Yun-Suong (first and second photo); Ching Yu Wong via Koreatown FB (last photo)]