2008 NYC Wine & Food Fest: Burger Bash

Whaddya think is in the burger?

Hands down the most popular event at the annual South Beach Wine and Food Festivals, Burger Bash is truly that: a $200 ticket to sample and celebrate the best "patty-on-bun" concoctions from the country's top meat men. Now it's time for New York to get in on the action.

Though many of Friday night's offerings were classic burgers, some over-thinking chefs approached the task like a Quick Fire Challenge rookie. (Art Smith, we love that you may be the next chef at the White House, but your veal patty between corn cake flopped worse than a Rudy Giuliani presidential run.)

Thirty minutes before the gates opened, we interviewed 16 participating chefs, grilling the entrants on spiking cholesterol, fast-food favorites and what's exactly in the burger. Interviewees include Tom Colicchio, David Burke, Michael Lomonaco, Katie Lee Joel, Al Roker, Laurent Tourondel and others. Who won the cook-off? It's a major upset. —Matt Rodbard