Blue Thunder crowned overall winners on National Burger Day
Blue Thunder in Claremorris have clinched a coveted All-Ireland title, as Kepak, sponsors of National Burger Day, has today announced that the Mayo takeaway is officially home to the best burger in Ireland for 2022.
The announcement comes on Kepak’s fifth annual National Burger Day taking place today, Thursday 23rd June, which, in support of the Simon Community encouraged foodie lovers to get out and have their say by voting for the nation’s favourite burger, while giving back to a great cause and celebrating Ireland’s amazing foodservice at the same time.
Over the last number of weeks, hundreds of Irish food businesses of all categories and sizes took part in the search for Ireland’s best burger, from popular fast-food joints to family owned-pubs, hotels, and speciality burger restaurants at the heart of Irish communities.
With over 450 burger outlets to choose from, Blue Thunder in Claremorris, Co Mayo has been awarded the title of the nation’s favourite burger. The popular burger outlet, owned by Joanne Byrne has been a firm favourite in the town for 34 years and was originally set up by Joanne’s parents, Pat and Marian O’Malley.
Joanne credits Blue Thunder’s success to their top-quality burgers, commitment to using the highest quality ingredients and the dedication of their 15 staff, not forgetting their loyal local customer trade.
“We are absolutely thrilled to have won Best Burger at the National Burger Day awards and very grateful to our staff and customers for all their support,” Joanne Byrne of Blue Thunder commented. “Our selection of delicious burgers have stood the test of time and our four ounce deluxe cheese and bacon burger, as well as our much-loved prime burger are firm favourites amongst our local customers and strong passing trade.”
Other winners of this year’s awards include Thunder Road Café in Dublin which took home the top prize in the Best Gourmet Specialist Category in Leinster and Wimpy’s in Fermoy, Co Cork received the Best Independent Takeaway Award in Munster.
National Burger Day
To help celebrate the humble burger, Kepak is hosting Ireland’s National Burger Day across the country today, Thursday 23rd June. The event is also supported by Flipdish, Blenders, Coghlans and Kilmeadan, with participating businesses all over the country marking the day by offering a range of special offers and meal deals including the official Limited Edition National Burger Day Burger Build, The Summer Smoke Stack.
To top it off, for every burger purchased and a photo shared online with the hashtag #nationalburgerday, a meal will be donated to Simon Communities across the country, with a remarkable 16,000 meals donated in 2021 as part of the campaign.
“We’re delighted that National Burger Day has returned again for a fifth year,” said John Savage, Kepak Foodservice Solutions Commercial Director. “I’d like to congratulate Blue Thunder, who are extremely worthy winners, as well as all of our category winners, participating outlets and supporters. While National Burger Day is undoubtedly a competition – it is also a celebration of a much-loved food favourite and world-class foodservice providers. We are once again delighted to host another epic battle of the burgers this year and shine a light on the nation’s finest food outlets.”
“We were once again proud to come on board as a lead sponsor for National Burger Day in conjunction with our partner, Kepak. During the pandemic Flipdish and Kepak worked closely to help customers navigate through an extremely difficult period. Through shared collaboration between Flipdish and Kepak, customers continue to grow, thrive and innovate and we are delighted to celebrate these fantastic businesses through National Burger Day. Well done to Blue Thunder and all the category winners for 2022.” added Susan Comyn, Head of Partner Marketing & Events at Flipdish.
David Chandler, Sales Director, Blenders, commented: “With the food service sector now moving beyond COVID-19, new challenges have emerged with labour shortages and inflation at the top of the list. Support for the industry continues to be as important as ever and national burger day is intended to help everyone generate a little extra interest and trade. At Blenders, we are delighted to continue our support for the event this year and would like to congratulate Blue Thunder in Claremorris on their wonderful achievement.”
National Burger Day is sponsored by Kepak and supported by supported by Flipdish, Blenders Sauces, Coghlans Artisan Bakery and Kilmeadan Cheese.
Winners
Best burger in Ireland – Overall Winner: Blue Thunder, Claremorris, Co Mayo
Best burger at a…
- Restaurant: Roastie Midelton, Midelton, Co Cork
- Hotel: The Curious Fish (The Mariner Hotel), Westport, Co Mayo
- Pub: The Globe Bar & Restaurant, Kilkenny
- Convenience/Forecourt: Circle K, Best Convenience Burger
- Independent Fast-Food Chain: Blue Thunder Westport, Co Mayo
- Takeaway: Johnny’s Ranch, Ramelton, Co Donegal
- Food Truck: O’ Reilly’s Food Truck, Bandon, Co Cork
Best Independent Takeaway
- Connaught: Cafolla’s Castlebar, Castlebar, Co Mayo (Connaught)
- Leinster: Mullen’s Castletown Road, Dundalk, Co Louth (Leinster)
- Munster: Wimpy, Fermoy, Co Cork (Munster)
- Ulster: Friars Rest, Letterkenny, Co Donegal (Ulster)
- Northern Ireland: The Pizza Shack & Burger Bar at McCreesh’s, Mullaghbawn, Newry
Best Gourmet Burger Specialist
- National Winner: Gaelic Burger & Coffee, Naas, Kildare
- Connaught: Harry’s Galway, Galway City (Connaught)
- Leinster: Thunder Road Cafe, Temple Bar, Dublin (Leinster)
- Munster: Yay Burger, Ballydehob, Cork (Munster)
- Ulster: Burger Jacks, Milford, Co Donegal (Ulster)
About Kepak
Kepak Group is a family-owned innovative meat company with a rich heritage of over 50 years of meat craft. From the establishment of a butcher shop in Dublin in 1966, Kepak has grown significantly and today the Group has a turnover of €1.5bn and employs over 4,500 people. Kepak operates 12 manufacturing facilities throughout Ireland and the UK with sales offices in Europe and Asia. The Group markets a broad range of fresh and value-added meat products serving the foodservice and retail market with market-leading brands Big Al’s, Rustlers, Celtic Beef and John Stone.
