Downtown Burger Battle announces 2025 winner

Chef Lance is back.

Chef Lance’s on Phillips is the winner of this year’s record-breaking Downtown Burger Battle.

There were 39 burgers in the 12th annual competition organized by Downtown Sioux Falls Inc. After taking a year off, Chef Lance’s returned to claim its second victory.

“We’re super, super proud as a restaurant to accept this trophy,” co-owner Lance White said.

“I couldn’t do what I do if it wasn’t for my amazing staff that’s around me. My wife works with me, and she takes all the brunt taking the phone calls and the reservations, and, of course, my staff — from the guy at the front door all the way back to the dishwasher. It was just my idea, and they’re the ones that helped me execute it.”

The winner was a Cuban Burger, made with an 8-ounce certified Angus patty and topped with slow-roasted pulled pork, raspberry poblano barbecue sauce, pickles, shoulder bacon, Swiss cheese and Dijon mayo on a toasted Breadsmith onion bun. It was served with house fries and Mojo dipping sauce.

The restaurant at 431 N. Phillips Ave. served 2,194 burgers, with an average rating of 9.14 out of 10 for the 1,327 votes that were cast.

Votes were tallied based on:

• Flavor
• Patty
• Toppings
• Bun
• Presentation

“This is really the people’s choice,” said Brandon Hanson, CEO of Downtown Sioux Falls Inc. “The community voted on this and decided who won. It was a really, really high score, and this particular restaurant started to take off in week three, and they just carried it on until the end.”

Chef Lance’s on Phillips has added the burger to its regular lunch and dinner menus.

Here are the other top 10 finishers:

• No. 2: BibiSol with I’m in America, I Should Be Able To Get a Burger Here Burger, 9.04.
• No. 3: Perch with The Morning Glory Burger, 8.91.
• No. 4: Minervas with Exploring the Infinite: An Evening With Alan Watts Burger, 8.87.
• No. 5: La Luna Cafe with Escabeche Burger, 8.74.
• No. 6: Club David with Buffalo Burger, 8.69.
• No. 7: The Treasury with The French Onion Burger, 8.57.
• No. 8: Windy City Bites with The Garden Harvester Deluxe, 8.49.
• No. 9: Tommy Jacks with Crack Burger, 8.39.
• No. 10: Severance Brewing Co./Rudy M. Navarrete’s Tex-Mex Catering with Juicy Sioux-zy Burger, 8.35.

This year, DTSF also honored the restaurant that sold the most burgers, which was Monks Ale House. The team there sold more than 6,200 burgers with its The Deviled Egg Burger, which featured two certified Angus beef smash patties, New School American cheese, pickles, bacon, potato chips and deviled egg schmear on a Big Marty Bun.

The craft beer bar and restaurant at 420 E. Eighth St. will continue to serve the burger this month.

“They took the biggest beating as a staff, so we want to say thank you,” Hanson said.

The annual contest was presented by POET and Downtown Sioux Falls Inc.

This year’s competition generated an estimated $3.25 million in economic impact with more than 84,500 burgers sold and almost 42,000 votes cast from almost 30,000 diners.

Nineteen people ate all 39 burgers and voted.

For POET, the sponsorship was a natural fit, said Miranda Broin, director of executive communications.

“We were thrilled. It’s become a Sioux Falls tradition,” she said, noting that the company’s production process includes a high-protein, high-value animal feed ingredient that helps support cattle producers.

Additionally, “this was an opportunity that really aligns with our culture and values,” she said. “We work every day to change the world, but we believe that starts with a culture of giving back.”

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