HAMBURG BURGERFEST
SATURDAY JULY 21, 2012
BIRTHPLACE OF THE HAMBURGER
Celebrating 127 Years
Hamburg, NY is know as the "Home of the Hamburger". In celebration of this delectable treat, the town of Hamburg celebrates the history of the hamburger with contests, games, music, and of course- tasty food and Hamburgers! Held every 3rd Saturday in July the Burgerfest is a celebration of an American classic and from the Town that created it!
Hosted by the Rotary Club of Hamburg, the Hamburg Rotary Sunrise Club, the Kiwanis Club and the Lions Club, Burgerfest celebrates the birth of the hamburger each year. Hamburg held its first Burgerfest in 1985 to mark the100th anniversary of the birth of the hamburger after organizers discovered a history book detailing the burger’s origins. Frank and Charles Menches, vendors who traveled the world’s fair circuit, and who have been credited with also creating Cracker Jacks and ice cream cones, concocted the all-American burger. Descendants of the Menches brothers from Ohio, who remain in the food industry three generations later, have traveled to Hamburg to participate in several Burgerfest celebrations over the years, bringing along the secret recipe. In recent years, Imagine Hamburg volunteers have cooked up the tasty burgers in the true Menches tradition with the family’s guidance and blessing.
Legend has it that the Menches brothers ran out of their usual pork sausage that hot, fateful day at the fair and turned to local butchers to replenish their supplies. When no pork was available, a butcher suggested ground beef. The Menches brothers purchased the beef, but added secret ingredients, including coffee grounds to create a unique flavor. The hamburger was born!
Join us in this year’s celebration of the Burgerfest! The musical lineup for Burgerfest 2012 has been finalized. In addition to headliners Hit N Run, who take the stage from 7:30 to 11:30 p.m., performers on the Main Stage will be the Steam Donkeys, noon to 2 p.m.; the Afterburners, 2:30 to 4:30 and Yvonne Schmidt, 5 to 7 p.m.
Burgerfest is located along Main and Buffalo Streets and in the Village of Hamburg Municipal Parking Lot. The Taste of Hamburg portion of the festival features the favorite offerings of local restaurants in the parking lot and along Main and Buffalo streets. The one-day festival has something for everyone from Kids Space children's inflatable rides and activities; an arts and crafts show and sale; the Rotary Classic Car Show; a burger-eating contest; LaBatt Beer Tent; and the Fourth Annual Hamburg Film Festival at the Palace Theater. The car show, music with Rock N Roll to the Rescue, the bed race, burger-eating contest, and children’s entertainment will all be situated on Main Street. Kid Space will be located in the parking lot.
This year, the Town of Hamburg Bicentennial Committee is planning some fun events at Burgerfest this year as the town celebrates its 200th Birthday. Stay tuned for the times for the crowning of a centennial king and queen and the winner(s) of the beard-growing contest.
For general information, contact Burgerfest Coordinator Eileen Hotho of the Rotary Club, at 716-648-4167 or eah32@live.com
Vendors interested in participating in the Taste of Hamburg or in having a booth at the festival should contact Kiwanians Sue Ganey at 716-627-9694, or Alan Adema at 716-861-8016 or email them at burgerfest2012@aol.com
To register for the Rotary Club Classic Car Show, call Rotarian Dave Woolley at 716-998-2403, or email him at daw@lawoolley.com
For information on Kidspace activities, contact Lion Phil Durkin at 716-430-0019.
For information or to register for the Burgerfest Bed Race, contact Bruno Lombardo at 716-725-9231 or email him at brunolombardo@hotmail.com
**Please Note- The Hamburg Chamber of Commerce Farmers' Market will relocate THIS SATURDAY ONLY (July 21st, 2012) to the Lake Street Plaza at 206 Lake Street in the Village of Hamburg.