Second-Annual Riverwalk Trust Burger Battle Crowns a Champ

Stephanie Colaianni

​Friday night's Burger Battle continued the ongoing debate over which Fort Lauderdale restaurant is the champion of the chuck. And for the second year in a row, that champ is...

Georgie's Alibi.

Click here for a full slide show from the event.

The veteran Wilton Manors restaurant and bar wowed the judges yet again with its deceptively simple take on a bacon cheeseburger. The scores from six celebrity guest judges combined to give the winner a slight edge over Capital Grille's char-grilled cheeseburger.

Judge Sef Gonzalez -- also known as the Burger Beast -- was one person who thought Georgie's hit it out of the park yet again.

"We voted blind, so I had no idea who I was voting for," says Gonzalez. "But as soon as I bit into it, I felt like 'I don't know if I can get a better burger than this right now.'"

Gonzalez described the burger as having crisp bacon, a really nice bun, and meat that was perfectly balanced between medium and medium-well.

"Some people like their burgers rarer, but I think if you're going to win a contest like this, you've got to cook it at least medium."

The judge's love for Georgie's didn't even take into account the restaurant's side dish, a Jack Daniel's vanilla shake garnished with pieces of bacon dipped in chocolate. (Sounds like someone's been watching Epic Meal Time.) The shake was missing from their plates, according to Gonzalez.

Attendees at the event did get the shake, but they had some other ideas about who made the best burger. They gave Rok:Brgr's bacon-and-onion cheeseburger the People's Choice award for best of the battle.

But by claiming its second win in a row, Georgie's has pretty much cemented its status as the burger to beat in Fort Lauderdale. Sure, there will be scrutiny. People will pontificate on whether or not Georgie's serves as good a burger in its restaurant as it did at the battle, just as many will likely trumpet the patty as the greatest thing ever put between two buns.

But one thing is clear: That Jack Daniel's shake better be on the menu.