Officials with the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association (ICA) and Iowa Beef Industry Council (IBIC), have announced the winner of the “2018 Best Burger” contest. The winner is Café Beaudelaire, in Ames. Brooke German, Director of Marketing for IBIC said today (Tuesday) “We are excited to kick off May Beef Month by awarding Café Beaudelaire with the title of the Best Burger in Iowa. The Brazilian-inspired restaurant serves a hand-pattied burger, and the judges noted that the taste and quality of the burger is outstanding and worth a drive to have it again. ”

Café B, as it is called by locals in the area, is owned by Brazilian-born Claudio Gianello and his wife, Kellie, from Carroll. The restaurant is located in the heart of Iowa State University’s campus-town and serves food with a Latin flavor to Ames’ temporary student population and permanent residents. The restaurant has been in business for 28 years, and over that time, Gianello has tried several different renditions of his now-famous burger. He settled on a simple combination of salt, pepper and oregano on a hand-made patty of Certified Angus Beef. Together with a toasted bun and a variety of toppings, the result is nothing short of amazing.

The designation as Iowa’s Best Burger comes after a two-phase competition. The first phase is all based on votes from the public. For a month, burger lovers went online and voted for their favorite Iowa burger, submitting nearly 10,000 votes representing around 700 restaurants. At the end of the month, the ten restaurants with the most votes are declared the “Top 10.” From there, anonymous judges visited each of the restaurants, focusing on the burger patties and scoring them based on taste, doneness and presentation.

Café B joins previous winners including The Smokin’ Hereford BBQ of Storm Lake, which took home the title last year. Winners in previous years are: 2016 – The Chuckwagon Restaurant Adair; 2015 – The Cider House of Fairfield; 2014 – Brick City Grill in Ames; 2013 – 61 Chop House Grille in Mediapolis; 2012 – Coon Bowl III in Coon Rapids; 2011 – Rusty Duck in Dexter; and 2010 – Sac County Cattle Company of Sac City.