Locals know best.
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Hundreds of votes were cast for the best burger in town, and coming out on top was Mudgee's 53 Food Co. Part four of the Mudgee Guardian 'Locals Know Best' campaign.
Owner and chef at 53 Food Co, Steven Bowlay said it was an honour to win and offered some sage advice. "It feels good to be recognised by locals, a lot of people voted, we thank them very much. You've got to win in your head before you start. You can't just start a place and then be looking for affirmation off anyone. You've got to have it in your head that you're already good," he said.
"I think if you do good stuff, let people tell you, instead of you bunging along thinking that you're the best, the people will actually tell you the honest truth. The customers will decide with their feet. Probably more than people giving you their opinions.
"We don't really listen to the good or the bad, we just stay in our lane and just try to keep doing better burgers."
As voted by locals
Steven revealed the surprising origins of the business' name. The so-named Food Co opened on the 53d day of the year in 2019, February 22 for those playing at home. And on top of that, this job happens to be Steven's 53rd according to Steven.
"I started off at McDonalds Bakery in 1997 and since then I've had 27 chef jobs, eight finance jobs, 10 bar jobs and other stuff in between," he said.
Easter Sunday also happened to be 53 Food Co's busiest day ever with 521 burgers sold to customers in a single day, Steven confirmed to the Mudgee Guardian.
Special mentions go to Simply Fresh Cafe and Cooyal Hotel for coming in with the second and third most votes respectively.
We let voters add optional comments with their votes, we've included some below.
Keep an eye out for the next vote coming this week.