Willy had a blast at the biggest Food Expo in Southeast Texas—Taste of the Triangle.
Willy Burger continues to kick down the door of 2022 with a big, bold, burger boom! Willy Burger had the joy, honor, and privilege of participating in our first food expo under the new ownership, new branding, and new excitement.
The Taste of the Triangle is a huge annual food and bev exhibit of the Sabine Area Restaurants Association. Held on Fat Tuesday (Mardi Gras) at the Beaumont Civic Center in downtown Beaumont, The Taste of the Triangle is a scrumptious social event with food, drink, music, and smiles all around. It’s a legendary event that allows the public to taste a little bit of everything. Well, actually, a LOT of everything. Food vendors, restaurants, breweries, bakeries, and more set up to show and share nice bites and conversation.
And this year, Willy Burger not only participated, but Willy was the official sponsor! We had a terrific time as we got to meet lots of new friends and share a mere sampling of what the Willy Burger menu has to offer.
Since we cannot cook onsite, our team came prepared with heat and meat as we dished out mini-versions of two of our most beloved burger items: The Booty Burger and the Hee-Haw Burger. These sliders were going faster than we could keep up with. So much in fact, we had to send in for the reserves. TWICE!
Our Booty Burger is made with fried boudin balls and Creole mustard atop our Certified Angus Beef patty. Full of juicy, jumpin’ flavor, it was a hit for the largely Cajun crowd ready to celebrate Mardi Gras in style.
Through long lines at our booth and the two re-loads we were happy to do, we quite enjoyed the glowing reviews and kind comments all night. Even in the following days, folks messaged us on social or dropped by our restaurant in Beaumont. “Best bite of the night” and “Totally worth the wait” were a couple of our personal favorites.
Additionally, the award-winning Hee-Haw Burger had to make its presence known at the Taste of the Triangle. Our pimento cheese, pepper-jelly, fried green tomato and Certified Angus beef burger was a hot commodity. We had folks greet us and meet us with this burger as the center of conversation. And we really enjoyed sharing bites with our neighboring booths. It’s certainly a compliment to have other restaurateurs salivate and rave about our burger!
“It was such a fun night. We’re exhausted, but it’s a good thing,” says VP of Operations, Alden Pond. Pond and his wife, Sabrina, along with manager, James St. John, and a few other Willy teammates worked the event.
“We came in early to decorate and set the scene so that we could just enjoy serving up sliders and visit with folks. But man! We had to call for backup before the first hour was up…it’s awesome to know that people couldn’t get enough of what we’re doing.”
The Taste of the Triangle is an entertaining event, complete with music, giveaways, and a lively party vibe in addition to the food and drink. The night started with a VIP hour and then followed by opening up the “food gates.”
“It’s super rewarding. We got word that a couple came in the restaurant that night because of the buzz about our booth. They said the line was so long for burgers at OUR booth that they just skipped out of the event and free samples to just come over for the full, real thing,” says Pond
“That’s a testament…to our quality, special burgers and to our dedicated team who make it happen.”
The Taste of the Triangle is an advocate for food and restaurants of the greater Southeast Texas area. The proceeds from the event and other events throughout the year go to support restaurants and relief as well as fund scholarships for Lamar University students of Culinary Arts and Hospitality programs.
Willy is really on the move! If 2021 was any indication of the delicious momentum of Willy Burger—what with the additions of new executive team members, new brand direction, and new ownership—then 2022 is on pace to one-up the monumental year.
