GatlinBURGER Week

GatlinBURGER Week

Mid-September, annually

A week-long competition where Gatlinburg restaurants each build one specialty burger that exists only for the duration of the event — then the public votes on which is best.

No regular menu items qualify. Every entry is a one-off creation made for the competition, and the chefs push to outdo each other and themselves from year to year. Visitors taste, vote, and crown the GatlinBURGER Meister, and anyone who works through the app challenge earns prizes topped by a two-night Gatlinburg stay.

Coming for it? Browse our Gatlinburg cabin rentals, minutes from the Parkway.

When it happens

Annually in mid-September, running about a week from a Friday through the following Friday. It consistently falls in the second or third week of the month.

Confirm the current year's dates and the full participating list at gatlinburg.com or through the Visit Gatlinburg app.

How it works

The burgers

Each participating restaurant and attraction creates one specialty burger available only during the event — not on the menu before or after. With a couple dozen restaurants taking part each year, the range runs from Southern barbecue builds to international flavor fusions, gourmet stacks, and combinations nobody saw coming.

Voting and the Meister

At the end of the week, the burger with the most public votes is crowned GatlinBURGER Meister — the top honor, and genuine bragging rights in a town that takes its food seriously. Anyone who orders a specialty burger at a participating location can vote.

The GatlinBURGER Challenge

Run through the free Visit Gatlinburg app, and stricter than most event challenges — you have to actually order the burger.

1. Download the Visit Gatlinburg app and open the GatlinBURGER Challenge under Goals
2. Find participating businesses in the app, each with its specialty burger described
3. Order the specialty burger at a participating location — dine-in or carryout both count
4. Get the secret code from your server. Every location has its own, and they aren't meant to be shared
5. Check in on the app by tapping that business and entering the code
6. Repeat at six more locations, for seven or more total
7. Present proof of completion at the Gatlinburg Welcome Center to collect your prizes

Challenge prizes include an exclusive GatlinBURGER Week t-shirt and additional prize pack items.

Tips for the week

• Set up the app before you arrive. The code check-in is app-based — have it downloaded and the challenge found before your first burger
• Carryout counts. If the line is long at a popular spot, ordering to go still earns the check-in
• Map your seven stops first. Group them by area rather than deciding each meal — Parkway stops together, off-Parkway together, and you'll cover seven without backtracking
• Vote as well as check in. They're separate actions, and only voting enters you for the grand prize
• Bring proof to the Welcome Center. Challenge prizes are collected in person, not mailed
• Pace yourself. Seven specialty burgers in seven days is a real commitment. Splitting them, or sharing across a group, is a legitimate strategy

Where to eat

The participating list changes every year and is published by the Gatlinburg CVB and in the Visit Gatlinburg app each September. Two of Gatlinburg's long-running restaurants have their own pages here:

• No Way Jose's Cantina — riverside Mexican with a creekside patio
• Best Italian Cafe & Pizzeria — New York-style pizza and Italian classics on the Parkway since 1976

See our downtown Gatlinburg guide for the wider dining picture, and check the app for this year's confirmed roster and burger descriptions.

What else to do in mid-September

The timing lands in one of Gatlinburg's better windows — summer crowds tapering off, fall foliage not yet arrived. See our things to do guide for more.

• Anakeesta — the Bear-Varian Fall Festival typically runs from late summer into November; a natural pairing
• Dollywood — the Harvest Festival begins in September, with Great Pumpkin LumiNights after dark
• Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies — open daily, and entirely indoors
• Gatlinburg SkyPark — the SkyBridge, with early fall views starting to come in
• Great Smoky Arts & Crafts Community — the eight-mile studio loop east of downtown
• Alum Cave Trail — September weather is among the best of the year for hiking in the Smokies
• Downtown Gatlinburg — the full guide to the Parkway

Frequently asked questions

What is GatlinBURGER Week?

A week-long culinary competition organized by the Gatlinburg Convention & Visitors Bureau each September. Participating restaurants create exclusive specialty burgers available only during the event, and visitors taste, vote, and can complete an app-based challenge for prizes.

When does it take place?

Mid-September, running about a week from a Friday through the following Friday. Confirm the current dates at gatlinburg.com.

What is the GatlinBURGER Challenge?

An app-based challenge. Order the specialty burger at seven or more participating locations, get the unique code from your server at each, check in through the Visit Gatlinburg app, then present proof at the Gatlinburg Welcome Center to collect your prize pack.

What's the grand prize?

A two-night Gatlinburg stay, a Gatlinburg Attractions Pass, and a prize pack. Entry comes from voting for your favorite burger — not from the challenge itself, so do both.

What is the GatlinBURGER Meister?

The title given to the restaurant whose burger receives the most public votes. The competition's top honor.

How many restaurants take part?

Around two dozen restaurants and attractions each year. The current list and burger descriptions are in the Visit Gatlinburg app.

Does carryout count for the challenge?

Yes — both dine-in and carryout qualify, as long as you order the specialty burger and get the code from your server.

Can a group split the burgers?

Each check-in requires ordering a specialty burger and getting that location's code, but nothing says one person has to finish it. Splitting across a group is how most people get through seven in a week.