B.O.M.B. Awards: Best Mainland Burger

Bradenton is burger town, so if you’re the type of person who gets their moo moo meat at McDonald’s or even Five Guys, either stop reading or read on and change your wicked ways! This year, we’ve split the award between island and landslide eateries, and S.O.B. Burger snags its second B.O.M.B. award for the best mainland burger.

Justin Swisher, who started S.O.B. (South of Bradenton) Burgers with his wife Amy, isn't your typical burger chef. A graduate of the esteemed Le Cordon Bleu Institute of Culinary Arts in Pittsburgh, Swisher first made his bones cooking at one of Emeril Lagasse's New Orleans restaurants. Still, when it came to opening his own spot, he knew he was a hamburger man, and Bradenton is better for it.

From the Shroom, a beefy burger slathered with sauteed mushrooms and Swiss cheese, topped with lettuce, tomato, and onion, to the Brewmaster, which is topped with caramelized onions, bacon, and Swisher's famed Brewmaster cheese sauce, served on an impeccable pretzel roll, the offerings are both delicious and inspired.

Other favorites include the Voodoo, which features a Cajun cream cheese spread, the Holy Grail, which adds mac and cheese and bacon on top of the burger, and the Cubano, which is a Cuban-sandwich inspired burger offering. The Hangover is a bacon cheeseburger topped with an over-easy egg that's meant to cure a big head after a bender.

S.O.B.’s brioche buns are far better than anything gracing a local burger elsewhere, and the fresh-cut, fried-in-peanut oil french fries are even better than Five Guys, while Swisher's gourmet tater tots are one of the best side items in the county.

Honorable mentions: Everyone knows about Shake Pit, and Bradenton is still reeling from the loss of Council’s–which recently won our readers’ poll, despite having been a casualty of COVID. Two burgers that I’d highly recommend trying that you may not yet have tried are Kelsey’s on Cortez and 3 Keys Brewery, both of which sling a solid burger backed by a cold beer.