Over 50 restaurants to take part in the Ultimate Burger battle of 2025.
Thunder Bay, ON, Thursday, October 30, 2025 – The Ultimate Burger Battle (formerly Novemburger) is back for another year, and 2025 is shaping up to be the biggest year yet! November 1st will mark the kickoff for United Way of Thunder Bay’s tastiest campaign.
The Ultimate Burger Battle brings together the power of food and the power of giving back; local eateries dream up a unique burger creation to sell for the month in a friendly battle of the burgers. At the end of the month, one of these spectacular burger creations will emerge victorious as Thunder Bay’s Ultimate Burger of the Year, as voted by Ultimate Burger Battle Ambassadors. $2 from each burger sold will be donated to the United Way.
“It’s that time of year again! The Ultimate Burger Battle is back! Another year of delicious burgers, friendly competition, and community building. What can we say – food brings people together!” says local realtor and Ultimate Burger Battle Chef de Mission, Erika Mikkola. “When we started this event back in 2019, we brought in 11 restaurants. This year, we have 55 participating restaurants, including 6 regional restaurants in Kenora, Nipigon, Terrace Bay and Manitouwadge! We’re eternally grateful to the community for helping us grow the campaign over the past seven years. Now, let’s eat!”
The campaign kickoff was held this morning at Norteños Taqueria on Arthur St. In attendance were participating restaurants, Ultimate Burger Battle Ambassadors, sponsors, friends, and burger aficionados, including owner of TBay Modular Floors and the Ultimate Burger Battle presenting sponsor, Al Sebastian.
Some lucky burger lovers won’t have to wait until November 1st to try the burgers, though. Last night, United Way held their second annual Ultimate Burger Battle Tasting Party, which invited local burger lovers to The Outpost at Lakehead University to get a sneak peek of 2025 Ultimate Burgers from several participating restaurants. Attendees paired their burgers with a taste of Sleeping Giant Brewing Co.’s Root Beer, and enjoyed live magic from local magician, Mackinley Steinhoff, music from Throwback, and the comedy stylings of Ron Kanutski and Gurpinder Singh (a.k.a. GPS Jokes).
In addition to participating restaurants, this year’s campaign also features special supporters A&W and George’s Market & Celebrations. Throughout November, when you upgrade your burger to double bacon, double cheese at A&W, $1 will be donated to United Way of Thunder Bay. At George’s Market, 20% of sales from their turkey feta spinach burger patties will support United Way — a delicious way to create your own Ultimate Burger at home and help make Better Possible in our community.
This year, the Ultimate Burger Battle has also introduced merchandise for fans who want to take their love of burgers out of the restaurants and into their homes. Branded shirts, hoodies, and hats from Ungalli Clothing Co., bath bombs, lip balms, and body butters from Lovely Body Products, and candles from Waxxed Candle Co. are all available for purchase
Says Hailey Buosi, co-founder and director at Ungalli; “We’re so excited to be able to unveil the first ever Ultimate Burger Battle merch! We hope everyone is as excited as we are about this new era of the campaign, and we’re proud to be a part of it. We can’t wait to see community members rocking their love for burgers this month!”
Throughout the month, community members can rate what they ate by voting online (on the campaign’s brand-new website) for their favourite Ultimate Burger. At the end of the month, the three burgers with the most votes will be crowned People’s Choice.
The Voucher Program will return, providing local businesses with Ultimate Burger vouchers to give to their customers. Ultumate Burger Battle @ Work, which invites workplaces to order burgers for a staff luncheon as part of a workplace campaign, will also be available.
The Ultimate Burger Battle isn’t just a time for taste testing, however. The campaign aims to give back to the community, providing support through the United Way’s NOURISH the North – one of three impact areas funded by their BETTER is POSSIBLE campaign. NOURISH the North unites farmers, food producers, Indigenous partners, community organizations, and local businesses to build a sustainable, circular food system that strengthens communities across northwestern Ontario.
Says United Way of Thunder Bay CEO, Albert Brulé; “The Ultimate Burger Battle is about food in more ways than one. Sure, we get to enjoy a month of delicious burgers, but the campaign’s true aim is to provide food security for community members in need through NOURISH the North. By connecting locally grown food with local needs, we help ensure that individuals, families, children, and seniors facing food insecurity have access to fresh, nutritious meals. Last year alone, we raised over $130,000 to support local food programs. That’s a lot of lives impacted, just from eating burgers!”
The campaign changed its name earlier this year to create more opportunities for other United Ways across Canada to participate. There are a total of 13 United Ways participating in 2025. More information on the name change is available here: www.uwaytbay.ca/novemburger-will-never-be-the-same-again.
The Ultimate Burger Battle runs until the end of November, when the Ultimate Burger of the Year will be declared, People’s Choice Ultimate Burgers will be announced, and Most Ultimate Burgers Sold will be tallied.
To learn more, visit www.burgerbattleuwaytbay.ca
