A hot dog competition in downtown Ocala on Monday will pit local restaurants against each other to see who makes the best wiener.
The 2024 Wiener Wars will be on Monday, April 29, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Ocala Downtown Market, which is located at 403 SE Osceola Ave. in Ocala.
The culinary competition will feature several downtown Ocala restaurants competing on cooking technique, creativity, presentation, and taste using a pre-chosen all-beef frank wiener.
Proceeds from the event benefit the Marion County Literacy Council and the Ocala Outreach Foundation.
Participating restaurants include Bank Street Patio Bar & Grill, Big Hammock Brewery & Bites, Brick City Southern Kitchen & Whiskey Bar, District Bar & Kitchen, Fat Boys BBQ Ocala, Flying Boat Taproom, The Lodge Ocala, Mutiny Ocala, and The Smoked Biscuit Company.
General Admission tickets are $35 and allow visitors to enter the event at 6:00 p.m., when the event officially begins. Early Entry tickets are $50 and allow visitors to enter the event at 5:00 p.m.
Visitors will be given a passport and have the option to sample each participating team’s wiener and side offering and will be asked to cast a vote for their selection for the People’s Choice Champion.
Each participating team will also present a wiener and side offering to each member of the celebrity judging panel. The judges will then rate each offering on presentation, creativity, and taste to determine the Judge’s Choice Champion.
There will also be live music at the event and beer available for purchase.
For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit the Wiener Wars webpage.