These students created a burger and a beer. Now they’re going to SOBEWFF

Miami chefs know plenty about fine dining, but leave it to three college students to create a memorable burger and beer pairing.

Three Florida International students entered and won a Red Robin Gourmet Burgers contest to have their culinary creations featured at next week’s South Beach Wine & Food Festival. One created a Cuban sandwich-inspired burger and another pair brewed a mandarin orange India pale ale, and both will be served at the popular (and populous) Burger Bash on Feb. 24.

Given Suman, a 19-year-old chemistry student at FIU’s north campus, was cutting through the hospitality building when he caught a video ad for the contest: a $10,000 prize and Red Robin would serve only his burger at Burger Bash.

Suman, a Miami native, spent the next three days creating a recipe for what would become his 305 Burger: an all-beef patty with melted Swiss cheese, shaved ham and a mango-mustard sauce inspired by the mangoes that grew around his North Miami Beach childhood home. Final step: pressing it in a buttered hot pan to emulate the toasty Cuban.

“I was trying to play off something that was gastropub and Miami, and the 305 Burger just came to me,” Suman said.

Red Robin cooked the top 10 recipes and chose Suman’s as their favorite. He will be at the festival helping to sling his burgers and will have $10,000 to help cover his tuition the next few years.

Paired with the 305 Burger will be Adam Yudorich and Mauricio Fischer‘s IPArin IPA. The two hospitality school students were taking a brewing sciences class at FIU, known for it’s B.R.E.W club, and created their hoppy craft beer together for a course final.

They got an A — then entered it in Red Robin’s contest and won $2,500 and a spot pouring five kegs of their beer at Burger Bash.

“And we’re both very excited to be participating,” Fischer said.

“I plan on making a lot more brews at the school,” Yudorich said.

That’s how you become a Miami college legend.

This story was originally published February 15, 2017 at 1:39 PM with the headline "These students created a burger and a beer. Now they’re going to SOBEWFF."