The Hunts Bet The House
- Vero Minute
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Austin and Ginny Hunt bet the house, literally, on a food pantry back in 2002 that would grow into United Against Poverty. Eleven years into Burgers & Brews, that bet has grown into the biggest stage the event has ever had. East Harbor Band kept the crowd moving between booths, and 11 local kitchens vied for the top prize.
The verdict:
Judge's Choice
1st Place: Touhy's Downtown
2nd Place: Green Marlin Restaurant
3rd Place: Jackie's
People's Choice
1st Place: Green Marlin Restaurant
2nd Place: Jackie's
3rd Place: Mangrove Sands Golf Club & Restaurant
The competition showcased an impressive variety of culinary talent, with 11 kitchens representing restaurants, clubs, and local organizations from across Indian River County: Costa d'Este, Green Marlin Restaurant & Raw Bar, Heaton's of Vero Beach, Jackie's, Mangrove Sands Golf Club & Restaurant, Oak Harbor Club, Post & Vine, Seaside Grill, Sebastian Elks Lodge, Treasure Coast Technical College, Touhy's Downtown, and the Florida Irish American Club.
On the beer side, a ten-taster punch card carried the day. American Icon Brewery poured as both sponsor and hometown pride, with Southern Eagle Distributing making sure nobody's cup ran dry.
Trophies aside, it's still a United Against Poverty fundraiser at heart, and a testament to just how far the organization has come. In 2002, Austin and Ginny Hunt, two Vero Beach High School friends turned husband and wife, took their entire life savings, about $5,000, and used it to open a small food pantry called Harvest Food and Outreach Center.
To make it work, they sold their own house and moved in with Ginny's parents. The first location was a 3,000-square-foot space off Old Dixie Highway in South County, a fraction of the footprint UAP operates today. That gamble, a hand up instead of a handout, is now a countywide organization running grocery access, job training, and crisis care programs that last year alone moved 183 adults through job training and put over $3.7 million in earned wages back into Indian River County. Every dollar from Saturday's burger contest, VIP lounge, and beer cards feeds directly back into that same mission.
None of it happens without the sponsors who sign on months before a single grill gets lit. NAPA Cole Auto led the way as presenting sponsor, alongside the William & Ann Eckerd Foundation, Vatland Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, Seacoast Bank, Caldwell Trust Company, Vero Beach Electrical, D&S Auto, and a long roster of local names, RoofLab to the Exchange Club, who keep showing up year after year.
See you at the fairgrounds next year.
To learn more about United Against Poverty and the services they make available to the community, visit unitedagainstpoverty.org.
All photos below courtesy of Chris Cronin Media
