Burger Bash Top Honors Go To Iron Chef Michael Symon

MIAMI BEACH (CBS4) -- The South Beach Wine and Food Festival officially kicked off Thursday night with the Burger Bash, hosted by Rachael Ray. It's where some of the country's greatest beef patty purveyors are pitted against one another as they show off their grilling skills.

This year, the winner was Food Network Iron Chef Michael Symon which marked the first ever back-to-back Burger Bash wins. His winning burger was dubbed the Yo! Burger, which had fried salami, aged provolone cheese, shasha sauce which is a hot mustard sauce with hungarian peppers and pickled onion.

The award is part of the Burger Bash, an annual event at the festival hosted by Rachael Ray. Chefs from around the country gather on the beach for a massive grill session and let attendees vote for best burger.

The 10th annual Wine and Food Festival is a star-studded four-day event that showcases the talents of the world's most renowned wine and spirit producers, chefs and culinary personalities.

The event was founded as a fundraiser for Florida International University's School of Hospitality and Tourism Management and has grown tremendously over the years. It is now one of the largest and most well-known festivals of its kind in the country.

In addition to Thursday nights $200 Burger Bash, other high-profile events include Friday night's $350 Bubble-Q on the sand behind the Delano on South Beach hosted by Bobby Flay, Saturday's $150 The Best Thing I Ever Ate At The Beach hosted by Duff Goldman at the Ritz-Carlton beach, and Guy Fieri's $125 Big Beach Bar and Grill Closing Party at Ganesvoort South Beach on Sunday.

There's also Saturday and Sunday's $225 Whole Foods Market Grand Tasting Village at 13th and Ocean Drive. Tickets are still available for the Grand Tasting Village.

Another fun event for the entire family is the Fun and Fit As A Family featuring the Kidz Kitchen which takes place at Jungle Island. The two-day long mini-festival teaches kids and their parents how to make healthy food choices and features a variety of cooking demonstrations for children by various Food Network personalities such as Rachael Ray, Rocco DiSpirito, and Giada DeLaurentiis on Saturday and, Guy Fieri, Tyler Florence and Duff Goldman on Sunday. Tickets are $20.00.

The Food Network South Beach Wine and Food Festival will run through Sunday, Feb. 27th.