This Just In: Two Establishments DQ'd in Burger Cup; Rumi and Nola Through to Second Round

This just in: Two venues that made it past the first round in the Burger Cup have been disqualified, leaving room for two additional burger places to join the ranks of the 32: Rumi and Nola.

El Gran Bocado, that purveyor of fine Mexican comestibles, participated in our Burger Fest and in fact served a mean burger there – but to date they have yet to add this kickass burger to their regular menu.

Therefore in the interest of fairness, we've asked them to step aside and allow their bracketmate, Nola, on through to the Round of 32. Fans of El Gran Bocado will be happy to hear that they plan to add their burger to their regular menu soon.

Element Fresh, which had surpassed Rumi in the first round, was asked to step aside due to a ruling on the concept of "burger" – On EF's fine menu is in fact a steak sandwich (pictured above), which features pan-fried filet mignon. While that's perfectly delicious, it does not quite fit the definition of "hamburger," one crucial element of which is the use of ground meat (as opposed to sliced pieces of meat).

It sounds like a bit of an arbitrary distinction, especially to those unfamiliar with Western food – in fact the Chinese translation of "hamburger" han bao bao (汉堡包) is often loosely applied to all manner of sandwich, many of which do not resemble much of what a typical Westerner might be thinking of when they are thinking "burger."

Our salutations to both Rumi and Nola and wish them the best in the next round; meanwhile we also applaud Element Fresh and El Gran Bocado for their chivalry in stepping out of the competition.

Now for those of you who have yet to do so, get voting – the Round of 32 is only open until September 9!

Photos: Ken Liu, Element Fresh