The Museum of Glass Slider Cook-Off Saturday night, with nine local restaurants competing for titles of best slider and people's choice, yielded big satisfaction for the winner of both awards, Boathouse 19. Their team, headed by chef Charles Dobbins, led the restaurant to victory in both categories with their bright, fresh interpretation of a slider - an intensely flavorful charbroiled house-cured salmon with rhubarb relish, wild arugula and mint yogurt on grilled ciabatta.

The 550 attendees of the sold-out event brought their appetites to the table. While Boathouse 19 swept the awards, each restaurant's slider showed creativity and demonstrated their unique perspectives. From Asado came a nicely spiced braised lamb slider with the flavors of Argentina. BITE Restaurant's chicken and waffle slider with bacon aioli embodied their playful spirit. A "Cubano roulado," a pork lover's dream with mustard and pickle relish from Maxwell's showed skill. Brix 25 demonstrated their ability to execute simple food well with a traditional grilled beef patty with gorgonzola sauce. A play on the banh mi sandwich from Dirty Oscars was light and fresh. Marrow's rich, savory beef cheek bulgogi with crispy tripe was one of the more creative options, and was well balanced with kimchi aioli. From the Social Bar and Grill came a pork belly slider topped with a quail egg and a kick of sambal chili. To finish it all off, Art House Café's dessert slider, an orange creamsicle spice cake concoction, finished things on a sweet note.

Will Boathouse 19's winning slider make it on their menu? We'll have to wait and see. If it does, I'll be the first in line.

Photo Credit: Steve Dunkelberger