FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. — If you’ve never had a slawburger, you’re missing something that was invented right down the road. And next Saturday is your best excuse to fix that.
The 11th Annual Slawburger Festival takes over downtown Fayetteville on April 18, and if last year was any indication, it’s worth the drive. The festival is free to attend and runs from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., with more than 60 vendors, live music, food competitions, and a beer garden lined up across the square.
For the uninitiated: a slawburger is a regional Tennessee staple — a hamburger topped with a mustard-based coleslaw that traces its roots back to Fayetteville in the 1920s. It’s the kind of thing that sounds simple until you eat one, and then you understand why an entire festival exists in its honor.
This year’s theme, “All Roads Lead to Slawburger,” leans into how far the festival’s reach has grown, drawing visitors from across the region for what’s become one of Lincoln County’s signature community events.
The day kicks off with an opening ceremony at 11 a.m., followed by the crowd-favorite competitions. The Kids’ Ice Cream Contest runs at noon, the Slaw Dog Contest — sponsored by Elk River Veterinary Care — goes at 12:30 p.m., and the main event, the Slawburger Eating Competition sponsored by Sonic, Just Slawburgers, Kent Kwik, and Jack Daniel’s, starts at 1:30 p.m. New this year: a youth division for ages 13 to 17. Registration for both the ice cream and eating competitions must be completed in advance at fayettevillemainstreet.com.
Live music on the Powerhouse Plumbing Stage runs from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., with headliner Third Party Thieves closing out the night from 7 to 9 p.m. The Copperweld Kids’ Zone is free from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with donations benefitting Junior’s House. Elk River Trading Company will have a photo booth on the north side of the square offering free photo strips and digital copies.
Fayetteville is about a 30-minute drive from Lynchburg — an easy Saturday afternoon trip with something for everyone in the family.
For the full schedule and competition registration, visit fayettevillemainstreet.com.•
About The Lynchburg Times: We cover regional evetns because Moore County doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Carved out of portions of Bedford and Lincoln counties, Moore County sits at the center of four surrounding counties — and what happens in Bedford, Lincoln, Coffee, and Franklin counties is a lot of fun too. An informed community is an engaged one, and engagement starts with knowing what’s happening in your own backyard. If this kind of coverage matters to you, consider supporting The Lynchburg Times at lynchburgtimes.com.