Vendors sold out of sandwiches Sunday at the Chattanooga Market’s inaugural Slider Smackdown.
“For as hot as it was [Sunday], it was an exceptional day,” said Jason Bitler of Dayton. “Chattanooga just showed up today. Something happened this weekend good.”
Market organizers developed the slider smackdown to increase visitors. They asked truck vendors to come up with creative slider sandwiches for the day.
Shrimp, jerk chicken with pineapple and garden vegetables with bacon were among slider sandwiches served Sunday.
James Lepard makes an order of sliders in the World Food Tribe food truck during the Slider Smackdown at the Chattanooga Market on Sunday, July 19, 2015, in Chattanooga, Tenn.Five vendors participated. Chattanooga Market Operations Manager Steve Brehm said he’s interested in expanding the event and hosting a formal slider smackdown contest in the future.
On sweltering hot days like Sunday, not many people shop at the outdoor market, he said.
Brehm estimated traffic to be around 8,000 people on Sunday. But when a food-themed day catches on, traffic significantly increases. More than 11,000 people attended the Street Food Festival in June, the biggest crowd of the year, he said.
Bitler declared Bitler Bistro the unofficial Slider Smackdown winner. He and wife, Shannon Bitler, offered three sliders and sold out of all three.
Locally grown tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, basil, balsamic vinegar and bacon formed their market special slider sandwich. A shrimp roll and gyro meat made the others.
Jacob D’Angelo, executive chief at Rolling J’s Mobile Bistro, said he also sold out of sliders. He offered customers a falafel slider and said he sold more than 400 of the small sandwiches Sunday in addition to regular menu items like barbecue, prime rib and steak.
The market also included its usual display of local vendors, boiled peanuts, hand made crafts and locally grown veggies. The scent of homemade soaps and Shea butter perfumed some areas. Music played and market organizers hang up more than two dozen flags around the market in honor of the U.S. military members killed in Thursday’s shooting.
The only problem was the blazing heat, some vendors said.
All but two of the slider smackdown vendors set up near fans or in the shade.
Only the World Food Tribe and Double Barrel BBQ food trucks braved the full blast of the heat on the pavement in front of the market. Double Barrel BBQ owner Ray Kazlaskia called the smackdown a good opportunity.
“In America I’ve been everywhere from Alaska to Florida, from New York to Santiago. We were blessed with the choice to move anywhere we wanted to and we chose Chattanooga and opportunities like this slider smackdown. I’ll always take it. We did great today,” he said.
Jean and James Lepard, owner of World Food Tribe Truck, created three slider sandwiches for the slider smackdown.
Their shrimp, hickory smoked barbecue and pork sliders did so well, the couple say they may regularly add them to the menu.
“People came from Knoxville just for this,” said Jean Lepard.
Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.