Contest seeks to find best ‘slug burger’ of them all

McNAIRY COUNTY, Tenn. — If you’re from southwest Tennessee, you most likely know what a “slug burger” is.

The soybean concoction has quite the following, so much so that the city of Selmer has a competition to find the best one.

It’s called the “Slug Out,” and the competition is stiff. Each competitor submits their best burger to be judged by an unnamed panel.

It’s a serious competition that holds a lot of memories.

“For a lot of people, you see on Facebook and social media that see this event going on and they’re commenting, ‘oh, I don’t live there anymore but I remember those — eat one for me,'” Slug Out coordinator Bryan Huff said.

If you’re curious why the soybean burgers are called slug burgers, many say it’s because when they were first invented you could get one for a “slug nickle.”

Now one will cost you about $1.25.