Olive Burger Gets a Festival

The olive burger is a Michigan thing. In fact, it might have been birthed right here in Lansing. On June 24 the olive burger will be celebrated at Jackson Field. 

The Lansing Foodies Facebook group, with the help of the Facebook Community Accelerator Program, will stage Lansing’s first Olive Burger Festival. 

“Our mission is to celebrate all of the wonderful things about the Lansing-area food scene,” said Erin Brains, the Lansing Foodies events coordinator. “Olive burgers are definitely an iconic feature that is abundantly available all around the Lansing area — and so we think it’s only right that we should be deemed the Olive Burger Capital of the World.” 

Lansing Foodies was founded in 2018 by Brains and her husband after they moved to the Capital City from Oregon, where they were members of a similar foodie group. What started as a Facebook group composed of three family members has grown to more than 40,000 members over the past five years, said Brains. 

“We wanted to make sure we could find all of the most delicious food in town when we moved,” said Brains. 

In late 2022, Lansing Foodies was chosen to participate in the Facebook Community Accelerator Program, from which — in addition to intense coaching — the Lansing Foodies received a grant from Global Giving. The grant, along with other partnerships and sponsors, provided funding for the festival, Brains said. 

While burgers will be the star of the festival, Brains said the event will be family-friendly. 

“We want this to be a very fun day for people of all ages. We will have entertainment, including live music, roaming entertainers, games and a kids’ play area,” she explained. “Our hope is that the event is accessible and enjoyable to everyone in the area, even if you don’t like olive burgers.” 

The festival will run from noon to 7 p.m. at the ballpark. More information can be found at lansingfoodies.com/about-obf.