ORANGE BEACH, AL — Can you make a burger, dessert, sandwich, bacon, steak or seafood dish that’s worth $100,000?

The members of Team Gulf Coast certainly think they can, and they are all making plans now to prove it. These chefs successfully qualified for the world’s largest event in Food Sport- the World Food Championships (WFC).

Thursday through Tuesday, they will be competing for a $300,000 prize purse and the title of 2016 World Food Champion at The Wharf in Orange Beach.

The competition was brought to Orange Beach after Chris Sherrill of the Flora-Bama Yacht Club competed at the 2015 event in Orlando and found out organizers were looking for a different host site.

“If you see Chef Chris Sherrill give him a great big thank you,” Herb Malone, president and CEO of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach Tourism, said. “This all started last year at the Chamber’s Shrimp Festival when they signed up to be a qualifier for the World Food Championships.

“Chris Sherrill got to know the producer of the event who was from Nashville and familiar with Orange Beach and they were looking at perhaps another location. He invited them to come up and look at The Wharf.”

Team Gulf Coast is made up of 21 chefs and their teams that are competing against 430 different teams from across the world who will be seeking the ultimate food crown. These chefs won the chance to compete at WFC by winning a qualifying event.

As a result, one of these chefs will now have a shot for a major payday at WFC, where $100,000 is awarded for the best dish overall and $10,000 is awarded in nine different categories: BBQ, Chili, Dessert, Bacon, Sandwich, Seafood, Burger, Steak and Recipe.

Competing in Seafood: Chef Chris Sherrill, Chef Matthew Brown of Flora-Bama Ole River Bar, Chef Haikel Harris of the Flora-Bama Yacht Club, Chef Brody Olive of Perdido Beach Resort, Chef Chris Kelly of Driftwood Bar and Grill, Chef Paul Kerr of Aspire, Chef Rudy Rudolph of Classic City Catering, Chef Jason Perry of Jackson’s Steakhouse, Chef Acie Vincent of The Redneck Chef, Chef Josh Quick of Odette, Chef Bill Howard of Island Time Daiquiris.

Competing in Steak: Chef Scott Smith of Que’n, Stew’n and Brew’n, Chef Tim Chyrek of McGuire’s, Chef Jordan Wakefield of Smoke Ring.

Competing in Sandwich: Chef Brandon Burleson of Central 129 Coosa, Chef Ira Gallon of Wolf Bay Lodge.

Competing in Burger: Chef Tricia Horton of Grits on Grills.

Competing in Dessert: Chef Pamala Nye of Villaggio.

Competing in Recipe: Chef Fletch Miller of Culinary Muse.

Competing in Bacon: Chef John Hamme of the Beach Club.

Competing in BBQ: Brian Potter from Team Texas.

You can cheer on Team Gulf Coast by following them on Facebook or following the results at worldfoodchampionships.com. There’s also a good chance that these chefs will be seen on TV, as this event is filmed for national cable television each year. It has been seen on the A&E Network as well as the Discovery Network.

About the World Food Championships

The World Food Championships is the largest competition in Food Sport, where champions of previous events convene annually for a chance at winning the Ultimate Food Fight and a share of more than $300,000 in cash and prizes. Now in its fifth year, The World Food Championships platform ranges from live-event competitions to a robust multimedia platform that helps pro chefs, home cooks, and competition teams achieve food fame and fortune as TV’s next big food stars.