Hot Tomato Summer is Back – And Heating Things Up For Its Biggest Year Yet
Richmond, Va., July 20, 2023 - With tomato season in full swing, Duke’s Mayonnaise is bringing back Hot Tomato Summer, the week-long celebration of summer’s iconic duo: tomatoes and mayonnaise. Now in its third year, the event takes place July 24-30 and features local restaurants serving up creative, delicious dishes that highlight fresh tomatoes and Duke’s mayo.
This year, Duke’s is doubling the tomato and mayo excitement with the addition of Charleston, S.C., and Charlotte, N.C. Duke’s first launched Hot Tomato Summer in 2021 in Richmond, Virginia, where Duke’s Mayonnaise is headquartered, as a way to lend support to local restaurants bouncing back from the pandemic. In 2022, Duke’s added Greenville, S.C. to the celebration, the place where the Duke’s mayo recipe originated and is still made. Now, more than 150 restaurants from these four Southern cities will include a mayo-and-tomato themed special on their menu throughout the week.
“Duke’s is a staple in so many Southern homes and restaurant kitchens, and we love watching the mayo-and-tomato enthusiasm take hold during Hot Tomato Summer,” said Rebecca Lupesco, Duke’s Brand Manager of Mayohem. “In years past, we’ve seen everything from classic BLTs to specialty pizzas, cocktails and even mayo ice cream.” There’s so much talent in the Southeast culinary community, and the chefs’ creativity really shines during Hot Tomato Summer.”
In addition to the new Hot Tomato Summer destinations, Duke’s is also introducing “Venmayo,” an opportunity for restaurant-goers to win cash through Venmo. Mayo and tomato fans that post a picture of their meal on social media and tag Duke’s and the participating restaurant are entered to win. Duke’s will randomly select winners throughout the week and DM them to coordinate their Venmo prize. Fans will also have a chance to vote online for their favorite Hot Tomato Summer dish. The winning restaurant in each city will receive the coveted Golden Tomato trophy.
In honor of the event, Duke's and Sauer Brands will collectively donate $20,000 to help support Shalom Farms in Richmond, Va, and Mill Village Garden in Greenville, S.C. Both are nonprofit food justice organizations dedicated to ensuring an equitable food system in their communities. Duke’s has also partnered with Project Paulie, a nonprofit that supports organizations fighting food and housing insecurity. With Duke’s support, 20 percent of the proceeds from Project Paulie’s tomato-themed bucket hats and dad hats goes to the Southern Smoke Foundation, putting dollars directly into the pockets of food and beverage workers in need.
Details about participating restaurants and their mayo-and-tomato specials can be found at dukesmayo.com/hottomatosummer. To shop Hot Tomato Summer merchandise and more, visit dukesmayo.com/collections/merchandise.
Duke’s Mayonnaise was created in 1917 in Greenville, S.C., by Eugenia Duke. Since then, Duke's has been adding southern flavors to make good things better. In addition to the flagship mayonnaise, which is still made according to the founder's original recipe, Duke's offers light, olive oil, and flavored mayonnaises, tartar sauce, sandwich relish and regionally inspired Duke's Southern Sauces, dressings, and mustards. Duke's is the Official Condiment of the Tailgate and title sponsor of the Duke's Mayo Classic & Duke's Mayo Bowl. Web: dukesmayo.com. Instagram: @dukes_mayonnaise.
