Taste of the Country 2026: Good Food, Great People & One Amazing Buna Community

There is just something special about seeing a community come together.

The 2026 Taste of the Country was filled with good food, laughter, friendly competition, local businesses, neighbors visiting with neighbors, and plenty of reasons to remember why Buna is such a special place to call home.

From the moment the doors opened, the room began filling with people ready to taste, visit, laugh, and enjoy an evening together. Our participants brought their favorite dishes,

creative ideas, and plenty of personality to their tables—and they certainly didn't make judging easy!

But as wonderful as the food was, Taste of the Country was about so much more than what was on the plates.

It was about community.We want to recognize every person who participated. It takes time to prepare a dish, plan a booth, pack everything up, set it all up and then spend the evening sharing what you've created with your community. We appreciate the time, effort and heart each participant brought to the event.

And the 2026 Winners Are...

We had some amazing entries this year, and we are excited to congratulate our Taste of the Country 2026 winners!

🏆 Best Main Dish
Big Jon's Steak Sandwich — Wheeler's Dirt & Services

🏆 Best Dessert
Jacqueline Taylor — The Gingerbread Lady

🏆 Best Side Dish
Dirty Rice — Black Gold Barbeque

🏆 People's Choice Award
Freeze Dried Faves — Melissa's Freeze Dried Faves

🏆 Most Creative
Dirty Sodas — DA House

🏆 Best Presentation
Kat's Korner

Congratulations to every one of our winners!

More Than a Food Competition

One of our favorite parts of the evening wasn't something that could be judged.

It was looking around the room and seeing people talking.

People were catching up with old friends, meeting someone new, learning about local businesses, tasting something they had never tried before, laughing together and cheering one another on.

Those moments matter.

Small-town events give us an opportunity to do something that can sometimes get lost in our busy everyday lives—they give us a reason to simply come together.

That is part of what we want the Buna Chamber of Commerce to continue creating within our community. We want opportunities for our businesses, organizations and residents to connect with one another, support each other and build relationships.

Because a strong Chamber isn't simply about businesses.

It's about building a stronger community.

Thank You, Buna!

There are so many people who helped make Taste of the Country possible.

To every participant who spent hours preparing something special for us—thank you.

To everyone who attended, tasted, judged, laughed, visited and encouraged our participants—thank you.

To the businesses and organizations who participated and supported the event—thank you.

And to our sponsors, donors and volunteers who gave their time, resources and support to help bring everything together—we truly appreciate you.

An event may only last a few hours, but the relationships, conversations and memories created during it can last much longer.

That's what community events are all about.

Until Next Time...

The Buna Chamber of Commerce is proud to be part of a community where people still show up for one another.

Taste of the Country reminded us that when our businesses, organizations and residents come together, something pretty wonderful happens.

We eat. We laugh. We visit. We support each other. And somewhere along the way, we make a few new memories.

Small Town. Big Flavor. Stronger Community.

Rooted in History. Growing Together. Building Tomorrow.