The Battle of the Burger 
On the Grill at Cover 3 
The 50 Greatest Hamburgers In Texas
A gastro-scientific inquiry into the finest burgers in the state that invented the burger, including the Toro (#4), the Stodg (#6), the Miss Hattie (#28), and, in our top slot, a miracle of meat served only on Sundays. No wonder they call it the Lord’s day.
samantha says: Lee’s Creek grill on the south side of lake cherokee near longview. This place is a hidden gem. Best burger around along with everything else there. (August 13th, 2011 at 10:24am)
Related Stories
The World’s First Hamburger (August 2009) »
Famous Texans on Their Favorite Burgers (August 2009) »
Living the Dream (August 2009) »
Chop-House Burger With Parmesan Chive Fries (August 2009) »
Making Burgers (August 2009) »
Grady’s 3M Burgers (August 2009) »
Thrill of the Grill (August 2009) »
The Biggest Burger Ever (August 2009) »
(Page 3 of 4)
No. 24
The French Connection Burger
$6.15
Burgers, Fries And Cherry Pies, Midland
If béarnaise sauce is great on a steak, might it not also elevate a hamburger? The answer—a resounding oui—has led to one of West Texas’s most unusual culinary inventions, the singular French Connection. Swathed lightly in a tart, thin homemade béarnaise, the eight ounces of cooked-to-order meat demands a careful choice among three house buns: white, wheat, or jalapeño-cheddar. Wisely, management recommends omitting mustard, ketchup, and pickles. If only the bright but boxy building looked a little less commercial. 5210 W. Wadley, 432-617-2327. LJG and RR
No. 25
American Kobe Beef Burger
$29 (Fries are included in this price.)
Mockingbird Bistro, Houston
Lovingly patted from eight ounces of American Kobe beef and crowned with an indulgent slab of seared foie gras, this pampered prince of burgers is fantastically juicy, ridiculously expensive, and just plain outrageous. Not only will you discover that goose liver makes everything better, you will have cocktail-party chatter for years. Now, for you pikers, here’s a secret: You can get a fab burger on the bar menu (with Stilton in place of foie), fries included, for a mere $9. 1985 Welch, 713-533-0200. PS
No. 26
Cheeseburger
$9.50 (Fries are included in this price.)
Parkside, Austin
Undoubtedly some people will resist ordering a boring burger from a menu that boasts twelve kinds of oysters flown in daily from all over creation, but, well, those people are fools. This extra-juicy patty comes covered with white cheddar and perched on a toasted, house-made bun. The meat is so well seasoned you’ll scavenge the little beef nubbins that fall on your plate. If there’s a drawback to this burger, it is that it’s petite (6.5 ounces), which seems downright cruel when you’re licking the plate. Crispy potato slivers powdered in chopped garlic, shallot, parsley, sea salt, and black pepper will ruin you for all other fries. 301 E. 6th, 512-474-9898. RB
No. 27
Black Buffalo Burger
$6.99 (Fries are included in this price.)
Black Sheep Lodge, Austin
If, like us, you have a deep and abiding love of both buffalo wings and hamburgers and have often wondered if together they would not produce something greater than the sum of their parts, this is the burger for you. The tangy vinegar-and-Tabasco sauce is hot but not overpowering, and the richness of the blue cheese is complemented by the thick tomato slices and a delicate spring mix of arugula and spinach. We know that sounds a little sissified, but balance is provided by the sports bar’s pool table, dart boards, waitresses in short shorts, and abundant flat-screen TVs tuned to ESPN. 2108 S. Lamar Blvd., 512-707-2744. KNP
No. 28
Miss Hattie Burger
$8.95 (Fries are included in this price.)
Miss Hattie’s Café And Saloon, San Angelo
When a restaurant’s theme pays tribute to a historic local brothel, it doubtless wants its customers to leave satisfied. And they do: No one has ever ordered the Miss Hattie—a brazen, open-faced number consisting of a plump, Worcestershire-spiked, char-grilled meat patty and a surfeit of garnishes, including pepper jack cheese and crisp bacon, plus jalapeños, roasted red peppers, and chipotle aioli—and been less than sated. Enjoy the Gay Nineties atmosphere as you await the inevitable question, “Daddy, what’s a bordello?” 26 E. Concho Ave., 325-653-0570. Closed Sun. LJG and RR
No. 29
Double Hamburger
$4.20
Mel’s Country Café, Tomball
Mel’s is not on or even all that near what could be considered the beaten path, but a burger experience well worth your trouble awaits. The handmade patties are so juicy and flavorful it’s as if they were treated to some sort of gravy bath. They come medium-well on a toasted bun, accompanied by the de rigueur shredded lettuce, tomato, pickle, bulky chopped onion, mustard, and mayo. What are you waiting for? 24814 Stanolind Rd., 281-255-6357. Closed Mon. DC
No. 30
Half Ass Burger
$10 (Fries are included in this price.)
Roaring Fork, Austin
A highly personal question must be asked before you order: Are you a Big Ass or a Half Ass? It’s cool if you’re a Big Ass, but happily, even the eight-ounce Half Ass is plenty. The hand-formed patty of 100 percent ground chuck is accessorized with aged cheddar and three crunchy strips of excellent lean bacon. Chipotle mayo (infinitely superior to plain mayo, IOHO) comes on the side. The one drawback is that the inevitable gusher of meat juices soaks the bottom bun, causing the sandwich to begin falling apart about halfway through the meal. Frankly, the Half Ass doesn’t eat all that well, but, as Mom used to say, everything gets mixed up in your stomach anyway, and would that all catastrophes tasted so fine. (Plus, the dainty eater could always—gasp!—use a fork.) 701 Congress Ave., 512-583-0000. Two other locations, one in Austin and one in San Antonio. PS
No. 31
Frisco Burger
$3.99
Gene’s Tasty Burger, Wichita Falls
The pure outrageousness of a classic chili cheeseburger is epitomized by Gene’s legendary Frisco Burger. The chili spills lavalike onto the plate; the cheese caps it in gold. You’ll want to hose down afterward, but it’s worth it. Celebrating its fiftieth year of flipping burgers and serving shakes, this loud, popular joint is a household name in North Texas, and the number of tourists who have snapped pictures in front of its neon sign, in the shape of an ice cream cone, must now number in the millions. 2310 Holliday, 940-767-1921. Closed Sun. KC
No. 32
Brie And Granny Smith Burger
$10 (Fries are included in this price.)
Cliff Cafe, Dallas
Putting fruit on a burger? Why, that’s like putting Willie Nelson on a reggae record! Oh wait, that happened. And it kind of made sense, didn’t it? Well, the Brie and Granny Smith Burger at this joint next to the Belmont Hotel is no different. The apple is tart, offsetting the savory cheese with an air-clearing crispness and providing a stage on which the plump beef patty can perform. If you like your burger swanky, you won’t be disappointed. (The restaurant will be closed for renovations until September, but the burger will still be served at the hotel bar.) 901 Fort Worth Ave., 214-393-2300. BP
No. 33
Bean and Frito Burger
$4.95
Bracken Store Café, San Antonio
A Tex-Mex combo plate on a bun—that’s the way to think of this iteration of a San Antonio bean burger. Slathered with refried beans and stuffed with crisp, salty corn chips, the behemoth is further dolled up with an american-cheddar blend, chopped onions, and sliced pickled jalapeños. Crazy as it sounds, everything coalesces into one glorious, chin-wiping, shirt-splotching meal. Between bites, stare at the array of vintage knickknacks and old license plates adorning every surface of the off-road country cottage’s rock walls. 18415 Bracken Dr., 210-651-6515. Closed Sun. WM
No. 34
Hamburger
$3.10
Sam’s Deli Diner, Houston
Watch out. If you’re not careful, you could get your photo on the wall and a nickname like the “two-a-day kid.” But who could blame you? The burgers are delicious and cheap (our whole meal cost less than $10). Nestled between a toasty buttered bun and camouflaged by crisp chopped lettuce and glowing red tomatoes is the prize: a thick, juicy patty with just enough grease to make you do the hand jive. Combine it with a Byron Freeze (blended vanilla ice cream and root beer) and you’ll be dancing all the way home. 11637 I-10 (Katy Fwy.), 281-497-8088. Closed last Sunday of the month. MG
No. 35
The Regular (With Asadero Cheese)
$9 (Fries are included in this price.)
Dry Creek Café, Houston
There are voluptuous-burger people and slim-burger people. If your taste in burgers runs more to Scarlett Johansson than, say, Audrey Hepburn, go eat this sandwich now: the half-pound patty of freshly ground Black Angus beef arrives all shimmering and juicy on a toasted whole-wheat bun. The lettuce is crisp, the thin-sliced pickles are tart, and the tomato is a ripe red instead of a pale green. For a small fee, you may have your choice of one of six cheeses—adding the rich, creamy asadero results in custom-made gloppiness where every flavor still stands on its own: perfection on a bun. 544 Yale, 713-426-2313. MS
No. 36
Build-Your-Own Burger
$3.99
Hamburger Store, Jefferson
The walls of this humble eatery on the edge of Jefferson’s historic downtown are papered with dollar bills left by previous patrons. such Gimmicks are commonly used to deflect attention from so-so food. But this beauty of a burger has all the right stuff: a pillow-soft bun toasted on the inside, a tomato slice that nearly rivals the bread in diameter, four pickles placed just so, a judicious separation of mayo and mustard, and an asymmetric patty bearing the savory splotches of a greasy, flavor-enhancing griddle. Turns out there’s an endearing story behind that expensive wallpaper: In 2005, after the owners served up more than two thousand free meals to Katrina evacuees, grateful visitors started leaving the bills as a love offering. 101 S. Market, 903-665-3251. JB
My Library
