Montrose Lands Another New Burger Joint, But This One is Truly Obsessed with Houston: Husband-Wife Owners Insist on Keeping It Local — and a Little Out There

Montrose has made way for another burger joint. The new fast-casual BuffBurger is sustainable, locally sourced and all natural — naturally, for the hip neighborhood. Paul “Buff” Burden and his wife Sara opened the second location of BuffBurger last Sunday at 1540 W. Alabama, just a block north of The Menil. The first BuffBurger opened in 2015 over at 1014 Wirt.

Fresh toppings, homemade sauces and quality beef beckon.

“We try to keep it creative,” Sara Burden tells PaperCity. That means everything from a Texan burger with bourbon barbecue sauce and crispy onions to a goat cheese burger with slow roasted tomatoes and truffle aioli.

Montrose is already having a burger moment. But there’s something a little different about BuffBurger. The beast of Burden is strictly Texas Black Angus, courtesy of 44 Farms. Don’t let the name fool you —there are no Buffalo burgers to be had here.

“We’ve only used 44 Farms. We have since day one,” Sara Burden says.  “And we’re in Texas. Why wouldn’t we use local?”

Burden hails from Houston, while her husband Buff is an English expat. On the British Isle, locals are “supportive of anything English,” she says. “We moved to Texas, and it’s the same thing in such a big state. There’s that Texas Love.”

BuffBurger is an organic-friendly take on fast casual. There’s no limit to these locavores’ Texas loyalty. Look no further than their menu’s Amy’s ice cream, Slow Dough bread, Houston Dairymaids blue and Swiss cheese and Pure Luck goat cheese to see that BuffBurger is the taste of the town in many ways.

Red meat options abound, but BuffBurger brings alt-burgers too. There’s an ahi tuna burger with wasabi tartar sauce, a grilled chicken burger with poblanos and green tabasco mayo and of course buttermilk fried chicken with spicy slaw and pickles made in house.

There’s even the corn Fritter burger — vegetarians, here’s looking at you — and a vegan burger is in the works. You can enjoy any burger “In the Buff” by substituting a lettuce wrap for a bun. BuffBurger is about new flavors but also catering to customers. Diners can substitute on any burger with any meat or veggie option.

The Burdens played mad scientist with their sides, concocting a spicy Asian dipping sauce for their Edamame option. It’s something of a favorite, even among some kids in the I-don’t-eat-green stages. The fries are as much a work of art as a product of science. The Burdens performed many experiments with different cuts.

“Our fries are killer. We worked really hard on the exact size, cut all kinds of sizes,” Sara Burden says. BuffBurger ultimately landed between an 1/8 and 1/4 inch cut for optimum fry crispiness.

There’s a bevy of beverages, with 20 drinks on tap. Fifteen are devoted to beer, mainly craft, and four fill out the wine category: two reds, a white and a rose. The last is reserved for the caffeine fanatics, with Katz super-concentrated Cold Brew, another nod to the community.

The Super Cow

A signature art piece hangs on the far wall of this new Montrose burger joint, a super-Instagrammable black and white 44 Farms cow photograph outlined in a vibrant neon green. The piece was made by Light Bulbs Unlimited over on Westheimer.

The Burdens even had local custom steel worker Spencer Elliott design metal, magnetic paper towel holders. Paper towels are a must around the juicy, wood-fired patties. The sleek magnetic table numbers are so strong they stick. The restaurant’s decor shares that streamlined vibe, thanks to metal accents and reclaimed wood. It’s complete with a pop of color: that intense green found on the cow art.

Sara Burden is as precise and passionate about that color as she is all of BuffBurger’s operations. It has to be just so.

“It’s Pantone 355 C,” she says. “It’s not Kelly green, not Irish green. It’s a different green.” It’s been used across both locations.

The couple has even opened a commissary next to the original BuffBurger so they can make big batches of their sauces and toppings, standardizing the menu across both locations and building the brand. It may be tough, with burger joints like Hamburger Mary’s, Stanton City Bites and The Burger Joint already rooted in the area. And Shake Shack won’t be far behind, with it taking over the old Burger King space on Westheimer.

Will BuffBurger buff out the competition?