Hidden Texas Cheeseburger Haven Named America’s Best Burger Chain: True Mom-and-Pop Operation is Drawing Major National Love

America’s best burger chain is hiding out in Texas. Austin favorite P. Terry’s has been named America’s Best Burger Chain — and a hidden one at that — by Southern Living magazine.

Of course, that’s hidden nationally. Any self-respecting aware Austin resident will tell you that P. Terry’s epic burgers are common knowledge in these parts.

Online reviews rave about P. Terry’s service as well as the eats. “To me, P. Terry’s tastes exactly like a burger should,” one reads. And that’s exactly what owner and founder Patrick Terry himself was going for when he created the place.

“The idea of a hamburger — meat and cheese on a bun goes a long way. And if you do it right, it goes even longer,” Terry tells PaperCity. The burgers are all made possible by P. Terry’s commissary, where employees get things started at 1 am and go all day.

Terry was caught off guard by Southern Living’s major kudos.

“We were excited, and we were delighted. We were delighted, but we were shocked,” he says.

Terry is proud of his small fast-casual food chain, and trying to keep it weird in just Austin. But comparing yourself to the competition was never in the cards, or what P. Terry’s stands for.

“We’re not really in the business of comparing ourselves to anyone else, or paying attention to the competition,” Terry says. “We’re based on our own set of beliefs and what we’re trying to accomplish.

“We’ve been in the business 13 years. We just kind of keep our heads down and try to do our best everyday, and try to get a little better everyday.”

Terry — and Southern Living — will tell you that P. Terry’s is simply building on a strong start.

“I always wanted to have a hamburger stand. Just kind of a little odd, but kind of my deal. I loved the idea of burgers, fries and shakes. Something very simple, something very natural,” Terry says.

Natural and all-natural. “I was just beginning and starting to look at the process,” Terry says. “My wife had just finished reading the book Fast Food Nation. She literally threw it at me and said ‘If you’re going to do that, do it right.’ ”

So Perry read the book, learned about the real issues with fast food and what it’s done to the country.

“A lot of low quality food and mass marketing. And just shoving it down everyone’s throat,” Perry says.

It was decision made instantly: Don’t do it by the book. Do the opposite.

The P. Terry’s Process

A processing plant in Fresno, California had just started selling wholesale, all-natural, 100 percent vegetarian-fed beef free of antibiotics and any added hormones. “From that moment on, we served that high-quality beef,” Terry says.

And he thinks the French fry is every bit as important as the hamburger. He remembers the old days growing up in West Texas and stopping by mom-and-pop burger stands.

“Most of the French fries were just awful. Dark, soaking in grease. I was the guy who would pick through it and get what I thought was the best one, get what I thought was the next best one. I’d eat them all anyway,” Terry laughs. “But I knew there was something wrong. I made that commitment, I had to learn.”

Quality fries are better said than done, he says. It all starts with the right potato. That would be the top notch-but-tricky Idaho Burbank potato. They’re a far cry from fast-food go-to Kennebec potato, which are easy to work with and cook consistently year round.

It’s not easy as pie when it comes to Terry’s chosen one.

“If you choose to do Idaho Burbank potatoes, you are fighting with God everyday,” he says. They’re only picked once a year, and the crop changes. A truckload comes into P. Terry’s every four days. It’s an arduous process of soaking and cutting, keeping an eye on excess sugars.

“In the old days, I would call the University of Idaho literally in a panic and say ‘Can I speak to someone in the potato department?’ I’d get a guy who knew potatoes, honest to God,” Terry says.

Moving onto other vegetables, P. Terry’s is known for its veggie patty. It’s hearty and not what you’d call vegan-friendly, made of brown rice, cremini mushrooms cooked in cream, parsley, black beans and a couple different cheeses.

The price? Just $3.95 for a cheeseburger. And a hamburger will only set you back $2.50.

“We never looked around and said ‘Wow, look at all we’re doing that nobody else does. Why don’t we charge more?’ That was never the focus,” Terry says. “It’s always been based on the masses, always based on a higher quality than most places serve.”

His wife puts it even more plainly. “My wife loves to tell the story that ‘Any jackass can sell a $7 Black Angus all-natural beef hamburger. And any jackass can sell a $1.50 crappy burger. It takes a special jackass to sell a high-quality burger at a low price.’ I think that’s what we’ve accomplished.”

Southern Living would definitely say so. If you’re outside of Austin, you’re out of luck. There’s no plan to take P. Terry’s national. It looks like you just might have to make the trip to the capital.