Hat Creek Burger Company — Restaurant in Texas

I went to Hat Creek Burger Co. yesterday for what I thought would be a calm, tasty lunch. I ordered a double Hat Burger with cheddar, all the toppings, sweet potato fries, and a small cup of their famous fry sauce. Everything smelled amazing—grilled beef, toasted buns, and that tangy sauce you could almost eat with a spoon.

Enter… the boy.

He was maybe 6 years old, sitting a couple booths over with his parents. They were still ordering when he locked eyes with the fry sauce pump like it had whispered his name. The kid sprang into action, filling cup after cup until he had a fry sauce army lined up. Then, without hesitation, he started drinking them—straight up. No fries. No hesitation. Just pure commitment.

By his fourth cup, the inevitable happened. He went pale, stared off into the middle distance, and—how can I put this politely—returned the fry sauce to the earth. Multiple times. People scattered. One poor guy dropped his milkshake in the panic.

The staff, to their credit, didn’t miss a beat. They swooped in with cleaning supplies and the kind of calm usually reserved for ER doctors. I seriously think they deserve hazard pay.

Then came the twist. The boy, now lying dramatically on the booth like a defeated pirate, suddenly sat up, pointed at the pump, and said in a hoarse whisper: “It spoke to me.”

The mom looked mortified, but the manager just grinned and said, “He’s not the first.” He even pulled up a photo on his phone of another customer from last week who apparently did the same thing and claimed the fry sauce gave them “the strength of ten men.” At this point, I couldn’t tell if I’d wandered into a burger joint or the beginning of a supernatural thriller.

Despite all this, my burger was spot-on—juicy, perfectly cooked, with a bun that actually held up to the last bite. The sweet potato fries were crisp, and the fry sauce (consumed in reasonable quantities) was just as good as everyone says.

Four stars instead of five, only because it’s hard to enjoy a meal while witnessing what may have been a fry-sauce possession. But if you’re looking for good food with a side of unpredictable theater, Hat Creek...

Hat Creek Burger will remind you of a typical Austin chain moving to Houston... and has some similarity with Shake Shack, but stands out very well on its own. They have a large facility with some indoor seating for hot days as well as an outdoor area with fans and a fairly large playground for the kiddos. They have a number of flat screen TVs in all areas. They offer a number of specialty burgers, but for my first burger, I went with the Big Hat which is a double and I added cheese, bacon, and avocado. The bun was nice and fresh, not as buttery as Shake Shack's, but made up for it with fresh wholesome taste. The burger was excellent hence my 5 star rating for this class of restaurant. The cheese was nice, the bacon delicious and crispy, and the avocado tasted fresh cut. The sweet potato fries were delicious as well and of a generous portion. They have 3 sauces, one for fries was fairly good, I particularly like the "happy" sauce which tastes like an aioli and honey mustard type concoction. The third sauce was not to my liking, but I think if you like thousand island or big mac sauce, you might prefer it. They did make a mistake on my friend's order adding cheese when he didn't ask for it, but he didn't mind; aside from that, the staff were helpful, well groomed, and friendly being proactive to pick up used trays. I was going to criticize them for small cups (typical of Austin chains), but was happily corrected that they have large cups as well. They also have a paleo bun free option, or if you want to go the other way their tater tots looked tempting. If you are going to get a full meal with side, probably looking at 10 to 12ish range per adult. Based on this visit, I feel it is well worth it; I will definitely...

I'm giving it 4 stars. I've only been there once, but the burger and tater tots were absolutely spot on. The place was clean, and the service was excellent (the people that complained about the service were there within 10 days after opening, so those reviews are kinda irrelevant IMHO).

I would have given it 5 stars, but there are several things they need to address in order to get there. Actually I'm afraid that if they don't address these issues they won't be around for the long haul which would be a shame.

I'm always willing to pay more for a better product, but the price for what you get is absolutely outrageous. While it is high quality the portion size is small. I paid $16 for a double cheeseburger with bacon, a tater tot (not a big portion) and a small ice tea. In most peoples world, paying $12 for that would be steep, $16 is nuts.

The size of the burger (in diameter) is not much bigger than Mickey D's although it is thicker. The burgers at Sonic and Whataburger are huge in comparison. I guess that each patty at those places contains 33% more meat.

I got 2 small pieces of bacon on my double cheeseburger. They actually looked comical on the sandwich.

I was surprised that my burgers came out medium rare, which is how I want them. However the cashier made no mention of that. If my wife got my burger, she would have returned it. I hope they always ask how you want your burgers cooked.

In closing, I feel that they have the best burgers on Louetta (between I-45 and 249). I hope they make some adjustments so they...