Texas' Best Burger Comes From A 100-Year-Old Spot Still Run By The Same Family

While we have Texas to thank for plenty of iconic foods, beef is usually top of mind when the state's cuisine comes to mind. Whether it's Tex-Mex ground beef tacos or traditional brisket, Texas can't get enough beef, which makes sense given its massive beef cattle industry. Texans love their iconic homegrown burger chain, Whataburger, but there's one small burger spot in North Texas that has been providing hamburgers to the Lone Star state for almost 35 years longer. 

Featured in our list of the absolute best burgers in every U.S. state, Herd's Hamburgers has been a staple in North Texas for more than a century. Located about an hour and 15-minute drive northwest of Fort Worth, the small town of Jacksboro has been home to Herd's Hamburgers for a staggering 110 years. Opened in 1916, Herd's Hamburgers has been owned and operated by the same extended family since its opening. The current burger joint moved from its original location to its current location in 1980, but the ethos and burgers have remained the same since the restaurant's inception in the early 1900s. 

Herd's Hamburgers was ahead of its time, as they've been making smash burgers for decades, long before they became massively trendy. Its unique, slightly-smashed style of burgers are cooked with the bun resting on top of the patty after they've been flipped to absorb a bit of grease from heavily seasoned cast iron griddles.

The menu is simple, both visually and in selection, offering hamburgers, cheeseburgers, ham & cheese sandwiches, grilled cheese, and even a bacon sandwich. Other than a few double burgers, including a double double (not to be confused with In-N-Out's famous double double) option, as well as drinks and chips, all at shockingly low prices. Adorably, the menu features "candy" at the bottom, presumably as a dessert option. By default, all burgers come with a certain set of toppings unless specified otherwise, including mustard, pickles, lettuce, tomato, onions, and salt. Ketchup, mayo, pepper, and jalapeños may be added or substituted. Notable for a burger joint is the lack of any sort of fries on the menu.

There are plenty of online reviews raving about the Texan burger spot, and Herd's Hamburgers has a stellar Google Maps rating of 4.7 stars with over 1,000 reviews, and a 98% recommendation rate on its Facebook page. One fan on Facebook said that Herd's Hamburgers are "some of the best burgers on the planet. Literally can't drive through Jacksboro without stopping." Another Facebook user shared that they used to eat at Herd's Hamburgers back in the 1960s as a high schooler, and on a recent visit back to Herd's, stated that "the burgers we had yesterday were just as delicious as the ones I remembered" from the '60s. In keeping with the traditionally old-school, no-frills vibe, Herd's Hamburgers remains a cash-only establishment.