09 Jul Business Review of TerraBurger

My family’s summer just got better. This week TerraBurger opened its second location in northwest Austin at 10611 Research Blvd, right by Costco. Now we have a healthy option for a quick meal at a family-friendly restaurant – what a treat!

When we saw TerraBurger’s sign go up several months ago, we were curious but frankly more than a little skeptical. Lots of businesses have jumped on the green bandwagon for marketing and little else. We wondered how green Terra Burger’s operations would really be. We checked them out online and were impressed with what we saw.

From their website:

At TerraBurger, Rule #1 is “all natural”–we won’t serve anything that contains artificial ingredients, period. No artificial colors or flavors. No flavor enhancers. No trans fats. Nothing highly processed. No artificial additives. In fact, we have an extensive list of banned ingredients that don’t make the cut. For more detailed information on the practical meaning of “all natural”, go here: http://www.naturalingredient.org/naturalingredients.htm.

Next, we’ve chosen to go Organic for our core ingredients—our beef, produce, veggie burgers, cheese, milk, ice cream, fruit, among them—are all 100% USDA Organic. A list of our all natural and organic ingredients is here.

“All Natural Everything, Organic Where it Counts”.

For more information on the difference between All Natural and Organic, you can read about it here. We have spent literally hundreds of hours, vetting hundreds of suppliers who make the best all natural and organic food products in the market, and paring them down to who we think are the best of the best — our suppliers.

Their suppliers list includes some of our favorite local sources for food, such as Sweetish Hill, which made our wedding cake, and Richardson Farms, whose pork is some of the yummiest we have had in Texas.

That left two big questions – would the food be tasty and would the restaurant be a place our family would enjoy visiting? Like many families, we limit our dining out so really want to enjoy every aspect when we do make the trek.

Terra Burger delivered on both counts. The food was delicious. I had a TerraBurger, my husband and eldest daughter got the Hill Country Hickory Burger, and our youngest daughter got the kid’s meal with kid’s burgers. The Hill Country Hickory Burgers disappeared quickly and the kid’s burger was a big hit as it was deemed, “Just my size!” The TerraBurger was scrumptious and I really liked the fresh bun.

We also had the sweet potato fries with our meal. My husband prefers really crunchy food so thought the fries needed to be a little crisper but I thought they were great, as did the kids. (Richard didn’t leave the table until the fries were gone so he liked them well enough, I think!) We didn’t get milkshakes on this visit but noted that a good portion of the posted comment cards were rave reviews for the milkshakes. They’ll be part of our order next time!

Turkey burgers and vegetarian and vegan options are also available if beef is not your thing. Check out their menu for more details.

The restaurant has both a drive-thru and an outside seating area. The owners built the latter with families in mind. There is a fun playscape, complete with swings, slides, and sandboxes. Oak trees provide shade to some of the tables and umbrellas are on the remaining tables. Shade covers have also been installed over large portions of the playscape. For those of you outside of Texas, shade is essential in the summer and early fall months so this is a big plus!

My kids’ favorite part was the splash area. Colorful sprinkers have been set up on one side of the eating area so kids can have fun and stay cool. The favorite feature for my husband and me was the fence around the outside area and the great sight lines in the play area. We could see the kids at all times, which allowed Richard and me to sit and talk while the kids played. An uninterrupted conversation with my sweetie – a true summer luxury!

The owners have definitely thought through many details. Employees’ shirts are made with 100% organic cotton, compostable cups held our drinks, easy-to-find recycling bins were placed by the playscape, xeriscaped grounds surrounded the building and playscape, and the used cooking oil is used to make biofuels.

Visiting TerraBurger and knowing all conscious choices that went into its operations made us feel better inside and out.

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