CLEBURNE, Texas – Just southwest of the DFW you’ll find Cleburne, and since 1902 this tiny building has sat on Anglin Street serving one purpose or another.
Katy Grantges has been a part of this burger business ever since her father bought the place in 2005 and put his sophomore daughter to work.
“Me and my dad worked in here for about six years, and then me and my sister where in here for a couple of years, so it’s been a lot of family togetherness, too much at times,” Katy said.
And by togetherness, she means the kind of close nit family time that might be a bit constraining for most. When you learn that the burger bar only has enough seating for four people at a time, you realize how tight this little burger joint really is.
Considering how Texans are used to wide open spaces, getting cramped together to satisfy a carnivorous craving is a tall order, but people don’t seem to mind. Keep in mind; we’re still the friendly state.
“A lot of people just enjoy coming and chatting,” Katy informed us. “They don’t have anybody to come eat lunch with and they’ll just come and talk. It draws people together. They’re forced to mesh while they’re in here, so it’s fun to see those relationships formk.”
Four folks at time can sit at the counter while a few others wait for spot or an order to go.
Katy’s built up a big clientel for such a small place, and her customers know pretty much everything about her.
“They’ve seen me grow up,” Katy says. “I was 15, so they’ve seen me get married and have lots of babies.”
In fact, Katy got just enough seats for all four of kiddos.
“Usually we kind of tag team doing the babies and burgers,” Katy says.
The Burger Bar got its start back in 1949 when Ora Lanman opened it. The very grill Ora used all those years ago still occupies the same corner. In 1962, Dorthy Bays took over the Burger Bar and made it her life for 43 years before selling it to Katy’s family in 2005.
“She had these walls covered with articles and pictures,” Katy said. “She said those are her memories, make our own. So she took it all with her.”
Katy has made many memories here but one of her fondest is winning a burger battle in Big D judged by another burger loving big guy, Guy Fieri. So she wanted us to give it a whirl.
Katy got things started with a 1/3 pound patty lightly covered in salt and pepper, the grill that’s believed to have been on God’s green Earth for nearly 100 years does the rest.
Then comes the real heat, fresh jalapenos. Cheese, the grilled jalapenos, and bacon hit the burger while the toasted bun gets smothered with mustard, mayo, pickles, tomatoes, onions, and lettuce.
“We don’t have anything too fancy,” Katy says. “It’s all just your normal stuff. It just marries well together.”
With that, we’re ready to take a seat at the bar and taste the winning burger for ourselves.
Our verdict, just amazing flavor coming off that old grill. You can see why this burger won the burger battle. It’s your basic burger with a little spice, but so much flavor. Just like the Burger Bar itself, simple delicious, and well worth squeezing in for.
Just an incredible flavor with those ingredients all fresh here in the Burger Bar placed together with the love of Katy, and the entire history of Cleburne, Texas. You can never beat a Texas style bacon cheeseburger.
The bacon cheeseburger at the Burger Bar definitely seats the bar when it comes to burgers here in the Lone-Star State. Well worth a stop on The Texas Bucket List.
“Just keep it simple, and it works,” Katy says. “People love it.”