When P. Terry’s Burger Stand first opened in 2005 as a drive-thru with a walk-up window on Barton Springs Road and Lamar Boulevard, owners Patrick and Kathy Terry aimed to offer all-natural American burgers and fries as fast food with an eye on better quality.
Since then, P. Terry’s has expanded from one to 28 burger shops in greater Austin, San Marcos and San Antonio, with different locations offering dine-in, drive-up or food-truck service. P. Terry’s opened five new locations during the pandemic. Another five locations are expected to open next year with Dripping Springs coming in mid-January and the New Braunfels location opening soon after.
“We [wanted] to provide a quality product that had never been served in a fast food environment,” Patrick said.
Patrick grew up in Abilene going to Mack Eplen’s Drivateria, a drive-in restaurant known for its charcoal burgers. The restaurant had its own commissary where the simple menu was made fresh every day. Patrick wanted to recreate the burger with its own commissary from his growing up years and talked about it to whoever would listen all through his career in advertising. He decided to take the plunge and plant a flag of their first drive-thru burger joint.
“If you look back into in early 2000s, there was a lot of information coming out on just how unhealthy most fast food was at the time,” P. Terry's Burger Stand CEO Todd Coerver said. “Austin is a food city that's always sort of demanded what’s better for you and better alternatives. I think that this was the perfect place at the perfect time for P. Terry's to get started.”
P. Terry’s flies in beef from California that is vegetarian-fed and free of hormones or antibiotics. The restaurant also uses Idaho potatoes and perfected their cooking methods to ensure meals are free of trans fats or hydrogenated oils. Their banana bread and shakes are also made in their own commissary.
In line with the quality of ingredients, Patrick also paid attention to making an impact with the architectural style of the building. Impressed by the timelessness of Googie architecture—a futuristic building style based on the Space Age and technology—Patrick designed the burger stand with Michael Hsu to incorporate a timelessness associated with the style.
The commitment to quality fast food is the driving force that keeps bringing the customers back, Patrick said.
What's in a name?
The name "P. Terry" comes from owner Patrick Terry, who coined the nickname in a friend group that had two people named Patrick. For simplicity, his friends called him P. Terry, and his wife later suggested using the name for the restaurant.
Hours vary by location.
www.pterrys.com
