Burger restaurant aims to be the local spot where the community can come together

Located near the corner of Legacy Drive and Coit Road, inside what used to be a Jack in the Box fast-food restaurant, is Buffalo Bluez, a local burger joint and bar where owner Sean Cahill said community is a way of life.

Families and groups of friends fill tables in the dining space, hanging lights are strung across an outdoor patio and cards and board games wait to be taken off the shelves. A touchscreen, interactive jukebox is mounted on the wall ready to shift the mood or help a customer take a selfie.

"We're the local joint that everyone wants in their neighborhood," Cahill said.

At the age of 5, Cahill said he knew he wanted to be a chef, and by the time he was 12, he decided to own a restaurant. After receiving his AAS culinary degree from Johnson and Wales University and serving as a sous chef in places such as Pappas Bros. Steakhouse Dallas, Cahill made good on his childhood dream when he opened Buffalo Bluez in January 2013.

"I got the degree, I got the foundation started, and then it was just a matter of learning what you're doing," Cahill said. "This is the end goal. This is where I wanted to be."

And where he wants to be is with his customers, evident by Cahill's constant presence around the restaurant on any given day. Cahill is now friends with many of his customers who he said he would not have otherwise met without being in the restaurant every day. However, he said that kind of visibility has also made everyday errands difficult.

"I can't walk through the grocery store without someone stopping me," Cahill said with a grin.

As owner, Cahill said he has shifted to managerial duties from a chef role, leaving the menu and food preparation to Kitchen Manager Kory Gilbertson. Gilbertson said he has been in the business for 25 years and served in corporate restaurant kitchens.

Gilbertson said he prefers Buffalo Bluez because he has the opportunity to interact with the customers and be creative with the menu. He said this includes taking customer requests, which is how the deep-fried Nutter Butter dessert came to pass.

From the potato to the meat, Cahill said everything is sliced in-house and made daily. The house-cut Friez and the chef-favorite sweet onion teriyaki burger are both staples on the menu, but other items, such as the hatch chile burger, are seasonal offerings.

With football season underway, Cahill said the restaurant booms on Sunday with fans ready to watch their respective teams on each of the five TV screens.

"I want to be the guy people know and go see," Cahill said. "This restaurant has really grown into something that the community can enjoy and be proud of."

Buffalo Bluez, 4200 Legacy Drive, 972-618-2833, www.buffalobluez.com, Hours: Sun.–Thu. 11 a.m.–10 p.m., Fri.–Sat. 11 a.m.–11 p.m.

Giving back to the community

While Cahill pursues an active presence within the community, he is also focused on giving back to it through an effort called "Dollarz for a Differencez." Cahill collects cash donations from patrons for City House, a nonprofit transitional living program for young adults in Collin County. Cahill said he intends to collect $1,000 before the end of the year to give to City House.