Nancy’s Hustle Has One of the Most Essential Burgers in Texas | Eater Houston

"Cool and unpretentious, this East Downtown neighborhood bistro takes its name from Mad Max’s Fat Nancy’s Café and Houston’s “Hustle Town” nickname, with those pop‑culture bona fides woven into its DNA and a menu unafraid of a little experimentation. As Eater Houston’s Restaurant of the Year in 2018, it has proven staying power and is home to one of the entire Lone Star state’s most essential dishes. The burger is a permanent fixture for good reason: two juicy patties, melted American cheese, and sharp sour pickles are stacked inside a brioche English muffin, whose crisp exterior, spongy interior, and pronounced tang push a dish you’ve had a million times into new territory—creating the burger in Texas. The Nancy Cakes—cornmeal pancakes with smoked trout roe, cultured butter, and chives—mix sweet, salty, and creamy, encapsulating what this place is about: playful yet serious about its food, always chasing the right balance between comfort, quality, and luxuriousness. Drinks include a chilled amaro shot that changes with the season, from bianco vermouth with a lemon twist and olives in summer to a warmer sweet vermouth with orange, topped with hibiscus foam, in fall. The vibe is dim lighting, mid‑century wood‑paneled walls, and the kind of playlist that jumps from Solange to David Bowie without breaking a sweat. With an expansion to daily dinner service, elusive reservations are a little easier to score; the sweet spot is a party of four so you can crowd the small tables with plates and try as many things as possible." - H. Drew Blackburn