Austin Ascenders: Dan's Hamburgers
Katie Congdon serves up what’s keeping an austin icon cookin’
If you know Austin, you know Dan’s Hamburgers. For nearly 50 years, they have faithfully served old-fashioned American hamburgers, and breakfast too, to Austinites. No frills, no fuss. Just good, simple food. Katie Congdon, daughter of the famous Dan and Fran, and the current owner of Dan’s Hamburgers took the time out to give us a dash of their history, some reminiscing of an old Austin, and some wisdom and advice on surviving as a small, local business during a pandemic.
Studio Dzo: Dan’s Hamburgers has been an icon in Austin for so long. Everyone has their version of the story of Dan’s (and Fran’s), can you give us the story?
Katie: My parents, Dan and Fran, founded the company in January 1973. My dad had been managing another hamburger restaurant for about seven years. He wanted to try his own. So, he leased the first location on South Congress to start the business. Over the years, my parents opened five locations all throughout Austin. In 1990, they divorced and that original location on SoCo was taken over by my mom and renamed to Fran’s. Dad kept the other three. In 1998, my dad passed away and I took over his three “Dan’s” locations.
Studio Dzo: What happened to Fran’s?
Katie: My mom is retired now. We never owned the Congress location, so when the lease expired, we didn’t renew it. And, the Cameron Rd. location was sold in 2016.
“...families used to come in in the evenings to sit down and have a meal. Now they’re just on the go and on their phones.”
Studio Dzo: How did it happen that you took over the three Dan’s Hamburgers?
Katie: We were a big family, seven kids, so we all worked at the restaurant growing up. By the time I was 13, it was just expected. I started out cleaning tables. Eventually, I began to learn customer service, cashiering, helping out in the kitchen, all that sort of thing. When I was older, I became an assistant manager, and that rolled into managing my own location, up to becoming GM of all Dad’s locations. After my parents divorced, I kept working with my dad. My other siblings worked for our mom. At the time of his death, I was already the GM and in charge of operations. I was also the only one working for him. So, I was the heir of his stores.
Studio Dzo: How would you define the mission of Dan’s Hamburgers? How has that aided your success?
Katie: Definitely being a simple, honest family restaurant where you can have a good meal. We still run operations the same way as when they started. Because of that, we have loyal customers. We’re not fancy and we don’t try to be! We are more of a diner, not fast food. So, we make everything to order. We prep everything in-house and it’s all fresh.
Studio Dzo: How have you seen Austin change over the years and how has Dan’s Hamburgers shifted in response?
Katie: Oh man, the growth. More traffic, haha. Everyone is in a hurry! It seems like nobody sits down to enjoy a meal anymore. Years ago, young families used to come in in the evenings to sit down and have a meal. Now they’re just on the go and on their phones. As a response, we’ve implemented drive-thrus at some of our locations. It isn’t fast-food, like I mentioned, so it takes a little longer than a fast-food drive-thru. But, it’s quicker than dining in. Since the pandemic, everyone has had to slow down. That’s been interesting to observe.
“We decided from the beginning that we were not going to let anyone lose hours.”
Studio Dzo: Speaking of the pandemic, how has Dan’s been doing through it?
Katie: When it first hit, the shelter in place, business dropped to 50% at 2 of our locations, 65% at the other three. At this point today, we’re only up to about 85%. A lot of our business was dine-in because people wanted a hot meal made to order and that’s what we do. But we’ve only recently started opening up the dining room. Before customers would come, pick up food, and eat in their car. Some even brought a table and chairs and ate it outside their car. At this stage, some people aren’t sure about dining in. We have installed partitions inside. We are following CDC guidelines really closely. Slowly, but surely, things are getting back to a new normal.
Studio Dzo: What about your staff? How have you been able to boost morale?
Katie: Paying them! We haven’t laid anyone off, we’ve been giving our staff free meals, keeping their full-time hours. Extra breaks. Our employees are very important to us, they’re our family. Some of them have been with us for 5 years and others 30 years, and everything in between. We decided from the beginning that we were not going to let anyone lose hours. They have to pay rent, they have families. During this time, because business has been down so much, there isn’t any “work” to do, really. So we’ve been doing a lot of cleaning. Even if it’s already been cleaned, we want a way for them to get their hours. We are very, very lucky to have the business to pay them. That includes health insurance benefits, all that. Right before the pandemic, we signed up for open enrollment group insurance and nobody lost any benefits. We told them we’re gonna be in this together, and we are. We’ll work through this somehow, someway. It’s been challenging. Not just from a financial standpoint, but from a working perspective. They are wearing a mask in the kitchen. It’s hard, but they’re doing it.
Studio Dzo: That’s amazing. Has Dan’s Hamburgers found any other ways to give back?
Katie: Our biggest priority is supporting our employees so they don’t lose any hours. We’ve also purchased all of the extra items to keep running through the pandemic. Hundreds of masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, plexiglass for partitions. Items that will keep our employees and customers comfortable. So, not anything extra from an outreach perspective, but it’s our priority and a way to give back to our employees and to our city. We are stronger together than apart, that’s for sure.
Studio Dzo: Do you have any advice for other small businesses during all of this?
Katie: Communication is key. I’ve been in the stores every day, which is normal for me. But, a little extra communication with the managers and teams to make sure they have everything they need. The Texas Restaurant Association has very helpful education on policies and best practices during COVID-19. If you’re a local restaurant, really utilize those resources. And, stay updated! Because things are changing.
Take advantage of the slower pace to enjoy a medium cheeseburger all the way, with mustard, grilled onions and jalapenos, a side of curly fries, and a vanilla Dr. Pepper at any of the Dan’s Hamburger locations. (Manchaca Rd., Airport Rd., North Lamar Blvd or waaaay down south in Buda) And if you are comfortable with enjoying a meal in their dining room, currently operating at 75% capacity, grab a seat at the counter and enjoy an old-fashioned diner breakfast. (We recommend the #20 “Ruby Special” with a side of hashbrowns.)
