mustard makes a burger Texan? (Dallas, Athens: home, live, food)

[Herbrocks]

This has been bugging me for years! Fast food places always seem to have commercals introducing "Texas" burgers which are just regular burgers with mustard. I have lived in SA all my life and never use mustard on a burger, don't know anyone who does, and certainly don't understand why it makes it "Texas".

Thought I would put this out here for feedback. Is there some city in Texas known for hambugers with mustard?

[iceshots]

I'm from Canada and we always have mustard on hamburgers.

To me, a "Texas burger" would be a premium beef hamburger with steak sauce. Mustard on a hamburger is not a Texas only thing.

[jaxart]

I prefer mustard on burgers. I even prefer mustard potato salad to that made with mayo. My tuna sandwiches are made with mustard. My hot dogs must have mustard. Etc etc.

Oh yeah, I am a Native Texan! Perhaps that's why I prefer it?

[TexasHorseLady]

First I've heard of it. And I'm a Native Texan, too, jaxart.

[momof2dfw]

I'm a Native Texan but as a kid only liked mayo on my hambugers and LOTS of mustard on hot dogs and corny dogs (Fletchers of course ). I want to say Whataburger may have been the one that started the "Texas" burger that it had mustard on it when they opened. I've seen it on a few other menus across the state as well. I've now switched to mustard on my burgers as an adult.

[ETex2]

True, it's not JUST a Texas thing. Lots of people all over have mustard on their burgers. But in Texas, I think that it's probably more traditional to have mustard on their hamburgers. At least since I was a kid in the 50's, we have pretty much preferred them that way. It was always considered odd to have mayo or ketchup on them.

[TexasHorseLady]

ETex2, that's odd, because I was a kid in East Texas in the 50's, too, and I don't remember it that way. There was a choice of mustard or mayonnaise (ketchup was for fries) and nobody considered it odd.

Now, I was considered odd because I wanted my burgers plain and dry (the better to taste the meat), but I was always given a choice of mayonnaise or mustard and the default was mayonnaise.

[ETex2]

Most people (except for a few yankees up somewhere in Pennsylvania I think), acknowledge that Athens, Texas is the birthplace of the hamburger. The original concoction had mayonnaise with some ground mustard in it as the spread. Maybe that is where the Texas tradition comes from, since prepared mustard didn't really become popular until the hamburger actually became popular.

Welcome to the Original Home of The Hamburger!

[Herbrocks]

Cool link! I don't think the fast food places would have gotten it there though.

Mustard is availible in Texas, and I'm sure some people use it, but I just don't see a Texas/mustard connection. If anything, I associate mustard more with "Northern" foods like hot dogs or pretzels.

I have seen some "Texas burgers" with BBQ sauce, which makes a little more sense to me.

[hound 109]

I know growing up in the 60s & 70s that my mother (who is now 90 & was raised in Dallas) would only serve hamburgers with mustard. Same with all of my friends (& their mothers). Sometimes i'd rebel though & put some catsup on it.

(Now i prefer mustard along with grilled onions & salsa or chiles.....no catsup.)

Under no circumstance was mayo allowed though. Only Yankees would put mayo on hamburgers (i was told this by multiple sources). To those in my sphere, mayo on a hamburger.... would be like mayo on a pastrami sandwich.