KP’s Kitchen: Burger simplicity par excellence

Friday, January 19, 2024 — My ever-growing list of burgers to try in the Greater Houston area (go ahead and click the link; it’s the first time I’ve publicly shared my spreadsheet 😊) is usually populated by places that appear on best-of lists and/or word of mouth via the city’s lively and various Facebook foodie groups. 

KP’s hit my radar by way of Reddit, and I’m certainly glad it did. My spreadsheet ranks burgers by Yelp review first and Google rating second, as the former is typically a tougher grade. KP’s is the rare spot that grades out ridiculously highly on both platforms — 4.6 on Yelp, and 4.7 on Google. 

And it deserves those high marks.

KP’s cheeseburger might be the most unassuming of all of the patties I’ve reviewed to date — its two smashburgers are accompanied by smoked bacon, American cheese, dijonnaise & hand cut fries — but its the execution that makes this straightforward sandwich top-notch.  The burgers themselves are exquisite — I don’t know what the meat blend is, but they’re expertly seasoned and cooked to perfection, and given the sheer volume of meat stack plates I saw coming out of the kitchen, it’s no small feat to nail the temperature over and over again for a restaurant that’s not a fast-food joint. 

Truly, the KP burger’s appeal lies in its simplicity — the cheese is melted just so, the bacon soft yet chewy, and the bun representing the ideal delivery vehicle. You’d be forgiven if you overlooked KP’s given that it sits right on I-10 (“I can’t imagine an elite burger place on a highway frontage road”), but do yourself a favor and hop on over there for this beefy greatness. 

To top it off, KP’s is BYOB, and for an outrageously picky beer snob like me, the ability to bring a world-class hazy DIPA into the restaurant — in this particular instance, a fresh-off–the-canning-line batch of SpindleTap’s lovely ode to Nelson and Galaxy hops, Hirsch Road Hop Heads — absolutely elevated the overall experience, and cemented KP’s as a go-to spot for meals to come.

4.5 out of 5 patties. 🍔🍔🍔🍔