Best Burgers in Upper Kirby, Houston: 9 Verified Picks

The best burgers in Upper Kirby, Houston, run along Kirby Drive, Richmond Avenue and West Alabama Street, between Shepherd Drive and Buffalo Speedway. Our top picks are Becks Prime on Kirby Drive for a mesquite-grilled burger from a drive-thru, Hillstone for a sit-down cheeseburger, and Hobbit Cafe on Richmond Avenue for a burger the size of your appetite.

Here’s the line for the group chat: Becks Prime, which opened its first restaurant on Kirby Drive in 1985, says it grinds its beef fresh every morning and that its only freezer is for the beer mugs.

Below are nine places, sorted by street, each confirmed open with a burger on its own official website or menu.

Where does Upper Kirby start and stop?

For this guide, Upper Kirby means the area west of Shepherd Drive, east of Buffalo Speedway, north of Bissonnet Street and south of Westheimer Road. That roughly follows the Upper Kirby District, and it’s the same box we use in our Upper Kirby bar guide.

That takes in the Kirby Drive corridor from Westheimer down past the Southwest Freeway, Levy Park, Richmond Avenue, and the West Alabama and Norfolk Street blocks. We count addresses on the west side of Shepherd and the east side of Buffalo Speedway. Burgers just over the lines are in our guides to River Oaks burgers, Montrose burgers and Rice Village burgers. For the wider neighborhood, start with our Upper Kirby area guide.

The quick list

• For a mesquite-grilled burger from a drive-thru: Becks Prime.
• For a classic sit-down cheeseburger: Hillstone.
• For a house-ground wagyu burger or a shrimp burger: Grace’s.
• For a burger with a Levy Park view: Hearsay Levy Park.
• For a 1-pound burger and a glass of mead: Hobbit Cafe.
• For $10 burgers on Tuesday and soccer with the sound on: Velvet Oak Tavern.
• For an Akaushi beef burger and a live show: McGonigel’s Mucky Duck.
• For a Cajun-Creole lunch burger: Eunice.
• For a burger at any hour: Whataburger on South Shepherd.

How we chose

We kept only restaurants inside the boundary above that show a current address, current hours and a burger on their own official website or menu, checked in November 2026. We looked for range, from a drive-thru and a pub to dining rooms where the burger is the smart order, and we flag burgers served only at certain meals.

Prices quoted come from each restaurant’s own menu at last check. Menus and hours change, so treat every price and time here as typical and check the restaurant’s site before you go.

Kirby Drive

Three picks sit on Kirby Drive itself, from a 1985 drive-thru to two dining rooms.

Becks Prime

Kirby Drive, 2902 Kirby Dr · burgers and drive-thru · open daily 11am to 10pm

Becks Prime on Kirby Drive grills 100% Certified Angus Beef chuck over mesquite wood coals and serves it on an egg bun baked daily. The company says the first Becks Prime opened on Kirby Drive in 1985 with a double drive-thru and an open-air patio, and the Kirby location still lists a drive-thru, outdoor dining, a kids menu, and beer and wine. Order the Shroom Burger, the Hickory Cheeseburger, or Bill’s Burger.

Insider tip: Becks Prime says it grinds its beef fresh every morning and never freezes it. Its only freezer, it says, is for the beer mugs.

Best for: a fast, smoky burger in the car or on the patio. Becks Prime’s origin story is also in our guide to restaurant chains that started in Houston.

Grace’s

Kirby Drive, 3111 Kirby Dr · Texas comfort food · open daily, weekend brunch

Grace’s is Johnny Carrabba’s tribute to his grandmother, Grace, and its menu lists two grown-up burgers at lunch and dinner. The Grace’s Wagyu Burger is house-ground and served on challah with cheddar and classic toppings. The Shrimp Burger comes on a pretzel bun with rémoulade and bread-and-butter pickles. Both come with fries or house-fried chips, at about $33 on Grace’s online menu at last check.

Grace’s is typically open 11am to 9pm Monday through Thursday, 11am to 10pm Friday, 9am to 10pm Saturday and 9am to 9pm Sunday.

Good to know: the kids menu has a cheeseburger with fries, so this works for a family dinner.

Best for: a burger with a side of Houston restaurant history.

Hillstone

Kirby Drive at Westpark, 4848 Kirby Dr · American · lunch and dinner daily

Hillstone puts its Cheeseburger on the Houston dinner menu: freshly ground chuck served all the way with melted cheddar on a house-made bun, at $21 at last check, with French fries or coleslaw. There’s also a House-Made Veggie Burger with a sweet soy glaze and Monterey jack at the same price. Hillstone is typically open 11am to 9pm Sunday through Tuesday and 11am to 9:30pm Wednesday through Saturday.

Insider tip: Hillstone says it fries in natural beef tallow, and it bans phone calls in the dining room and bar. It’s cashless (Visa, Mastercard and American Express only), it asks for smart casual dress, and it says walk-ins are welcome for parties of two.

Best for: a date-night burger that never seems to leave the menu.

Levy Park, Richmond Avenue and West Alabama

Four picks sit in the middle of the neighborhood, from a park-side lounge to a 1972 original.

Hearsay Levy Park

Levy Park, 3728 Wakeforest St · American gastro lounge · open daily

Hearsay Levy Park calls itself family-friendly, and it sits right on Levy Park. The Hearsay Cheeseburger is a Texas wagyu patty with cheddar, bacon, lettuce, tomato, red onion and chipotle aioli, served with rosemary parmesan fries, at $20 at last check. The Plant-Based Burger uses an Impossible patty with cheddar, at $16. Hearsay Levy Park is typically open 11am to 11pm Monday through Friday, 10am to 11pm Saturday and 10am to 10pm Sunday.

Best for: lunch after the playground or the dog park. Plan the park part with our Levy Park guide.

Hobbit Cafe

Richmond Avenue, 2243 Richmond Ave · cafe and mead bar · opens 11am

Hobbit Cafe calls itself Houston’s original mead bar, established in 1972, and it says its menu was entirely vegetarian for its first 10 years. Today the burgers are fresh ground, pattied in-house and served on a whole wheat or white wheat bun with a choice of shredded carrots, chips, black beans or brown rice. The menu leans into the Middle-earth theme: try Boromir’s Boudin Burger, a half-pound Angus burger topped with a quarter pound of smoked jalapeño pork boudin and mango pico, or Fires of Mt. Doom with chorizo, hatch queso and serranos.

Go big: the Balrog Burger is a double patty weighing 1 pound, with double cheese, bacon, avocado, a stuffed jalapeño and mushrooms. Split it, or don’t.

Best for: a long lunch on the big wooden deck.

Velvet Oak Tavern

West Alabama, 2221 W Alabama St · sports tavern · opens 2pm weekdays, 11am weekends

Velvet Oak Tavern promises every game, any time, with the sound on, and the burgers are better than a sports bar needs them to be. The Tavern Burger stacks two 3.5-ounce patties with cheese, pickles and the house “salsa secreta” on a toasted brioche bun, with fries, at $14 at last check. There’s also a Mushroom Swiss Burger, a black bean veggie burger, and a Breakfast Burger at weekend brunch.

Insider tip: Velvet Oak Tavern lists $10 burgers and sandwiches every Tuesday. It’s typically open 2pm to 2am Monday through Friday and 11am to 2am on weekends.

Best for: a game-day burger with the sound up.

McGonigel’s Mucky Duck

Norfolk Street, 2425 Norfolk St · Irish pub and music venue · closed Sundays

McGonigel’s Mucky Duck is an Irish pub with a stage, and its Classic Burger is Texas-raised, grass-fed Akaushi beef on a butter-seared onion challah bun, with fries. There’s also a house-made black bean veggie burger. McGonigel’s says guests under 21 are welcome with parents, and it typically opens at 11am Monday through Saturday.

Insider tip: the menu’s best-selling sandwich is named The Mark Portugal, after the former Astros pitcher, which the pub says harks back to the glory days of the Astros. Order the burger, then check the show calendar.

Best for: dinner before an early show.

The edges: Buffalo Speedway and Shepherd Drive

Two picks sit on the boundary streets, one for a long lunch and one for 2am.

Eunice

Buffalo Speedway, 3737 Buffalo Speedway · Cajun-Creole and raw bar · burger at lunch and brunch

Eunice opened in 2018 and is named after its chef-owner’s hometown. The Eunice Cheeseburger, with bread-and-butter pickles, red onions and fries (plus dijonnaise at lunch), was $27 at last check. It’s on the lunch and brunch menus, not dinner. Eunice is typically open 11am to 9pm Monday through Thursday, 11am to 9:30pm Friday and Saturday, and 11am to 8pm Sunday.

Best for: a business lunch where someone at the table wants oysters and you want a burger.

Whataburger (Shepherd & Farnham)

South Shepherd, 3712 S Shepherd Dr · Texas burger chain · drive-thru 24 hours

Whataburger No. 271, which the company calls Shepherd & Farnham, is the Upper Kirby burger that never closes: its drive-thru is listed as open 24 hours, with the dining room typically open 6am to midnight, and until 3am on Friday and Saturday. It sits on the west side of Shepherd, inside our boundary.

Best for: the burger after the bar.

Save this: the Upper Kirby burger card

Screenshot this and you’ll know what to order at every stop.

• Becks Prime: Shroom Burger, from the drive-thru or on the patio.
• Grace’s: Shrimp Burger on a pretzel bun.
• Hillstone: the Cheeseburger, all the way.
• Hearsay Levy Park: the wagyu Hearsay Cheeseburger, then a walk in the park.
• Hobbit Cafe: Balrog Burger, for two.
• Velvet Oak Tavern: the Tavern Burger on a $10 Tuesday.
• McGonigel’s Mucky Duck: the Akaushi Classic Burger before a show.
• Eunice: the Eunice Cheeseburger, at lunch only.
• Whataburger: whatever you want, at any hour.

A Saturday burger route

1. Brunch at Hearsay Levy Park (opens 10am on Saturday), then work it off in Levy Park.
2. A late lunch on the deck at Hobbit Cafe on Richmond Avenue, if you skipped brunch.
3. Afternoon football at Velvet Oak Tavern on West Alabama, which opens at 11am on weekends.
4. The late-night stop at Whataburger on South Shepherd, whose drive-thru never closes.

For the rest of the neighborhood, see our Upper Kirby restaurant guide, things to do in Upper Kirby, and the citywide best burgers in Houston.

Last verified: November 2026.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best burgers in Upper Kirby, Houston?

Our top picks are Becks Prime at 2902 Kirby Drive for a mesquite-grilled burger, Hillstone at 4848 Kirby Drive for a sit-down cheeseburger, and Hobbit Cafe at 2243 Richmond Avenue for big themed burgers. Grace’s, Hearsay Levy Park, Velvet Oak Tavern, McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, Eunice and Whataburger on South Shepherd round out the list.

Is Becks Prime on Kirby Drive the original location?

Becks Prime says its first restaurant opened on Kirby Drive in 1985 with a double drive-thru and an open-air patio. Its Kirby location today is at 2902 Kirby Drive in Upper Kirby, typically open daily from 11am to 10pm.

Where can I get a burger late at night in Upper Kirby?

Whataburger at 3712 S Shepherd Drive lists its drive-thru as open 24 hours. Velvet Oak Tavern on West Alabama Street typically serves until 2am, and Hearsay Levy Park is typically open until 11pm most nights.

Which Upper Kirby burger spots are good for kids?

Becks Prime and Grace’s both list kids menus with burgers, and Hearsay Levy Park calls itself family-friendly and sits on Levy Park. McGonigel’s Mucky Duck says guests under 21 are welcome with parents.

Are there veggie burgers in Upper Kirby?

Yes. Hillstone serves a house-made veggie burger, Hearsay Levy Park has a plant-based Impossible burger, and Velvet Oak Tavern and McGonigel’s Mucky Duck both list black bean veggie burgers.

What counts as Upper Kirby for this guide?

We define Upper Kirby as the area west of Shepherd Drive, east of Buffalo Speedway, north of Bissonnet Street and south of Westheimer Road. That includes the Kirby Drive corridor, Levy Park, Richmond Avenue and West Alabama Street.