Storm's Great Texas Food Since 1950

Good question. And I ought to know the answer — I was there when my father J. B. Storm first came up with our iconic sandwich! I guess that after almost 70 years, it’s okay to spill the frijoles. So — if you promise to keep your mouth shut -- I’ll let you in on our secrets.

Flash back to World War II. I was only a babe in arms, so I’d be kidding you if I told you I remembered very much. But in later years I often heard Dad talk about learning the food business the hard way — he owned a diner in San Antonio in 1944.

But the Storm family’s experience feeding people goes much further back. All the way back to the 19th century. Back to the Texas frontier. Back to the 1870s when my great-grandfather Wash Storm operated a stagecoach stop in Hopkins County. My great grandmother ran the dining area where she had to feed hungry cowboys, muleskinners and other frontier types. She prided herself on hot, hearty meals served up quick. She specialized in steak (what today we call “chicken-fried”), sandwiches, and fried fish — much the same food you can get at a Storm’s today. They called their stage stop “Stormville.”

The modern version of Storm’s began in 1950 when Dad opened a small roadside establishment in Lampasas. After his years at the Borden Company, he knew ice cream like Willie Nelson knows country music. Dad chose the name “Dairy Cue” to reflect his plan to specialize in frozen deserts. But he also offered a full drive-in menu with hamburgers, hot dogs, and French fries.

You’re probably familiar with one of our early customers. You might remember him as the hipshaking entertainer who virtually owned the 1950’s radio waves. We enjoyed his tunes like Don’t Be Cruel and Heartbreak Hotel, but we also knew him as a quiet, polite Fort Hood GI who’d drive over from Killeen for our burgers. Mom spoke fondly of the times she took his food out to him. I personally only waited on him one time. But I was one thrilled 14-year-old when I served a strawberry milkshake to Elvis Presley.

By the 1970s our business had changed. Sure, we still sold ice cream cones, sundaes, and milk shakes, but the thrust of our business was now hamburgers. I had taken over the business in 1971 and became sole owner in 1974. The name “Dairy Cue” no longer seemed appropriate, so I changed it to “Storm’s.” Long-time employee and good friend Kenneth Miiller became my partner. In 1984 we opened a second Storm’s in Burnet. Two years later we opened a third store in Hamilton.

Through the years Storm’s has been recognized by a number of publications: Southern Living , Texas Highways, Austin Chronicle, Texas Monthly, and Texas Hill Country Magazine. Rich Vanderpool devoted a chapter to Storm’s in his book The Texas Hamburger: History of a Lone Star Icon. Bill Hufnagle in Biker Billy’s Roadhouse Cookbook: Adventures in Roadside Cuisine wrote that he would drive a thousand miles for a Storm’s Special from Hamilton.

Storm’s also starred on television when the Food Channel ran a segment on The Best Drive-Ins of America. You can still see the on-line version which features our Cordon Bleu — a double meat burger stuffed with ham and cheese.

You can probably guess that the number one secret of that Storm’s flavor is the quality of the meat. Dad knew a lot about beef cattle from his boyhood days on a ranch near Lampasas. From those earliest years at the Dairy Cue we processed and ground our own hamburger meat. As our business increased we could no longer grow enough beef, but for many years much of our meat came from cattle raised on Dad’s place out west of town. Today we still insist on high quality beef that we process in our own meat plant in Lampasas. And we still slice fresh potatoes every morning.

And here’s another of Storm’s success secrets – the men and women who through the years have worked long and hard to maintain our high standards. We’ve been very fortunate to have so many long-term employees whose loyalty, dedication, and expertise have made Storm’s what it is today. These folks truly care about the quality of their products and will do what it takes to keep their customers satisfied and happy.

Most of the management team started out as teenage carhops and learned the business inside out. For example, longterm Lampasas manager Kenneth Miiller worked at Lampasas from age 14 to his death at age 54. I’m still part of the organization as a consultant, but six years back I sold my interest in Storm’s to three men whom I learned to trust and respect. Lampasas Manager Mike Green and Burnet Manager Clint Connolly both have tenures approaching 40 years. But Hamilton Storm’s Manager Mike Kolodziej is the champion — he started out as a teenager 42 years ago.

And now I’m going to whisper in your ear the last of our secrets.

I told you that my Dad came up with the Storm’s burger way back in the 1940s. He figured out that much of a burger’s flavor comes from the very thin caramelized surface called the “glaze.” You get such a glaze when you cook meat on a very hot surface – in this case a very smooth steel griddle. And he noticed that when you cook a very thick patty you have the same amount of glazed surface as you get when you cook a thin patty. A big thick patty without a glaze may look great, but you get more flavor from a thin patty with a glaze. Or even more from a stack of thin patties.

One of our most popular burgers is the Storm’s Special which consists of three of those thin patties stacked up like pancakes. That’s three times the flavor! Separate those patties with slices of melted cheese and you get a burger that Biker Billy says is worth that thousand mile ride.

So there you have it -- the secrets of a Storm’s burger. Just don’t tell anyone – okay?