MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes

Rich Hicks and Todd Istre opened the first MOOYAH in Plano, Texas, in 2007, part of the wave of “better burger” chains of the late 2000s. The name, the company says, is how a cow would shout “Booyah!”, and the whole brand talks in that tone. The first restaurant abroad opened in Dubai in 2013 as the chain’s fiftieth, and the hundredth opened in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in 2016. In 2017 the founders sold to two private equity firms, Gala Capital Partners and Balmoral Funds.

The food is more careful than the jokes. The beef is fresh Certified Angus, from 2011 each restaurant baked its own buns every day, and the fries go through a 24-hour, six-step process of washing, cutting, rinsing and double frying in canola oil. They are the thing regulars bring up first, and sweet potato fries have been on the menu since 2010.

From 2017 the chain started rotating chef-built “Tastes to Try” burgers, and the ones that stuck went into a Burger Hall of ‘Dang!’, which is where the Double Diablo, the Best Quesonario and the A-Wonderful come from. Around 2019 it added Lifestyle Burgers: Paleo, Keto, Low Cal, Vegan and Gluten-Free versions, most of them served in a lettuce wrap the menu calls an Iceburger. Calories for everything are in the official nutrition guide.

Around a hundred restaurants in the United States and Canada, plus franchises in the Gulf states.

• In-N-Out Burger (United States, since 1948). Three burgers on the board and a secret menu everyone knows by heart. Also built on beef, cheese and a double stack.
• A&W Restaurants (United States, since 1919). America’s oldest drive-in chain, and the burger that lost to bad maths. Also built on beef, cheese and a double stack.
• Elevation Burger (United States, since 2005). The Virginia chain that called itself the first organic burger joint, with fries cooked in olive oil. Also built on beef, cheese and a double stack.
• Wayback Burgers (United States, since 1991). A Delaware burger stand that grew into a franchise from Buenos Aires to Tokyo. Also built on beef, cheese and a double stack.