Black Hills Burger and Bun Co.

Abby Schoenwald

On July 1, 2014 TripAdvisor voted the Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. the best burger joint in the United States.

       The Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. is located in Custer, S.D.. Claude Smith and Christie Smith, husband and wife co-owners of the Black Hills Burger and Bun Co., celebrated their third year of business on Aug. 6, 2014. Their daughter, Jessica Smith, graduated from SDSU with a degree in Hospitality Management.

According to Claude Smith, he and his wife decided to open Black Hills Burger and Bun Co.  because Christie [Smith] had always wanted to run a restaurant. It then became a family business.

“It’s good. Like anything it has its good and bad moments.” Claude said. “With family members you can rely on them more than anyone else. They’re the only ones you can rely on to work crazy long hours.”

       The menu at Black Hills Burger and Bun Co., includes nachos, hummus, salads and pork in addition to their 10 burgers. The restaurant also features a burger of  the week. The burger of the week for Nov. 3 through Nov. 8 was the Triple P Burger which included pineapple, peanut sauce, jalapenos, bacon, cilantro and sweet chili sauce all served on a freshly ground pork patty.

       According to their website, the Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. bakes their buns and grinds their burgers daily. They make a limited amount of buns each day so it is possible that they will run out of buns.

       The Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. goes beyond the traditional hamburger. With names like “The Hot Granny” and “The Lousy Hunter” the menu will offer a good laugh in addition to a burger. The option to “Sasquatch It” allows customers can add a beef patty or a buffalo patty to their burger for an additional charge.

The Black Hills Burger Co. also offers homemade desserts. According to Claude Smith, Jessica Smith prepares the sweets. In addition to desserts, Jessica also helps with other cooking and as a hostess.

“She [Jessica] makes all the desserts and in the busy summer months she coordinated the front of the restaurant,” Claude Smith said. “She does a good job calling people in and keeping them here.”

       TripAdvisor made their selection by going through millions of reviews and opinions of consumers. According to TripAdvisor, the Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. received a five out of five review out of 247 reviews. According to Christie and Claude Smith, business has increased since being selected as the nation’s top burger joint.

“We were busy from when we were on TripAdvisor all the way to the Buffalo Roundup in the end of September,” Claude Smith said, “It was crazy this year.”

According to Tom O’Connor, Custer resident, the Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. has had good business since they opened their doors.

       “It [Black Hills Burger and Bun Co.] has always had a good following in Custer,” O’Connor said, “The prices are competitive.”

           The Black Hills Burger and Bun Co. is located at 29 N. 5th Street in Custer, S.D.