TerraBurger Austin Texas : Local Organic Natural Fast Food Texas

What is TerraBurger?
TerraBurger is an all natural and organic fast food hamburger restaurant.
What makes TerraBurger different from the others?
We believe in offering great food without the hassle of artificial preservatives, pesticides, taste enhancing additives, or in some cases, injections and growth hormone.
So we're talking veggie burgers, tofu and alfalfa sprouts?
We do have a fantastic organic Veggie Burger and great organic salads, but we're mainly talking standard fast food fare-burgers & fries, real ice cream shakes, etc.
Any vegetarian or vegan options?
Our veggie burger is vegetarian and can be made vegan, just ask! Without the chicken, our salads are naturally vegan. Our Santa Fe dressing is oil based and vegan.
So I assume you serve lower calorie food, then?
It's not part of our main mission, but sometimes being all natural and organic translates to fewer calories, especially "empty" calories - we eschew any processed food that contains alot of calories without any other nutritional value.
Where are you located?
TerraBurger is in the Arboretum Area at 10611 Research Blvd in Austin, Texas.
What is the difference, then, between "All Natural" and "Organic"
"All Natural" deals with how a food product is processed, or, more specifically, how it is NOT processed--ie with no preservatives, chemical additives, artificial colors or flavor enhancers etc. An "All Natural" banana is just that--a banana--nothing more and nothing less.
"Organic" has to do with how the food is grown, such as without artificial pesticides, or, in the case of meat, milk, or eggs, how the animals are raised - eg without hormones. The requirements are very stringent and complex. You can find out much more detailed information at the USDA website: http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/Consumers/brochure.html
Is everything you serve Organic?

No, some items are simply not available organically, others are cost prohibitive at this time. Organic items will typically identified as such on our menu. You can find a comprehensive list of our Organic ingredients here. Both all natural and organic food represent a significant improvement up from the processed, mass produced food with additives than make up the fast food of today.

*should we ever encounter supply shortages with any of our Organic products, we will find a suitable all natural replacement, and this will be noted on the store menu.
Who is behind TerraBurger?
A couple of Austinites own and operate TerraBurger?it's a locally owned business and a member of the Austin Independent Business Alliance.com
Is TerraBurger part of a chain?
Currently our only store is located in the Arboretum Area at 10611 Research Blvd. We are planning to have more stores opening soon in a neighborhood near you.

Why is it that most fast food today contains so many artificial ingredients?
When you look at it closely, what you see are restaurants trying to outdo one another on novelty, image, speed, and most critically, price - all at the expense of core food quality. The stuff in a 99 cent taco doesn't really look or taste anything like real beef. To make something that cheaply, hormones and additives must be used to make it "work".
While some things are better when mass produced--doorknobs and light bulbs for example - food is not one of them. Artificial flavor enhancers, colors, and additives are added to give their food more "sizzle", and billions of dollars are spent on ad campaigns that, again, could otherwise be spent on the food.
So where does TerraBurger scrimp?
Our stores are minimalist, clean and eco-friendly, and we have a strict "no print advertising" policy. Any promotions that we have will always be limited to the introduction of a new item. We opened in February 2009 as the first and only organic burger place in town. If others follow, we view that as a good thing!
Besides it's food, what else does TerraBurger do differently?
We are an eco-minded business. Everything we do - from our use of recycled buiding materials for our stores to the use of recyclable and compostable packaging - is done with the idea of sustainability in mind. We also buy locally whenever possible. At the Guadalupe Street location, you'll also notice that your check will always be rounded to the nearest nickel - our system rounds down to the nearest nickel, always in the customer's favor, to reduce or eliminate the use of pennies, because pennies take more labor and mining impact to produce than they're worth.
Do you take a position on the treatment of animals?
We do think that agricultural animals should be granted open space, pasture, and clean living conditions-- from both an ethical and food quality perspective-- and we make sure our suppliers do, too.
So, are you "anti-McDonald's"?
Not particularly. McDonald's is merely responding to it's customers, as are Burger King, Wendy's and the rest of the gang. They have happy customers and no one is forcing them to eat there. We're merely offering another option.
Some of your items carry the "Fair Trade" label, most notably your coffee. What does that mean?
Fair Trade ensures that items grown or produced in lesser developed countries, that employees work under fair conditions and are paid a fair wage for their work. Without Fair Trade, we are tacitly encouraging all sorts of labor and environmental abuse that we would not tolerate here in America by sending it "offshore". Fair Trade also eliminates any unfair competitive advantage that an offshore company might gain by such practices, so in effect it protects American businesses and workers. Some argue that Fair Trade is a subsidy, but in our view, it's a win-win either way you look at it. Is it worth the extra cost? Again, we think so.

Can you tell the difference between your organic coffee and traditional coffee from the Big Coffee Houses?
We think you can. It's smoother and richer without the bitter bite. But we may be biased, come try for yourself!
What other trade associations or charities are you involved in?
We're members of the US Green Building Council and the Organic Trade Association, and we donate a portion of our profits to hunger charities as well as the Save Our Springs Alliance.