Austin's Stars Café closing I
Austinites whose tailgates could use a bit more spice have an opportunity to soak up some burger inspiration from one of Georgia's best burger makers and a former UT Longhorn.
On October 18, the night before the UT vs. Georgia game, opposite sides are fraternizing at Sí Baby-Q , the Chinese-Texan barbecue truck at Zoé Tong: NFL running back Bijan Robinson and "burger master" Billy Kramer of Atlanta's NFA Burger are collaborating on a double stack "smashed burger" (gotta avoid that copyright) featuring Robinson's signature yellow mustard .
Everyone claims to have the best burger, but NFA's claim was verified in 2021 by Food & Wine . "The menu is simple, single or double, but the burgers are anything but boring," says the write-up, "starting with top-notch Angus beef smashed down (but not too vigorously) on the grill for those nice, crispy-caramelized edges."
This collaboration is sticking to that script, and the only difference between NFA's classic burger and this one is the addition of the new yellow mustard by Bijan Mustardson, the NFL player's cheekily named mustard brand. Most of this brand seems to be marketing — there's quite literally more Bijan Mustardson merch styles than mustard, not to mention $250 signed one-of-one bottles. But it's all-natural, and Robinson seems to have won over some impressive chefs.
In addition to Kramer's burgers, this pop-up will feature Dijon smoked wings by Chef Matthew Hyland of Zoé Tong, which of course make use of the mustard brand's flagship product. A press release about the collaboration promises a "rich and subtly spicy kick." And considering the stellar quality of Sí Baby-Q's char siu sticky ribs, that team is good for their word.
The Longhorns will be entering this match-up on a high after throttling Oklahoma in Saturday's Red River rivalry, closing out the game at 34-3. The points UT scored in that single game are nearly equal to the points they've given away in the entire season so far, totaling 38 — a record since 1964.
Not only is that is neatly handled big win, but it continues UT's perfect season. As of this 's publication, the team is also sitting at No. 1 on the Associated Press' Top 25 College Football Poll , with Georgia trailing at No. 5.
"Two years ago when we won the Golden Hat, you might have thought we won the Super Bowl," said Steve Sarkisian, as quoted by AP after the game. "This year was like, OK, we got the Golden Hat back, but let's put it in the trophy case and let's keep grinding, let's keep going. So I think that's the mentality of our team."
