Y’all I’m in love. I’ve officially found the most delicious veggie burger in Houston. Thank you The Counter for making all my dreams come true. Located on Washington Ave., The Counter is a cute, little burger joint that is all about dem custom made burgers. Their menu is fat and complete with everything that you would ever want to put on a burger and eat alongside a burger. They have shakes and fries and beer and and burger bowls (aka salads) and even a make your own grilled cheese option. But what’s really the crowning jewel on their menu is the chance to build your own burger.

First you choose the size of your burger (1/3 is plenty big –I ended up taking half of mine home!). Then you choose your burger–obvi I went with the veggie burger option. Then you choose your cheese, your sauce, your toppings, your bun, and your sides. Holy cow it’s exhausting just thinking of all the combinations of options there are. Like do I want a Asian styled burger with Thai peanut sauce and picked carrots and daikon? Do I want something more decadent like fried pickles or a pile of onion rings? Which of the three tomato options (fresh ripened, oven roasted, sun-dried)  best suits my needs? Looking at the sheet that you fill out like a scantron with a pencil is a tad overwhelming.  It’s like a test. But everyone passes. It’s great. But it helps to go in with a plan.

I went with the veggie burger with spicy jalapeno jack cheese, sprouts, mixed greens, tomato, pickled carrots and daikon, jalopenos, grilled pineapple with Korean BBQ sauce on a brioche bun. OMG YUM.

The burger itself is like thanksgiving in your mouth. If you take the time to pay attention to the actual burger through all your toppings, it’s really quite delicious. The patty is a “housemade vegan veggie” and reminds me of stuffing. It’s got corn and carrots and rice and maybe bread and I think I even spotted a cranberry. When it comes out, it’s easily like 7 inches tall. And I didn’t even choose that many toppings.

Other burgers at the table, were the veggie burger with lettuce, tomato, fried pickles, confit grilled mushrooms, provolone cheese on a pretzel bun with garlic aoili. Sides that were shared included shoe string fries and coleslaw. Was not mad about anything we tried.

The meal was unreal. The burger possibilities endless. And the veggie burger was on point. All of the yes. All of the happiness. Can’t wait to come back. I’ve been a vegetarian for over 9 years and I can confidently say that this is one of the best veggie burgers in Houston.

Check out the other great veggie burgers in town: Top 5 Veggie Burgers in Houston.