Rockwall Bites - Charlies Burgers and Street Tacos

Share this story

Charlie’s Burgers and Street Tacos
213 East Rusk Street Rockwall, TX 75087

Located in our historic downtown at the corner of Rusk and Fannin. It’s a slim, far deeper building than it is wide. Hard to miss as the door has a really ornate carving of a buffalo or bison on it. You enter on one end, think a 12-pack of Dr. Pepper (the superior of all cokes) There is not any parking on site per se, but you can park anywhere in the downtown area and it’s a quick and easy walk. You could take that time to stop into some of the amazing shops and support those other locals too while you are at it!

On their website, they even share who they have working relationships with locally for some of their ingredients. That is a cool little addition, and personally, I love to see collaborations that help build and support other small businesses! I would love to see something like this for everyone. There are so many missed opportunities for these collaborations.

I was out shopping downtown shops with my wife and daughter, Nicole and Jocelynne, and we started getting hungry. I was craving a burger and Jocelynne, ever so encouragingly, suggested we go to Charlie’s. I think to myself, It has been on my list for a while, and the last two times we stopped in, they were packed and we didn’t want to wait. So, we strolled on over and were glad to see they had a couple of open tables. So, we stayed, enjoyed dinner, and finished up our shopping on the other side of town afterward. I will do my best to share the whole experience below, in my long version, and sum it up in as few as words possible for the people who just want the down and dirty on if they should go or not in the short version.

Short version:

This place offers a solid meal, at a decent price, while using quality ingredients. Service is okay, wait times on food are average, food presents well, and is a solid choice for a night out and a meal. They have a solid fan base, they are well-established, and the owner is a fair dude. Go, you won’t regret it.

Long Version:

When you enter the building, you are in the dining area almost immediately. They have made great use of the space to accommodate as many patrons as possible, without it feeling crowded. There Is a small area where a hostess can talk to you and guide you to your table.

They have a really cool feature on their building, the front door is set off to one side, allowing for the bar to face the street. The whole wall from the bar to about 7 ft high opens up to the street. So in the warmer months, they keep it open and you can watch the people mull about downtown as you eat and drink. Pretty cool! So you can belly up to the bar and watch the world go by.

The building here feels like a recent build, not like it was part of the older historic buildings. They have put in some effort to age the building with some exposed brick walls and older-style construction. So it has the same feel as the rest of the strip. They offer an open kitchen design so you can see the meal prep, that’s always fun. They have a bar built around the edge so you can belly up and watch the kitchen, or one of the many TV’s adorning the walls. Being able to watch them make the food is nice, sometimes the kitchens look like a well-oiled machine. It is all part of the experience.

We ordered the following and all shared the plates. The classic burger, Truffle Burger, Messy Jessie and the fried pickles and jalapenos.

Classic Burger: $12:15
Lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and mayo

Exactly as it says, it is a classic burger. Like the ones you would eat on the weekend cookouts in summer, right off the grill. Just a flavorful meat patty with crisp, ripe ingredients that all yell, EAT ME! The burger had a nice char to it, without being dry or overworked. That is one thing for me, the way a burger eats is important. I do not want some overworked meat paste that, well, feels like overworked meat paste when you bite into it. I want to know I am eating a beef burger and this thing delivers. The burger is on the smaller side, so if you have an appetite, you may order two.

Truffle Burger: $16.10
Swiss cheese, truffle mayo, pickled onions, house-cured bacon, smoke-dried tomato

Well, yeah, this thing is a flavor punch right in the kisser. This is a meat-forward burger. You have that great charred beef patty, and the salty bacon, creamy cheese, and that punch of truffle in the mayo. Such a great bite. There is a type of green herb minced up in the spread that isn’t on the menu. Unless that is the aioli and they just didn’t list all the ingredients for it. Such a bright flavor for the whole thing. Again, the only thing to draw attention to is the burger size. However, with a full meal, sides, and an appetizer, I am not sure I could eat more than one of either burger. The burgers do not come with a side, all sides are sold separately, keep that in mind also.

Messy Jessie: $14.30
Sante Fe fries, ground beef, queso, pickled jalapenos, pickled onions, green onions, ranch

For this, think elevated cheese fries. You have large fries, not steak fry size, but much larger than traditional fries. The term Sante Fe Fries was new to me, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. You receive a plate of fries, I would estimate a standard 12” plate with an elevated rim, but that’s just a guess on the plate size. When these hit the table, they looked amazing. The ground beef on ours was over cooked, like crunchy dried and hard. It was not the most appealing and we ended up picking it off after we all tried to eat it. No big deal just figured that’s how it was made and it wasn’t our cup of tea.

Before writing this, I reached out to the restaurant and spoke with the owner Wayne. I shared my experience and wanted clarity if this is the norm for the meat on this dish. He confirmed it wasn’t and went on to apologize etc. However, nothing more than clarity on what the dish was supposed to be was needed. If the meat was cooked right, it would have been a stellar dish, so don’t shy away from it. The fact the kitchen made a mistake is just human. The conversation with Wayne was great, he is a genuine fella.

Fried Pickles & Jalapenos: $10.10

Roasted garlic aioli, ranch

Yep, you get exactly what the menu states. The serving was much larger than I expected. The first thing to hit out table was the Messy Jessie fries and at $14 I assumed that these at $10 would be a smaller portion. There were more of the fried pickles and Jalapenos than the fries in the Messy Jessie, so that was a happy little surprise. You could order this as a side to split with burgers between two or three people and be just fine. The breading is thin but crispy, and there was absolutely no left-over grease just sitting at the under them causing them to get soggy. So many places are just lazy about draining and plop stuff down and deliver a grease filled plate to tables. I was very pleased because we were able to eat the entire order!

In conclusion, this place is a solid option with some solid food. The whole visit I watched countless people come and go. It was like cheers; everyone knew someone and people walking in off the street would just migrate to sections of people striking up conversations. The whole place is warm, inviting, and well kept. The staff are friendly and will chat up the regulars so be patient if you are expecting expedited service and you are in a hurry. Know that the servers will get caught in those small-town conversations and they are o0t ignoring you or making you wait intentionally. They are not hiding in the back on cell phones just waiting on you to leave and collect their tips.

This place is a little gem of our Downtown area, and I have a feeling they will be here for a while. There is no shortage of patrons every time I drive by, so that should tell you something. If you are in the area and looking for a solid meal, stop in, enjoy your time, relax, and maybe catch a game on the TV. I am sure you will have a great time.

Thank you again for all of the recommendations and encouragement. I have lived in Rockwall for about 40 years, I love it here. I know many of you have had the pleasure of doing business with you over the years. For people like me, it is hard to watch our little town grow and prosper. We are now dealing with growing pains that all little towns go through, and I look forward to seeing where we are in just a few years. By then, Ikea and HEB will be open, another 10,000 people will have moved here. With them, ideas to start their very own little business. I look forward to experiencing it and writing about my experiences there too.

I have a passion for helping small businesses, and if sharing a good review to shine the light on places is a way to support them, I will continue to do my best. If you have any feedback for me, please do not hesitate to share it. You can reach me at Hello@gotonickhughes. Don’t hesitate to say hi if you see me around town, I am always looking to make new friends.