A beloved Houston burger is making a temporary comeback. From now through October 5, all locations of Miami-based restaurant Pincho will serve three items from shuttered Houston burger joint Bernie’s Burger Bus.
They are:
- The Cheerleader: A Black Angus patty topped with pepper jack, beer-battered jalapeños, slow-roasted garlic tomatoes, lettuce, and cilantro-jalapeño aioli.
- Honor Roll Fries: Topped with slow-cooked vaca frita (braised, shredded beef), chipotle-mango barbecue sauce, white cheddar, and scallions.
- Cookie Butter Milkshake: Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter blended into vanilla ice cream, topped with fresh whipped cream and crushed Speculaas cookies.
Bernie’s Burger Bus rose to prominence in the early 2010s. Led by chef-owner Justin Turner, the restaurant grew from a food truck to four brick-and-mortar locations based on the strength of Bernie’s creative toppings, house made condiments, freshly-cut fries, and decadent milkshakes. All four locations abruptly shuttered in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The collaboration came about when Pincho co-founder and CEO Otto Othman and culinary director Adrian Sanchez met Turner, who’s now the director of culinary for McCord Development, Inc. The duo invited Turner to participate in their monthly collaboration series.
Adrian Sanchez and Justin Turner. Courtesy of Pincho
“Both brands began as scrappy, homegrown startups,” Othman said in a statement. “We put our hearts into the food while having fun and building community. Our menu strategies are similar as well — doubling down on flavor and creativity, featuring monthly specials and continuing to innovate. It’s an honor to be able to recreate such an iconic brand in our restaurants and to give people a chance to taste Bernie’s again.”
Those who remember the original Cheerleader will note that Pincho has updated the recipe a little by adding some spice to the patty, adding aioli, and serving it on a buttery bun from Houston’s Bread Man Baking Company.
“It’s a more sophisticated, 2025 version of the burger,” Turner said. “This is a college cheerleader, not a high school cheerleader. It’s all grown up, but it still took me back, and that’s exactly what I want for the people who loved that burger.”
Pincho will donate $1 for every Cheerleader sold to the Periwinkle Foundation, a Houston nonprofit that supports children and families affected by cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. The burger is available at all four of Pincho’s Houston-area locations (Memorial, Katy, Cypress, and Conroe). Pincho opens at 11 am daily.
