With a million burgers under his belt, Claude Smith was ready to hang up the towel and try something new. 

The popular Custer restaurant, Black Hills Burger & Bun Co., had been the place to grab gourmet burgers on Mt. Rushmore Road ever since the 1885 building was up for sale in 2012. 

“Custer didn’t have a restaurant that specialized in burgers at the time, so that was what we settled on,” said co-owner Christie Smith. 

The pair had recently gotten out of the grocery business and had experience grinding their own beef and baking their own buns. 

For 11 years, locals and visitors would line up around the block for their twist on the traditional burger. Christie attributes the success to consistency and quality. 

“The fact that we grind and hand-patty all of our meat and bake our own buns in-house keeps the quality high,” she said. “Also the fact that every one of those burgers has been cooked by Claude alone has kept it consistent.” 

“One of our favorite customeres has been an older gentleman that likes to travel. When he does, he always brings our crew back a package of chocolates or candies. We got to try items from france, norway, brazil and greece-to name a few.” – Christie Smith

The burgers, which could be regular or buffalo patties, came in a variety of combinations, which made the experience unique. Flavors were also bolstered by the house seasoning. 

“Our house seasoning goes a long way in giving the beef flavor,” said Christie. “We also don’t believe in overcooking our burgers. Juicy is a key factor.”

After years of success, the couple decided to switch it up, and converted Black Hills Burger & Bun Co. to Black Hills Sauce & Dough.

“We were ready for a culinary change and wanted to expand our culinary challenges,” said Christie. “We had always talked about opening a second restaurant focusing only on pizza, but with the challenges the pandemic brought to the restaurant industry, it just never happened.”

With the popularity of the eatery, patrons didn’t adjust to the conversion quietly. Christie says after one summer of people trying to order burgers, the team decided to bring them back in August of 2024. 

“Our staff had to deal with a lot of upset customers, and Claude’s desire to get back to ‘cooking burgers’ again were big deciding factors,” she said.

SUBSTITUTION PLEASE

Any of the specialty burgers can be substituted with a black bean patty at no additional cost. Ingredients include oats and eggs.

“We still have the original wood floors, brick walls, and stained glass windows to give it the charm of the old west, but have decorated with artwork from local artists and favorite family pictures to give it our personal truth.” – Christie Smith

The restaurant rebranded to Black Hills Burger & Pizza Co., offering pizza and a limited selection of their famous burgers. 

Some of the Smiths favorite pizzas include the Mr. & Mrs. Smith with marinara, cheese, pepperoni, pickled jalapeños, hot honey drizzle, and fresh basil leaves, and the Good Burger Pizza with marinara, cheese, ground beef, red onion, bacon, dill pickle, and 1000 Island dressing.

When it comes to guests, the Build Your Own (BYO) pizza is the most popular, followed up by the Terminator with marinara, cheese, pepperoni, ham, bacon, and Italian sausage.

Aside from the Classic, the Smiths say the most popular burger is the Hot Granny with cream cheese, bacon, jalapeños, and sweet and spicy jalapeño jelly.

“The Hot Granny is a close second in sales, but is probably the most loved burger,” said Christie. “The people who order the Hot Granny never deviate from it; they love it so much.”

EXPLORE NEXT DOOR

The Smiths are still in the grocery business, owning Wild Spruce Market next door to Black Hills Burger & Pizza Co.

Their daughter, Jessica Hartmann, is the general manager, and carries products geared toward specialty items such as gluten free, organic, locally made or grown, vegetarian, vegan, and paleo.

The dog-friendly patio of the grocery store also serves as overflow seating for the restaurant.

Black Hills Burger & Pizza Co. also offers over 10 flavors of Ice Cream Shakes. The Smiths suggest mixing flavors if the choice is too difficult. 

“You can combine flavors to make your personal favorite,” said Christie. “One of my particular favorite combinations of flavors is Cookies & Cream and Mint; it tastes like an old fashioned Grasshopper.”

The “fast-casual service” restaurant only seats 65, which can fill up fast. If guests plan on coming during tourism season, the Smiths suggest avoiding peak hours like noon and 5-6 p.m. 

“We’re also open year round, so tables are much easier to come by in the shoulder or off seasons,” said Christie. 

Another option is to call in an order and explore Custer. 

“There are some great parks in town to enjoy take-out during the summer months,” said Christie. 

SHAKE IT UP

Try one or mix and match ice cream shake flavors:

Banana
Chocolate
Cinnamon
Coffee
Cookies & Cream
Mint
Peanut Butter
Root Beer
Salted Caramel
Strawberry
Vanilla

HOURS

Lunch:
Tuesday – Saturday
11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Dinner:
Wednesday – Friday
5 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Since the restaurant’s inception, the Smiths reminisce about getting close with customers, seeing kids grow up and bonding with regulars. 

“Being in business for over 12 years now, it’s been fun seeing our family of customers grow and change,” said Christie. “We had a young man get down on his knee and propose marriage. Families have children and you get to see them as infants, then toddlers, then talkative kids.”

She added, “We’ve said goodbye to kids going off to college only to almost not recognize them a few years later when they come back for a visit. It’s really special.”

For more information, visit BLACKHILLSBURGERANDPIZZA.COM+