After building a loyal following on Cherokee Street, Burger 809 plans to bring its gourmet sliders, salads, and comfort food this spring to a prime space in the heart of the city: the Terrace View space in Citygarden.
The Gateway Foundation, which manages downtown’s two-block sculpture park and its Terrace View space, announced today that Burger 809 at Terrace View (808 Chestnut) will open at the iconic restaurant space in the coming weeks. Executive director Heather Sweeney says the nonprofit selected Burger 809 in part because of its elevated food and service and in part because its owner, Tasha Smith, is a downtown resident who’s passionate about the neighborhood’s beauty and vitality. Here’s what to know before you go.
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The Menu
Smith isn’t revealing the full menu just yet. “We’re excited to be creating a new menu that will have items inspired by Citygarden,” she says. The park’s greenery has her thinking about vegetable-forward dishes and the farm-to-table aspect of serving ingredients from local producers. She encourages customers to follow Burger 809 and Citygarden on social media for the menu reveal in April.
Fans of Burger 809’s award-winning premium sliders can rest assured, however, that the dish will continue to be a centerpiece. After all, Smith says, “Burgers are my favorite food.”
Thanks to Smith’s extensive research and development, the flavors of each dish are nuanced and balanced, from the bread to the protein to the toppings—such as the B809 Signature Slider, consisting of a beef patty, Monterey Jack and mozzarella cheeses, jalapeño-bacon jam, and burger garnish on a toasted bun.
“A lot of the items on our previous menus have been things I grew up eating or that I personally tried while traveling and exploring different cities and communities,” Smith says, adding an example. “Our salmon slider was brought from a visit to South Beach in Miami.” It features a passionfruit glaze and fresh jalapeños atop a salmon filet marinated in lemon and butter, served on a toasted Hawaiian bun.
Smith has also put plenty of time and effort into perfecting the sides as well. For instance, the baked mac and cheese and the Southern creamy potato salad are classics in which Smith has added her own spin. For instance, Smith says, one of the few alterations that she’s making to the Terrace View kitchen is the addition of a fryer, so she can continue to offer the French fries that she put so much effort into perfecting when her restaurant moved into the Bluewood Brewing space on Cherokee Street in 2022.
Smith also promises plenty of entrée options for non-beef eaters, including more vegan and vegetarian options. Her salads—made with organic, seasonal greens—were already popular. She’ll also be keeping customer favorites, such as the grilled cheese with tomatoes and avocado. “I’m excited to bring the Sweet Magnolia back,” she says. “You’d be surprised how many kids would eat it. You could sneak in those veggies without them knowing.”
Although the bar menu is also still in development, Smith plans to serve alcohol once she obtains a liquor license and says she’s looking forward to the beverage options, one of which will be the fan-favorite, freshly made lemonade, which is bottled in house daily.
The Atmosphere
Both Smith and Sweeney agree that separating the ambiance of the café from the park and vice versa is almost impossible. The glass-sided structure, perched on Citygarden’s northern edge, was intentionally designed to be part of the park, says Sweeney, and the Gateway Foundation has always envisioned it as a place where visitors could linger during their visit to see the nationally and internationally recognized artworks.
“The park is a space where you walk in and immediately feel welcomed and safe,” Sweeney says. The Gateway Foundation was looking for a restaurant operator who appreciated that atmosphere and would help bring in the local community. Smith, a downtown resident for the past 15 years, understands and supports the foundation’s goal. She describes Citygarden as a great space for meditation and creative brainstorms. “A quick walk there will alleviate any issue you’re having,” she says.
Ensuring that the café feels just as accessible as the park itself was a priority for the Gateway Foundation, and Sweeney believes a wide range of guests will find something interesting on Burger 809’s menu, including her own family. “I have a 5-year-old, and one of the staples of his diet is cheeseburgers,” she says.
Although the café is currently vacant, Sweeney says the staff is “diligent and meticulous in caring for everything in the park, including its buildings,” so it was all ready for the new restaurateur to walk in and put on the finishing touches.
Burger 809 won’t change much about the space, Smith says. “The building is just beautiful, so it was easy to come in and make it feel like home.” She is still planning the layout of furniture, but she expects to be able to seat 70–75 customers in the dining room and on the patio.
Attracting takeout customers from nearby businesses and tourist sites along the Gateway Mall is also part of the plan—and Smith has a jump start there: Burger 809 has already started catering orders and providing office lunches, and it retained a robust takeout business as it grew.
“There are lots of people downtown working in office buildings, as well as people looking to grab and go while they continue to explore,” she says, “so we’re excited to offer a lot of takeout options.”
The Background
Smith founded Burger 809 nine years ago and was an early adopter of the ghost kitchen concept in 2017. She later moved her fledgling business into its initial home, a tiny space on Cherokee Street that served as a sort of incubator, allowing Smith to steadily build her customer base during the pandemic via catering and takeout orders.
At Citygarden, Smith plans to offer lunch, dinner, and brunch service—similar to the hours at Burger 809’s most recent home at Bluewood Brewing, which is also on Cherokee Street. She’s currently researching opening times and days to find the most optimal schedule, but she says the café will likely be open six or seven days a week. The hours and opening date will also be revealed on social media in April. During her time downtown, Smith says, she has gotten a feel for the types of restaurants that succeed long-term, as well as what people are looking for: variety, fresh options, and convenience.
Burger 809’s opening also coincides with a highly anticipated expansion at Citygarden. “It’s a lucky happenstance that we are getting to make two very exciting announcements,” Sweeney says. The Gateway Foundation is adding three new, yet-to-be-announced pieces and bringing back two favorites, for a total of five artworks to be installed and unveiled in late spring. Sweeney anticipates that the whole project will be complete in early summer.
