Earlier this year, Molly and I took a 2,500-mile round-trip road trip to Houston, Texas, for the wedding of one of her best friends. Of course, we looked forward to the beautiful occasion and the chance to share in a most special day. I also saw the trip as a chance to try a few local restaurants in Houston and a few along the way.

Along with a chance to try Texas brisket barbecue, authentic Tex Mex, Texas-sized pecan pie and a variety of Asian, Cuban and other ethnic foods that Houston offers, I had to sample at least one spot known for its local cheeseburgers. The bride offered us a list of great food options to try during our visit, and I supplemented those choices with a little research of my own. That’s when I found Lankford Grocery & Market, a decades-old Houston institution located between the city’s Fourth Ward and Midtown districts.

On our first full day in Houston, we visited Space Center Houston south of the city’s downtown. On the way back toward town, we rolled through neighborhoods and around the corner home of Lankford Grocery & Market, which is also listed here among Texas hot spots on the roadtrip food site roadfood.com. I was concerned about parking options after seeing online that the restaurant looks like it sits on a full corner with not much on-street parking. Turns out, parking was no issue. Right past the restaurant, there’s a street with ample space for 20 or so cars to park underneath shade trees. Once we parked, we got out and took a short walk around the corner and into our lunch spot.

The restaurant was busy because it was lunchtime on a Friday, but there’s plenty of seating inside and outside, so we had no trouble getting seats in the corner. A waitress arrived shortly with menus and our adventure began. It was a memorable experience best summed up by these words from Molly (and I paraphrase because I’ve forgotten the exact quote): When you can get a cheeseburger and I can get Mexican, we won’t find a better place to eat than this. And I completely agree. In addition to American favorites like the cheeseburger, Lankford capitalizes on the Tex Mex connection of the state to offer delicious Mexican food favorites as well.

Molly ordered and consumed as much of Lankford’s Super Taco as she could. It was a heaping of Mexican food on top of crispy tortilla shells. I ordered the original cheeseburger and a side of fries and finished the whole plate. It was the best cheeseburger I’ve had since my favorite cheeseburger joint of all time (Kim’s Kitchen in Stanley, N.C.) closed about five years ago. The meat was hand-pattied and incredibly fresh. The bun was soft and hearty to support the patty, cheese and delicious toppings.

In addition to the food, the atmosphere personified the local joint: regulars trading conversation with the waitresses and cashier, a take-out line with as many people as were seated in the restaurant, businessmen in suits stopping in for lunch, loosening their ties and removing their sunglasses, and a kitchen churning out plate after plate of tasty treats.

Everything about this restaurant was a winner. The atmosphere, the parking, the location, the history, the spot on the Food Network and Guy Fieri’s “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” TV show and, most important, the amazing food and memorable cheeseburger. If you’re ever in Houston, check out Lankford Grocery & Market.

Lankford Grocery & Market, 88 Dennis Street, Houston, TX, lankfordgrocery.com