NADC Burger: A Michelin Chef’s Take on the Smash Burger

One burger. One way. 100% wagyu beef sourced from a single Texas ranch, built with Michelin-starred precision, and served out of a fast-casual counter in downtown Las Vegas. Here is the story behind one of the most talked-about burgers in the country and why it just landed permanently in Vegas.

The Pop-Up That Became a Permanent Address

NADC Burger opened its first permanent Las Vegas location in mid-April 2026 at 124 S. Sixth Street, Suite 150 in the Tony at Carson building in downtown Las Vegas, steps from the Fremont East District. It is the twelfth location nationwide for a brand that started in 2022 as a post-skate craving in Austin, Texas, and turned into one of the most talked-about burger concepts in the country. The Las Vegas opening follows a three-month pop-up at Resorts World on the Strip in summer 2025 that generated the kind of demand that made a permanent return inevitable.

“After the pop-up, it was clear — Las Vegas showed up for us in a big way,” said co-founder Neen Williams. “The energy, the support, the people — it felt like we had something special here. So we’re bringing it back, this time permanently, with our new flagship downtown.”

“Opening Downtown felt like the natural next step,” added co-founder Phillip Frankland Lee. “It’s where people actually go to eat, hang out and be part of the city.”

A Skateboarder, a Michelin-Starred Chef, and a Backyard Burger Obsession

The origin of NADC is one of the more unlikely stories in recent American dining. Phillip Frankland Lee is the chef behind Scratch Restaurants Group, an Austin and Los Angeles-based hospitality company whose Sushi by Scratch and Pasta|Bar concepts have earned Michelin stars and a spot at No. 97 on Opinionated About Dining’s Top 100 Restaurants in North America. Neen Williams is a professional skateboarder from Fort Worth, Texas, with his own line of spice rubs under Neen Williams Co. They met when Williams walked into a Sushi by Scratch location in Austin and ended up talking to Lee for hours about food and skateboarding.

What followed was a genuine friendship built around skate sessions and cooking. After every session, cheeseburgers. The two kept making them, kept adjusting them, kept asking a simple question — why couldn’t you find a truly great double wagyu cheeseburger at a fast-casual price point? They sourced 100% wagyu beef from RC Ranch just outside Houston, Texas, and spent close to a year developing the recipe before handing out free burgers at skate parks and comedy clubs in Austin to refine it on real people. In October 2022 they opened their first location inside Idle Hands bar in Austin. The first standalone NADC restaurant followed in December 2023. Locations in Chicago, Denver, Dallas, New York City, Los Angeles, Charlotte, and more followed. Named by Food and Wine as one of the top burger spots in the US for iconic regional flavors. Celebrity fans including David Beckham and Jelly Roll. And now, a permanent flagship in downtown Las Vegas.

One Burger. Here Is What Is in It.

The menu at NADC is deliberately minimal. Two core items: a burger and fries. That restraint is the entire point. The burger is built around two 3-ounce patties of 100% wagyu beef from RC Ranch in Texas. Chopped raw onions are scattered across the meat before smashing, which steams them into the patty and creates a crisp sear on one side and a softer bite on the other. New School American Cheese — a chef-driven reformulation of classic American cheese engineered for maximum melt and flavor — goes on next, followed by house-made secret sauce, pickles, and slightly tamed jalapeños, all on a toasted Martin’s potato roll. The acidity of the pickles and jalapeños is calibrated specifically to cut through the fattiness of the wagyu, creating a balanced bite every single time. Frankland Lee has described this as the same level of focus and discipline applied in any of his Michelin-starred kitchens — aimed squarely at a cheeseburger.

The fries are cooked in beef tallow — rendered beef fat — which gives them a richness that standard oil fries cannot replicate. Order them plain or Beast Mode, loaded with cheese, pickles, jalapeños, and NADC special sauce. A full bar serves beer, wine, and cocktails. House-made browned butter chocolate chip cookies round out the menu. That is everything NADC offers and everything it needs to.

Downtown Was Always the Right Call

The downtown Las Vegas location at 124 S. Sixth Street reflects the brand’s identity directly. Skate memorabilia and work from local Las Vegas artists line the walls. 90s skate videos play throughout the restaurant. The counter-service format is fast, focused, and unpretentious. It is the kind of room that makes sense next to Fremont East’s bar scene, local restaurants, and independent energy — a neighborhood that has developed one of the most authentic dining corridors in Las Vegas over the past decade. Le Thai, Evel Pie, Atomic Liquors, Commonwealth, and Esther’s Kitchen are all nearby. NADC fits this orbit far more naturally than it would behind casino velvet ropes on the Strip.

Before You Go

NADC Burger Las Vegas is located at 124 S. Sixth Street, Suite 150, in the Tony at Carson building in downtown Las Vegas, steps from the Fremont East District. Open daily from 11:30am to midnight. No reservations — walk in, order at the counter, and pick up when your name is called. Follow @nadcburger on Instagram for announcements, pop-up events, and any Las Vegas-exclusive menu additions.

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