Delicious Tahoe road-trip burgers are hidden behind a gas station

There aren’t many restaurants along the historic state Route 49 in Auburn, Calif. But, for the last four decades, one burger joint has remained a cherished pit stop for the droves of travelers on their way to Tahoe.

The Sardella family has been at the helm of flipping delicious burgers since 1985, first at a Fosters Freeze outpost at 403 Grass Valley Highway and later, at Burger & Cream, which opened at the same location in 2017. Despite the name change, father and son duo Jeff and Jon Sardella continue to serve guests who make the special trip to their restaurant behind a 76 gas station at the intersection of Interstate 80 and Highway 49.

“We get a lot of people that drive from 30 to 40 minutes away just to come to our place,” said co-owner Jeff Sardella. 

Throughout the week, the Sardellas can count on about 1,000 daily customers who place orders from a small yet mighty menu and often get it to go from the walk-up window. Burger & Cream offers 11 burgers that are a mix of new items and top burgers carried over from its previous Fosters Freeze days. Among them is The Boss — a top seller that’s made with 1/3 pound of beef, bacon, Swiss and American cheeses, lettuce, tomatoes and a deep-fried onion ring tucked into a sourdough bun. Guests will also find hot dogs, tacos and a wide selection of desserts that feature ice cream prepared with fresh mandarin as well as milkshakes, sundaes and more.  

When I arrived on a recent Saturday, the Burger & Cream staff were gearing up for a lunch rush that seemed to come from every direction. Customers came over from the gas station across the way while a group of teens wandered from their nearby homes. A cook began tackling orders in the open kitchen as he added hamburger patties to the sizzling grill.

I opted for The Junior burger ($5.60) that’s prepared with 1/6 pound of beef, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, tomatoes and housemade burger sauce (though I added bacon). My companion ordered The Spicy Johnny ($10), which is made with 1/3 pound of beef, a housemade creamy sriracha sauce, ghost pepper jack cheese, bacon, jalapeños, lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Burger & Cream has a small interior but there was plenty of seating inside despite the growing line. In no time, our burgers were ready and came gently wrapped in brown waxed paper inside a takeout box. Two thick pieces of bacon poked out of my burger as I keenly sank my teeth into the soft bun. The juicy patty, melted cheese and saltiness of the bacon were just what I was looking for after a long drive.

“[Burger & Cream] gets a huge push of Bay Area traffic on the weekends, especially when there are major events going on in Reno or Tahoe,” Jon said.  

Making the switch from Fosters Freeze to Burger & Cream was a no-brainer for the Sardellas, even though they had a direct connection to the Fosters Freeze company.

Back in the 1970s, Jeff’s father, Bob Sardella, worked as a Fosters Freeze franchisor who helped open several stores around the Bay Area. Eventually the Auburn Fosters Freeze store opened around 1977 under the ownership of a franchisee before Jeff took over the store in 1985.

Business was slow at first, with about 100 customers per day, Jeff recalls, but eventually, the Fosters Freeze store found its footing. Jon was a freshman in high school when he started helping his dad run the restaurant after school and later during summer break. Jon wore many hats at Fosters Freeze as he helped supervise shifts and close shop at the end of the day.

Jon stepped away from the family business for a period of time but later returned with a fresh set of eyes. Around 2015, he started making changes at the restaurant by offering burgers made with higher-quality ingredients. Among those changes: swapping the previous Fosters Freeze beef patties for a blend of brisket and fresh chuck short rib, and updating the bun to Truckee Sourdough Company.

“We started making some changes against the chain and the changes we made were getting positive feedback,” Jon said. “People were coming in and going, ‘Hey, how come this location is better than the other locations that I’m used to in the Bay area?’”

While the upgrades were well received by customers, Fosters Freeze corporate was less than pleased. In 2017, Fosters Freeze canceled their contract due to noncompliance, according to Jon. The following day the store was reincarnated as Burgers & Cream. The former Fosters Freeze menu names were altered slightly. For instance, Burger & Cream’s top seller “The Boss” was — and still is — “The Big Boss” at Fosters Freeze. The blended soft serve shake switched from “Twister” to “Twisties” at Burger & Cream. 

Jeff and Jon say they have no regrets since the switch. For Jon, the best thing has been quality control for the fresh burgers they make, especially since the one-size-fits-all model wasn’t working. Since debuting Burger & Cream in Auburn, the Sardellas opened a second store in nearby Grass Valley in 2020.

Every now and then Jon hears from visitors who have begged him to open a restaurant in the Bay Area. The Sardellas aren’t ruling out expansion or even franchising but at the moment they are content with their two locations. Nevertheless, if the right opportunity presents itself, they might open more stores — but stay closer to the Auburn and Grass Valley areas, he said.

As Jon reflects back on the business, he’s proud to continue serving his longtime customers who have continued to support the restaurant from its earliest days as a Fosters Freeze to its recent change to Burger & Cream.

“Our clientele is everyone from kids who fall in love with the ice cream to grandparents who decades ago came to the Fosters Freeze and stop by for the nostalgia that brings.”

Burger & Cream, 403 Grass Valley Highway, Auburn. Open Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m.-10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; Sunday 10 a.m.-10 p.m.