SAN ANTONIO — Cheeky graffiti covers the walls at a Spring Branch restaurant, creating smiles and laughter as people enjoy their meals within the eatery.

The place at its core is a simple burger joint but add in the hilarious theme, delicious food and welcoming atmosphere, it quickly becomes a fan favorite hangout.

“It’s all about family here. You come as you are and we’ll take care of you and feed you and give you the best quality of food. And the kids can have fun while the parents can sit and socialize,” General Manager Jonathan Linsalata said.

“From the shakes to the burgers, everything in here is unique even the décor. We wanted it to be family-friendly but adult at the same time,” Owner Denise Schumann added.

Schumann said the restaurant, which currently operates out of a colorful brick-and-mortar building, started as a food truck over a year ago but the demand for their burgers was too great.

“It was becoming really successful, and we were able to expand our menu,” Schumann said.

Along with the permanent location came even more additions like their arcade, their outdoor dining area, pet-friendly sections with complimentary water bowls and even signature merch, including hats and t-shirts.

And now that they’ve settled into the daily grind, Linsalata says both locals and tourists consistently praise Fun Buns and its unique menu with their most-ordered sandwiches like the Messy Bun – a take on a Texas cheesesteak, the famous PB& J Bun and the Cowboy Bun.

Linsalata said his crew takes pride in their high-quality ingredients and affordable prices, offering combo deals nearly every weekday:

• Tuesdays- $10 Build Your Own Bun ($9 lunch)
• Wednesdays - $12 Messy Bun
• Thursdays – $12 Fat Daddy Melt
• Fridays – $12 Fried Fish

“I want people to come here feeling, you know, you paid this money for a meal, I want you to go home feeling like I got my money’s worth,” Linsalata said.

Linsalata admits his favorite sandwich is the Famous PB&J Bun, which includes a beef patty, topped with Asian-style peanut butter, raspberry chipotle jelly, cheddar cheese and cherrywood smoked bacon.

Schumann said while she loves to build her own burger, she enjoys one of their newest menu items, the chicken salad sandwich.

“It’s all good,” Schumann said. “Nothing’s ever frozen. Everything’s freshly made.”

Before ordering the burgers or sandwiches, customers can share the giant onion ring towers, fried pickles and fried macaroni and cheese. 

When customers aren’t chowing down on the burgers and sandwiches, they’re enjoying the decadent milkshakes like the Chocolate Chip Cookies and Cream Shake, Chocolate Covered Strawberry Shake or the Peanut Butter Cup Shake.

Adults are also given the option of turning their specialty shake into a boozy shake or they can enjoy a cocktail or mixed drink from their full bar.

And long before the brick-and-mortar or even the food truck opened its doors, Schumann and her husband Brant were thinking of the most important thing - the perfect name for what they wanted to build.

Brant apparently came up with the name “Fun Buns” off the cuff, a name Schumann admits was perfect.

“I’ll give him all the credit on that,” she said laughing.

But as they transitioned from wheels to a physical building, Schumann was inspired to give it a makeover.

“I was able to get a little crazy and creative with the space and have some fun with it and play off the name,” Schumann said.

Her friend then contacted a local graffiti artist, who collaborated with Schumann on the Fun Buns vision.

Eventually it was time to paint. And all the artwork on the walls of Fun Buns is done with spray paint – completely freehanded.

The artist completed the interior and exterior in about two weeks – transforming the white walls into fun pictures of characters like SpongeBob, Jessica Rabbit and Dead Pool – all giving cheeky-esque poses. 

“This kid was so talented,” Linsalata said.

“It was crazy to watch him do it,” Schumann added.

But none of that could be accomplished without the whole Fun Buns family, from the servers to the cooks and everything in between.

“At the end of the day, we can’t do it without all of the employees. We have a great staff. From the back of the house to the front of the house. We can’t do it all without them,” Linsalata said.

“Amazing. Great group of people,” Schumann added.  

Fun Buns is located at 15000 TX-46, Spring Branch, Texas 78070. 

For more information about Fun Buns, click here.