Burger 21 on Its Way to Little Rock

The Tex-Mex Haystack burger from Burger 21.

Burger 21, a fast-casual specialty burger franchise based in Tampa, Florida, earlier this month signed its first franchise agreement in Arkansas. Allen Hurst, a Little Rock native, plans to open a restaurant in the Little Rock area by the end of this year, he said in an interview with Arkansas Business.

Hurst currently is in the residential mortgage business in Colorado, but he and his wife, Lori, a partner in the franchise, long to return to Arkansas.

He loves the Burger 21 concept, with its emphasis on burgers ranging from variations on beef to chicken, turkey, seafood and vegetarian offerings. Hurst hasn’t yet settled on a Little Rock location but primarily is eyeing west Little Rock.