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The burger world just became a more sad place today with the loss of one of the founding fathers of Dallas’ eternally stellar burger scene, Jack Keller.
According to the Dallas Morning News, Keller, who founded his iconic drive-in more than five decades ago, passed away early Tuesday morning at the age of 88. The loss comes just one day after Keller was diagnosed with stage four liver cancer.
“I’m devastated,” Jack Keller Jr. told the Morning News. “He was my hero. He was the smartest, coolest guy I ever met.” The elder Keller opened his first outpost of Keller’s Drive-In in 1950, and spent the ensuing years expanding it into three surviving locations across Dallas, along with other restaurants that have since shuttered.
No word yet on when funeral services will be held for Keller, but his son does note that all Keller’s locations will likely be closed on that day so that staff can remember their late employer.
