Cue's Burgers in southwest Houston closes despite GoFundMe efforts

May 16, 2023

Cuc "Mama Cue" Roberts smiles as she passes by a customer on her way to bring a table their orders at Cue's Hamburgers on Friday, March 10, 2023.

After more than 35 years of serving breakfast, burgers and other classic diner dishes, a neighborhood joint in southwest Houston closed its doors for good.

Cue's Burgers at 10423 S. Post Oak Road announced its closure on Facebook saying, "The economy just isn't what it once was and we can no longer navigate through these uncertain times." The restaurant owners had a tough time making ends meet since the COVID pandemic affected the service industry. It closed temporarily in February as a result of backed-up payments on its sales tax but it had been able to reopen thanks to community fundraising efforts.

The restaurant was a labor of love for owner 71-year-old Cuc (pronounced Cue) T. Roberts, known as Mama Cue and her son Keith "Buddha" Kendall. A Vietnamese immigrant, she opened Cue's with the support of customers from a different burger restaurant she had worked at for 14 years.

Open every day of the week, she would begin her days at roughly 3 a.m. to open by 5 a.m. and she often saw the same crowd of people. The morning coffee crew included customers such as Carl Bell, known as "Buddy." When the restaurant closed earlier this year, Bell and his wife started a GoFundMe page that raised some $20,000 to help Cue's get up to date on its sales tax payments so it could reopen.

The restaurant also was a hub for police officers. They became regular customers since a few helped her open her restaurant. Select officers even had a key to the restaurant at one point to use it as a substation to charge their laptops in the early morning hours.

Facebook comments in response to the closure announcement included people thanking Roberts and saying Cue's would be missed.

"We will miss you! Thanks for being a staple in our neighborhood for so many years," one person wrote.