This is a typical lunch crowd at Williams Gourmet Kitchen

Sometimes you just get a hankering for a nice sized burger and that’s exactly what happened to me the other day. I needed beef, and I knew that one of the best places to go near RTP is William’s Gourmet Kitchen.

My friend and I got there close to noon, which was prime time for this place and it was packed! When you enter the door, you get in line and order at the counter, much like you would at a fast food restaurant. I got the bacon cheeseburger with all the fixings. My friend ordered the chicken wrap.

Food is ordered at the counter and brought out to your table

We had to wait for a few minutes to find a table, because every seat was taken when we first arrived. We finally lucked out and put our order number on the table. A waitress comes by to deliver your food. The burger was just what I was wishing for. It was big, juicy, and covered with a sharp cheddar cheese and a couple of nice slices of bacon, along with tomato, lettuce and onion. Of course, I had to order the sweet potato fries to go with the burger. The one problem I had with the fries was they had done them waffle style and were a bit too greasy for me. I think the waffling masked the flavor of the sweet potato because there was more surface area that was fried than they would have been if they were the more traditional stick style. Just my opinion though.

Cheeseburger and sweet potato fries

My friend loved his chicken wrap and said he would certainly order it again. It looked great, so I, of course, took a photo so you could see it for yourself.

Chicken wrap at Williams Gourmet Kitchen

I came back to William’s Gourmet Kitchen just two days later with another friend and this time I was in the mood for a salad, partly because I was feeling guilty about eating a big hamburger right in the middle of the holiday season when we are tempted with so many treats and goodies. So I ordered the strawberry salad and asked them to hold the blue cheese (not a fan – I know, I’m crazy, right?). I was shocked to see how large the salad was. It was filled with fresh baby greens, including a lot of baby spinach, pecans, red onions and was topped with thin slices of strawberries and drizzled with a raspberry vinaigrette. This salad was divine and again was just what I needed that day.

Now that's a biggie salad!

Williams Gourmet Kitchen is also open for breakfast and dinner so you can drop by almost any time of the day and enjoy a great, inexpensive meal.

Williams Gourmet Kitchen is located at 2114 East Highway 54 in Durham, near Highway 55 and Research Triangle Park.

Jamie Nunnelly is a communications professional who has worked for companies such as General Motors, Tropicana Products, Inc. and Advantis Corporation and spent over a decade in economic development as the communications director for the Research Triangle Regional Partnership and the Research Triangle Foundation of NC. She published a quarterly magazine called "The Park Guide." Currently, she is the communications director for the National Institute of Statistical Sciences (NISS) and the Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute (SAMSI). Jamie considers herself a bit of a "foodie," and loves to try all kinds of cuisine. She has traveled to places such as Colombia, Europe, Costa Rica, Alaska, Canada and Mexico. Jamie and her husband, Scott, have lived in the Research Triangle region since 1995.

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