A Little White Lie, a Big First Job, and a Lifelong Love of Whataburger

These days, Travis Meusborn has racked up visits to more than 100 Whataburgers—but his journey started in 1986, with a teenage fib and a craving to work behind the counter.

While other kids were looking forward to summer break, Travis Meusborn of Houston, Texas was just eager to get to work. So eager, in fact, that he lied about his age to get a job at Whataburger.

From football practice to fry baskets

After football practice, Travis would often stop by the Whataburger across from his neighborhood for a burger or an order of fries.

One day in 1986, Travis decided to ask if they were hiring. He filled out an application and got a job interview right on the spot. To make sure he had a chance, he told the manager he was born a year earlier than he really was.

“I just wanted a job,” Travis said. “I wanted to have money in my pocket, take dates out and stuff like that.”

So he got to work, learning everything he could and always asking what he could do to help. He loved it, and remembers looking at the clock near the end of each school day, ready to clock in.

After a few weeks, Travis’ manager pulled him into his office and asked, how old are you? Travis confessed to still being 15. The manager told him he couldn’t work there until his birthday.

“I was distraught,” Travis said. “But I knew I was doing a good job, and he wanted me to come back.”

As his sixteenth birthday approached, the manager gave Travis a call and welcomed him back on board.

Lifelong lessons and love for Whataburger

Travis says he learned about work ethic from his father, and Whataburger was the first workplace where he put what he learned into practice. He carried those lessons with him as he became the first in his family to graduate college, and throughout his career as a teacher.

Travis has also been a high school football referee for 20 years. He says he’s eaten at over 100 Whataburger locations—because after all that time spent traveling around Texas for football games, it’s still his go-to spot.