Five Guys

If you’re a loyal reader of gracenotesnyc, you’ll know that I am a cheeseburger fanatic. After reading about Five Guys opening up in Manhattan, I had to visit opening weekend. Five guys was started by a dad and his four sons (using their college fund to start the place). Five Guys is famous for their burgers and fries and their goal is to sell the best quality burgers possible, so I knew I was in for a treat.

When we arrived, I was surprised to see the place was completely empty, especially since earlier in the week, it took an hour and a half to get your order. The place reminded me of a Jimmy John’s (same checkered tiling around the walls):

The bags around the cash register and along the walls are full of potatoes (everything is really fresh). 5 guys has been compared to In N Out, and since I love their burgers, I was hoping for the same experience. Their menu is simple and they offer premium toppings for free Рmushrooms, onions, relish, jalape̱o peppers, green peppers, and your normal tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, and mayo. We placed our orders for two cheeseburgers and an order of fries (half Cajun, half normal) and while we waited, we munched on FREE peanuts:

Why do they offer free peanuts?!

10 minutes later, our cheeseburgers and fries arrived and I couldn’t believe how large the burger was:

I didn’t realize that the cheeseburger was a double patty (so much meat, such a little stomach). The burger was cooked and seasoned well but the bun was too soft. It tasted more like a Chinese pastry than a burger bun even though it was toasted. The burger wasn’t too messy and it wasn’t that greasy (I’ve heard stories that in the Philadelphia branch, by the time your burger gets to you, the bun is completely soaked in grease).

The fries were greasy and a little soggy, not crispy:

AND there was no Cajun seasoning on half of the fries (even though we requested it). The fries tasted like they were drenched in grease and there were a lot of little pieces (which I HATE). We eventually got some Cajun seasoning and mixed it with the fries in a paper bag, but I didn’t think the seasoning was anything great (Chris, on the other hand, liked the seasoning a lot).

Five guys’ burger was good, but not great. I’m sure it’ll be popular with the folks that work around midtown and it’ll give the Burger Joint some competition, but I don’t plan on returning.