Five Guys "haters" - check this out

You did not include Smashburger in that group, and I think Smashburger compares more directly with them in terms of price, toppings, and target market
 
I have only had one Smashburger thus far, but the juicyness of that one burger was far and away greater than any burger I have had from the mediocre Five Guys lineup
 
I am not trumpeting (or intending to trumpet) Smashburger as the greatest thing out there, mind you.

your response makes no sense. I watched them squeeze every bit of juice out of my burger wit h my own two eyes. The only clear thing was the lack of any moisture left in the burger. There are still some real burger joints out these that will serve you a burger cooked rare. They are obviously not afraid of the meat they serve or the help they hire. 5 guys are afraid of something with their cooking methods. so, it has EVERYTHING to do with the quality of the meat the serve and the people they hire to cook it. Since 5 guy's do not charge fast food prices, you would expect higher quality. When I can get a burger down the road cooked the way I like, basically for the same price, your claims are baseless. The 5 guys i went to was anything but fast or cheap.

MetroplexJim

db1105


Any place afraid to cook your burger to your desired doneness is not worth eating. Since 5 Guy fries their burgers beyond burnt and squeezes every bit of natural juices out of the patty, I can only assume that they don't trust the quality of the meat, or thier employees. All the free toppings confirm my fears.

"Since 5 Guy fries their burgers beyond burnt and squeezes every bit of natural juices out of the patty".  This is simply not true.  They fry their burgers until the juice runs clear (which means that they have reached an internal temp of 165), NOT until no juice remains.  (See Glenn1234's "testimony" above).

And the reason they do this has nothing whatsoever to do with "not trusting the quality of their meat or employees".  As has been recognized by most above, Five Guys is is "fast food".  Success in the "fast food" category requires a consistent, predictable product:  visit any McD's in the world and their food is the same; I have choked down their crap in New Castle, PA, NYC, Paris, McKinney, TX, B.A., and Rio and it's always the same. 

Of that group, (McD's, Wendy's, BK, In-N-Out, Steak 'n Shake, Culver's, Whattaburger, DQ, Jack-in-the-Box, etc.) they serve the juiciest burger. 

If you want to order something less than well-done, then bitch about what you are served, go to Chili's, TGI's, Ruby T's, or Applebee's!  With wait service they are confugured to cook-to-order -- and they charge accordingly!

As Five Guys originated in Northern Virginia where (I know it's hard - and somewhat frightening - to believe) one out of every eleven adults has a law degree, their frying their burgers until the juice runs clear has everything to do with avoiding litigation!  Back in the 1980's when Jack-in-the-Box had an e-coli "incident" in the Pacific NW, their NOVA stores closed almost immediately - never to return to that lucrative market.

---------------------
(And before Mr. Hoffman tells us yet again how Waffle House prepares his burger to order I will, based on my former Maryland and Virginia food & health certifications, assert that the highest risk of e-coli comes from cooking frozen patties to anything less than well-done)!

db1105, all I am saying is that Five Guys' served product has a higher moisture content than any "fast food" burger I have ever eaten, including In-N-Out, Culver's, and Whattaburger, saying nothing of the heated, frozen frisbees served by McD's and BK.
 
Your local burger restaurant that will cook rare does not have 900 locations and a high media profile.  More to my point, your local restaurant does not have pockets deep enough to elicit the interest of the tort lawyers.  Five Guys does.
 
Clearly, Five Guys is not for you and that is perfectly fine with me.  Chacun a son gout.

Different 5 Guys have different procedures.  I'm not saying your local one isn't dessicating the burgers, but I'm in MetroplexJim's camp. All the burgers I've had have been good and none have been dry.  Are they the best I can get locally? No.  But for the price and convenience, when I sometimes go, they are good.
 
Again, I'm not saying your local 5 Guys isn't giving you a big bag of suck, but I disagree that MetroplexJim's post makes no sense.

db1105


your response makes no sense. I watched them squeeze every bit of juice out of my burger wit h my own two eyes. The only clear thing was the lack of any moisture left in the burger. There are still some real burger joints out these that will serve you a burger cooked rare. They are obviously not afraid of the meat they serve or the help they hire. 5 guys are afraid of something with their cooking methods. so, it has EVERYTHING to do with the quality of the meat the serve and the people they hire to cook it. Since 5 guy's do not charge fast food prices, you would expect higher quality. When I can get a burger down the road cooked the way I like, basically for the same price, your claims are baseless. The 5 guys i went to was anything but fast or cheap.

MetroplexJim

db1105


Any place afraid to cook your burger to your desired doneness is not worth eating. Since 5 Guy fries their burgers beyond burnt and squeezes every bit of natural juices out of the patty, I can only assume that they don't trust the quality of the meat, or thier employees. All the free toppings confirm my fears.

"Since 5 Guy fries their burgers beyond burnt and squeezes every bit of natural juices out of the patty".  This is simply not true.  They fry their burgers until the juice runs clear (which means that they have reached an internal temp of 165), NOT until no juice remains.  (See Glenn1234's "testimony" above).

And the reason they do this has nothing whatsoever to do with "not trusting the quality of their meat or employees".  As has been recognized by most above, Five Guys is is "fast food".  Success in the "fast food" category requires a consistent, predictable product:  visit any McD's in the world and their food is the same; I have choked down their crap in New Castle, PA, NYC, Paris, McKinney, TX, B.A., and Rio and it's always the same. 

Of that group, (McD's, Wendy's, BK, In-N-Out, Steak 'n Shake, Culver's, Whattaburger, DQ, Jack-in-the-Box, etc.) they serve the juiciest burger. 

If you want to order something less than well-done, then bitch about what you are served, go to Chili's, TGI's, Ruby T's, or Applebee's!  With wait service they are confugured to cook-to-order -- and they charge accordingly!

As Five Guys originated in Northern Virginia where (I know it's hard - and somewhat frightening - to believe) one out of every eleven adults has a law degree, their frying their burgers until the juice runs clear has everything to do with avoiding litigation!  Back in the 1980's when Jack-in-the-Box had an e-coli "incident" in the Pacific NW, their NOVA stores closed almost immediately - never to return to that lucrative market.

---------------------
(And before Mr. Hoffman tells us yet again how Waffle House prepares his burger to order I will, based on my former Maryland and Virginia food & health certifications, assert that the highest risk of e-coli comes from cooking frozen patties to anything less than well-done)!

db1105 -
 
Try another location.   Maybe your location dries them out.  I have had good luck with our local locations, and I have easily eaten well over 100 of these burgers over the years here in nothern VA, where they have been around since the 1980s.  I can't recall more than a couple that were dried out. 
 
It's possible that you will never be satisfied with them if you crave rare meat. 
 
Glenn 
 
 

Glenn1234


db1105 -

Try another location.   Maybe your location dries them out.  I have had good luck with our local locations, and I have easily eaten well over 100 of these burgers over the years here in nothern VA, where they have been around since the 1980s.  I can't recall more than a couple that were dried out. 

It's possible that you will never be satisfied with them if you crave rare meat. 

Glenn 

Sadly, I am forced to conclude that db1105 is a Five Guys "hater".  No skin off my nose.

I'm with Glen and Metro....I have eaten at 5 Guys literally 100's of times...and I have never had a dry burger. Could be because, other then being to a 5 Guys in York, Pa. all of my visits have been in NOVA/Va..where they got their start.
 
So what, they smoosh their burgers on the grill and cook them through...my burgers have always been juicy, to me that's talent.
 
As I've said before I enjoy a nice rare burger just like the next guy.....but for my money 5 Guys is a great burger, head and shoulders above any fast food joint and most mom and pops, at least in my little corner of the world.

ann peeples


Jim-Blue blood or not-you are dining in a fast food restaurant!! Thats their schtick, and apparently thay are sticking to it. I would prefer Mcdonalds would serve my food, while dining in, on plates, but they dont.And their products in my opinion, are often squished, fries cold etc. Come on guys!!

Ann, you are the voice of reason and common sense on this web-site!!!! Well said!

leethebard

ann peeples


Jim-Blue blood or not-you are dining in a fast food restaurant!! Thats their schtick, and apparently thay are sticking to it. I would prefer Mcdonalds would serve my food, while dining in, on plates, but they dont.And their products in my opinion, are often squished, fries cold etc. Come on guys!!

Ann, you are the voice of reason and common sense on this web-site!!!! Well said!

This is all I'm looking for in the way of "presentation" from Five Guys:

 
Is an unsquished burger served on wax paper in a mesh basket really too much to ask for at Five Guys prices?
 
(Photo courtesy of JRPfeff, taken at Smashburger)

Metroplex,
   We ate at our local 5 Guys last night, and although our burger( I had it with the works!) was wrapped as usual..it was unsquisshed and "unsmashed" perfectly fine.

leethebard


Metroplex,
  We ate at our local 5 Guys last night, and although our burger( I had it with the works!) was wrapped as usual..it was unsquisshed and "unsmashed" perfectly fine.

Lee,
 
I've been patronizing Five Guys since the Reagan Administration.  This is what my burger usually looks like:

It is delicious, but could be so much better with a "Smashburger presentation".  Also, perhaps this is just a personal quirk, but damp bread stimulates a gag reflex in me.

metroplexjim,
    I've seen 5 Guys pictures like that often..and even got one once or twice...but,the last few times we've gone to our local location, they looked fine. Maybe there's an effort afoot to improve...soggy or not, the taste is great(and for me that's what counts).

MetroplexJim

leethebard

ann peeples


Jim-Blue blood or not-you are dining in a fast food restaurant!! Thats their schtick, and apparently thay are sticking to it. I would prefer Mcdonalds would serve my food, while dining in, on plates, but they dont.And their products in my opinion, are often squished, fries cold etc. Come on guys!!

Ann, you are the voice of reason and common sense on this web-site!!!! Well said!

This is all I'm looking for in the way of "presentation" from Five Guys:


Is an unsquished burger served on wax paper in a mesh basket really too much to ask for at Five Guys prices?

(Photo courtesy of JRPfeff, taken at Smashburger)

the only thing that looks good in that picture are the onion straws or whatever they call them on that over smashed burger.
thats a real good presentation; small slice of yellow cheese, one slice of yesterdays bacon,on a dead dead burger. frozen fries with something that looks like dried parsley sprinkles  .
at least the bun is toasted.

I think he was just talking about the presentation on a tray...but I agree. I didn't say anything when I saw this post, but the food LOOKs average..especially those fries(Definately not 5 Guys!!!)...but who knows how they taste!

Presentation is something separate and apart from the food itself.  Whether or not the food in Smashburger illustration above appeals to you is totally beside the point! 
 
So, to make myself perfectly clear, VISUALIZE your beautiful Five Guys Burger as it appears on their "assembly" table (before the wrapping and throwing it in a poke process). 
 
Now IMAGINE its being placed in the "Smashburger-style" paper-lined mesh tray where beside it is a huge mound of those delicious Five Guys fries.
 
Now that's a pretty mental picture, isn't it?

I agree..it would look nice on that tray...but given a forced choice, I'll take taste over presentation any day!!!

I don't think I could eat a wet bun.  Do they take returns?
 
A 5 Guys just opened not far from here so it is somewhere in my future.  At least once.

mar52


I don't think I could eat a wet bun.  Do they take returns?

A 5 Guys just opened not far from here so it is somewhere in my future.  At least once.

Mar, wet buns are never good, I had some the other day, I went home and changed........

Our infants always had wet bun problems......only one's I ever  cared about!

leethebard


Our infants always had wet bun problems......only one's I ever  cared about!

And never a gag reflex?
(Even when the "presentation" was green? )

My youngest grandaughter begged me to take her to a "Five Guys" because so many of her friends had eaten there.  I took her.......we ordered our food.  We sat at one of the high top tables and she said "Gramma, how come this bag looks like a garbage bag of food?"   and "Why are people throwing peanut shells on the floor?"    You can see that at age 9, she was not impressed!

Ya know, all the times we've been to our 5 Guys,I've never seen a peanut shell on the floor. We put our shells in an empty cardboard used to put the peanuts in...and so do all the people around us...or they put them in the empty brown bag....I guess we people on the Jersey shore are neat!!!

oh...Snooki excluded!!!

Empty browm bag?  What in the world is that?  People are eating peanuts before they get their brown bag of food.............have no idea what  the cardboard is that you are talking about.................must be that you guys are more "highclass" up there!

We have stacks of small cardboard containers to put the scooped peanuts in...Our kids take a few extra empties for the shells...and after the burgers and fries are taken out of the bag and passed out...many people dump the shells into the brown bag...if that makes us here in Jersey "highclass" then so be it...but that's what goes on here.

don't tell me the food in that picture came out like that.
it was arranged for the picture.
when you're eating at a burger joint, from McD's to 5 Guys, YOU KNOW the presentation is NOT going to look like the picture.
I go to those places for the taste, not the presentation.
if you go there for presentation, YOU ARE PRETTY DELERIOUS.
I don't care how they market them,they're still BURGER JOINTS. NOT resteraunts. 

Greymo


My youngest grandaughter begged me to take her to a "Five Guys" because so many of her friends had eaten there.  I took her.......we ordered our food.  We sat at one of the high top tables and she said "Gramma, how come this bag looks like a garbage bag of food?"   and "Why are people throwing peanut shells on the floor?"    You can see that at age 9, she was not impressed!

Greymo


My youngest grandaughter begged me to take her to a "Five Guys" because so many of her friends had eaten there.  I took her.......we ordered our food.  We sat at one of the high top tables and she said "Gramma, how come this bag looks like a garbage bag of food?"   and "Why are people throwing peanut shells on the floor?"    You can see that at age 9, she was not impressed!

Clearly, your grandaughter is a refined young lady who is benefitting from an excellent upbringing. 
 
Even the young appreciate proper presentation.

sk bob


don't tell me the food in that picture came out like that.
it was arranged for the picture.  When you're eating at a burger joint, from McD's to 5 Guys, YOU KNOW the presentation is NOT going to look like the picture.

JRPfeff took the picture at Smashburger and noted that it was not "arranged".  Further, my experiences there regarding presentation have been identical to the one illustrated. 
 

sk bob

I go to those places for the taste, not the presentation.

 
If I must choose, I agree. 
 
Clearly though, Smashburger has chosen as one of their "product differentiations" an attractive way to present their food.  Good for them!  Now they earn more of my money than does Five Guys.
 
All I am saying is that everything else being equal (including the quality of the food, of course) I will choose the business with the more appetizing presentation. 
 
You are setting up the classic "strawman":  the choice here is not "crap" artfully arranged vs. good food slopped into a trough!  
 
Throughout the history of free enterprise appealing product differentiations are a key to corporate success.  Presently, the Apple Computer Corporation is an excellent example of this.
 

sk bob

if you go there for presentation, YOU ARE PRETTY DELERIOUS.

 
Presentation appeals to the eye.  All the senses, including sight, are involved in gustatory delight.  Otherwise, we would be content with Maricopa County prison-style protein loaf served up in a trough! 
 
(Once upon a time in Mao's China everyone was made to dress alike in unisex "Mao Jackets".  Are the Chinese now "delerious" because they have now "gone for fashion" where the basic product - clothing to protect one from the elements - is now differentiated in eye-pleasing ways?). 

sk bob

I don't care how they market them,they're still BURGER JOINTS. NOT resteraunts. 

To me at least serving food in a wire mesh basket lined with waxed paper is far more "burger jointy" than "restauranty". 
 
Five Guy's "presentation" is pretty damn close to slopping the hogs.  Worse yet, it yields  damp bread.

I agree "all things equal"...but I and many here do not find the smashburger(love that name:Do they press the burger down like 5 Guys?) 5 guys equal...and you agree the fries are inferior.....so in this case, taste trumps!. That said I would choose my 5 guys wisely. As I said, ours isn't wet,usually. Now, I've eaten loaded burgers at pubs that get soggy with wet toppings, if you use a burger roll...it's the nature of the beast...simple patty. lettuce and tomato, no...Add all kinds of sauces,grilled onions,mushrooms,jalapenos etc..maybe.
    I've taken a chunk of 5 guys burger out of my everything burger and tasted just the meat. Great taste...don't do that with some trash burger!