Five Guys Burgers and (wonderful and special) Fries

OK, you have been on Atkins or South Beach for a while and your carb hunger has taken over your life. I can think of no better way to make up for a carbohydrate deficiency than an order of fries at Five Guys Famous Burgers and Fries on Fletcher Avenue just east of North Dale Mabry Highway in Tampa. The fries are of the “boardwalk” variety, popular “up north”. They come in two sizes and on our first visit, we erred in choosing the larger. The “small” was more than adequate for two. They are scooped into a no-frills brown paper bag, decorated and enhanced by smudges of grease. The fries are spectacular, full size, salted, golden-tanned, with skin adding a bit of grit and taste. They offer cheese and Cajun varieties but, each time we return, we go for the standard. I recommend that the fries be requested “well done” in order to get a crispier fry.

Five Guys was started in 1986 in Virginia by Janie and Jerry Murrell and their five sons. By 2002, the family owned and operated five restaurants in Northern Virginia. In that year, the family decided to franchise the operation and, now, there are almost 200 stores on the eastern U. S. coast with almost 1000 more planned. Right now, there are over 20 locations planned for Florida and eight in the Tampa Bay area. The chain keeps growing and expanding with stores sprouting all over and receiving favorable reviews wherever they pop up. But that history and success doesn’t justify a visit; the food certainly does!

I love food, all types, all levels of “gourmetdom”; I will gladly scarf down a big bowl of spaghetti, meat sauce and sausage or a filet mignon or grilled wild salmon. I will love them all but, nothing, no nothing, measures up to a hamburger, rare, juicy, seasoned with a bit of salt and lovingly covered by slices of tomato and raw onion and, perhaps, sautéed peppers oozing from between the top half of a fresh roll. I have catholic tastes, however, and I also worship at the shrine of the Double Whopper at Burger King (“heavy all”).

When one enters the store, which is, by the way, spotlessly clean, with a cheery red-and-white checkerboard tile motif, one of the first things that are notices are huge boxes of shelled peanuts. These are free for munching while the order is cooked. There were also signs warning that the fries were cooked in peanut oil for those who might be allergic. The menu on the wall, and available in a multitude of stuff to take home, refrigerator magnets and such, indicates that the offerings are mostly limited to hamburgers with the usual bacon or cheese variations, hot dogs (cheese, bacon or both) and a veggie or grilled cheese for the non-carnivores. The one thing that initially caused me concern was notice that all hamburgers would be made “well done” with no exceptions. On the other hand, toppings were available at no cost, beyond the usual BK choices: fried onions, sautéed mushrooms, green peppers, jalapeno peppers and a slew of sauces. Toppings of sautéed onions and mushrooms, tomatoes, and mayo made what might have been a dry hamburger satisfyingly gooey and sloppy.

Although the meat is cooked well done, the folks at Five Guys do not continually press the meat on the grill repeatedly (as Steak ‘n Shake does) nor has the meat been frozen (ala Mickey D’s). The result is a patty that has a juice to it, a seasoned crust from the grill and a fresh taste that is like home.

This is not the rare hamburger that I make and enjoy at home; it is, however, far above the “fast food” places. And the fries. . . .Oh, Lord, are they ever great.

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Tags: Carrollwood, fast food, Five Guys, french fries, hamburgers, Tampa, Tampa Bay