With all the comparisons floating around between In N Out and Five Guys, I had to try, just to form my own independent opinion. I know some people won't like the comparison to In N Out, but hey, I'm sure Five Guys gets twice the business at this location because of that comparison. The infamous Zagat guide starts that comparison by publishing that Five Guys tops In N Out. It made me curious enough to try.
That said, I've visited, I've tried, and I'm sorry...the Five Guys is good, but the hype is a little overrated.
My first impression of this establishment, walking in the door, is that it was very busy. This was a very hopeful sign of a successful establishment. It was also incredibly crammed with tables in a space that could have easily could afford to be twice the size. The line to the counter was formed with potato sacks of some type. I couldn't help but wonder, with all the people passing and touching these bags of potatoes every day, are these the same potatoes that will end up being served? I'm not really sure if it was for show and atmosphere, or just their attempts at creative storage.
On to the ordering. I ordered a Little Hamburger, "All the Way" with A-1 Sauce, my husband ordered the Cheeseburger with jalapenos, green peppers, and onions. We split a regular order of fries, having read on here that the orders were large. The girl who took our order was very nice and efficient.
When the food arrived, we took our brown bag, cleaned off a table that had been recently vacated, and took a seat. My little hamburger was pretty decent. I enjoyed it. I agree, the buns are a little weak and don't exactly hold up the entire load of the burger as well, but I didn't leave a single crumb left. My husband's Cheeseburger was interesting. It came with two patties, which was nice, but the patties were two completely different sizes. The one on top was much smaller than the other, leading him to think, "What the heck happened there?" The cheese looked like kraft american singles and weren't even in the least bit melted on the burger, but more of just sitting on top. The fries were indeed plentiful. There were just as many fries in the packed full regular cup as there were dumped in the bag on top of our burgers. But hey, I'll never complain about too many fries! We ate them all.
While eating, a staff member came over and asked if we'd like our drinks refilled. A very nice touch. I also observed at least 3 people dig into the box of free peanuts with their hands, rather than using the provided scoop. I can only hope that they had washed their hands recently, but the thought alone made me forego eating any of the peanuts we got.
In the end...Five Guys wins on the fries. Their fries beat In N Out plain fries, hand down. However, they do not compete with a tasty order of In N Out animal fries, which I admit, are a guilty pleasure of mine. Five Guys loses to In N Out on burger quality. With the patty inconsistency and the fact the cheese wasn't melted (but more of right out of the wrapper), and the slight bun weakness, it doesn't quite compete. I like Five Guys' expanded options of toppings, but In N Out serves a much more consistently delicious burger. Five Guys also loses on price. It's much more expensive than In N Out.
When leaving the restaurant, a couple about to enter asked us how the place was. We gave an honest, "It's okay. It's pretty good", but left it at that. read more