Five Guys is coming to Bergen County

[Purple Pirate]

Five Guys is a famous burger chain out of Washington DC. They already have some locations in the NYC area and other parts of NJ but this is this is the first one up north.

They are going to be in the same strip mall area that houses Lotus Cafe, Applebees, Home Depot, etc... The actual address is 450 Hackensack Ave. in Hackensack.

[ejebud]

Rumor has it there is one coming to the Millburn Mall where Syd's, Tabachniks and Sonny Amster's Bakery used to be.

[menton1]

Just what we need, another chain burger place. We already have Fuddrucker's.

How about a creative chef-owner more into food than "scene" in Bergen County. That's what we're sorely lacking!!

[Kape]

Just what we need, another chain burger place.  We already have Fuddrucker's. 

How about a creative chef-owner more into food than "scene" in Bergen County.  That's what we're sorely lacking!!

←

Let the burger chains AND the chef-owners who are more into food come! There's room. (The home of the future won't even have a kitchen.)

Really, I was wondering why the burger mania in NYC hadn't crossed the river.

TO me this is good news, and it means that in about one square mile there will be this burger joint, Lotus, then over at Riverside Square Houston's, Morton's, McCormick & Schmick's, Thai Chef, Cheesecake Factory, etc., and the three new ones. OK, most of these are chains, but of the chains out there, this is a good collection/selection.

Not too far from there, Whole Foods and Fairway Market are on the drawing board to join Trader Joe's and the terrific Maywood markets on the retail side.

It seems like a good time to be an omnivore in this area.

kape

[menton1]

That's amazing. Chain-Resto heaven, Northern NJ. Great! What happened to our sophisticated taste? Nothing from Manhattan has rubbed off when you cross that GW Bridge? Aaargh. So near and yet so far.

I know of some chefs who were actually reprimanded and later FIRED at a chain for trying to add a personal touch to a dish in the kitchen. That's what chain food is all about. But to me, it's not what dining is about. I want someone with a brain, someone creative, someone turning out wonderful dishes and making for a terrific dining experience. But not in NNJ, it seems.

Edited June 8, 2007 by menton1 (log)

[Busboy]

At Curlz request I took one for the team and wandered over the Five Guys that sprang up like a mushroom on cow poop about 80 feet from my office.

Years ago, when there were only two or three Five Guys, it was a huge deal in my (previous) office to collect a few bucks and send someone on a Five Guys run. I never actually did this, because I was never hungry for a burger (hangover food) on the days it was offered. But then they started winning all these (notoriously unreliable) Washingtonian Readers' Choice Best Burger things, so I got curious but they were in the 'burbs and I wasn't so who cares; I only go to the 'burbs for Asian food. Then they opened a branch in Georgetown and my son started ducking into it for lunch and raving about it and one day when I had to pick him up early he dragged me in and I had to say...

What the hell is all the fuss about? The free peanuts?

(But first, the stupidest thing I've seen all week: a sign on Five Guys Door saying "Due to the possibility of allergic reactions in children, please do not carry peanuts or shells off Five Guys' premises." )

So, today, I wander down, grab a bacon cheeseburger, a dog and the fries and head back to the office. The fries are pretty good -- thick cut, nicely browned, treated with respect. Cajun fries available for them as likes 'em.

Hot dog (a "bow-wow"):split, grilled, stale bun, nice spice, pleasant surprise. They forgot my mustard, and didn't have any of the little packs.

Burger: two patties fried to grey death, garnished with two slices of 'Murcan cheese, on a soggy, sesame seed bun. I mean, it was basically a double quarter pounder with cheese, only served in an atmosphere that made a lunch hour McDonald's seem calm.

I don't know if they do it on purpose, or just in city locations where space is tight, but the narrow rooms, low ceilings, open kitchen and employees screaming out order numbers at the top of their lings make the place awfully unpleasant.

Let me know how it goes for y'all in the Garden State.

[Curlz]

Um, thanks?

[Randi]

Hmm...

I ate at the Five Guys in Edison a few weeks ago. I thought the burger was excellent. The bun could have been better.

All the toppings are free.

The fries are fresh cut. And they give you way too many! Share a small order.

It's very no-frills. They don't even have plates for you to eat on.

But I really did like the burger.

Randi

[Kape]

The Five Guys in Hackensack, in the Pathmark/Staples/Home Depot strip mall, has been open since last Saturday, June 30.

The burger was excellent, there was a generous serving of fries. Randi said they were fresh cut. They were about 1/4-inch with skin on some of them. Well salted.

I went today, a Sunday, betw. lunch and dinner hours. The mall was empty because of Bergen Co.'s blue laws and there weren't that many people in the restaurant because of that and the odd hour, though there were some.

I had a regular burger with the works, which was two patties with all the toppings printed on the menu in purple. There are other toppings and all were free. There is something on the menu called a Little Burger; I didn't ask but it may be a single patty, which is what I'd get next time.

Very limited, we-do-only-this-but-do-it-right menu: burgers, cheeseburgers, hot dogs, fries (regular and cajun), Coke and water. Refills on Cokes.

No onion rings or chkn nuggets. Not that kind of place.

I hope they make it. It's a great place to have around. Very clean and spacious. (Or just new?) They had eight people behind the counter and a manager working today, and it seemed slow. It was funny to see a crowd around my burger today, as if they were mad scientists in a lab or something.

Price point for lunch seems to be betw. $8 and $10 for a hamburger, fries and drink (there's an Applebee's in the mall, and the Quiznos might still be open there; and there's the Chinese restaurant Lotus and a pizza place. TGIF's is across the street, across a very wide avenue). A welcome addition to the area.

Edited July 9, 2007 by Kape (log)

[ELA]

Although I am completely unfamiliar with this chain, I don't have a problem with "another" burger chain restaurant coming to town. When it comes to burgers, for me, either I go with "a great burger" and what I trmendously like -- and those places are usually a drive, or I might go for something that I know I'll like, and might be more convenient.

After the big 3, what do you have? Fuddruckers? I don't go to Applebee's, M & S, or the Cheesecake Factory for a burger. I might end up getting one there if I find myself there, grabbing a bit, etc. -- but if I am making a concious decision to do, I won't be ordering a burger.

I was recently down in Central NJ and stopped in another so called chain -- Red Robbin or something like that. I liked it. It was a very nice change and step up from the big 3. Different types of burgers, toppings, etc.

Anyway, I don't think a place like this is taking away from some of the more upscale places people feel that Northern NJ is lacking.

Eric

[ChrisOC]

I had my fist Five Guys burger yesterday at the new Somers Point store. The cashier was very patient with a couple novices going through the list of 15 free topping. Some of them you don't see to often in a burger joint. Sauted mushroom, jalepenos and A-1 sauce for instance. We each chose a cheese burger with different topping, and we ordered one small fries.. We got our drinks, found a table and muched on the free peanuts while we waited for our order. Our number was called in about 10 minutes. No plates, no trays, just 2 burgers a container of fries and a wad of napkins in a brown paper bag. The foil wrapped sandwiches had little stickers #1 and #2. a register reciept taped to the bag showed the toppings for each. No guessing on which was which. I thought that was a nice touch. The burgers were hefy, nice double patty fried to a slight crispness around the edge. The topping were fresh, the fries well browned. Ketchup and malt vinegar are available. The one small order of fries was plenty, as a matter of fact my wife and I were not able to finish them. We found it to be a very enjoyable lunch.

[John]

A couple of weeks ago I had lunch at the Edison Five Guys. I've read a lot of posts and opinions about how the quality has gone down since they've expanded, how the burgers are dried out and/or mediocre, etc. I wanted to see for myself. My burger was well done, but juicy and delicious. The fries were excellent and better than any fast food hamburger joint. The hot dog, a quarter pound Hebrew National, was also very good. Although I prefer a grilled frank with natural casing, this one was split and grilled, giving the dog a crunchy exterior.

I enjoyed my lunch and look forward to going back when I'm in the mood for a burger. There will be a Five Guys opening in Union at the Millburn Mall. It will be located where Syd's used to be. While I'm happy about getting Five Guys close to where I live, I'm sorry to see the place serving arguably the best hot dog in Jersey (therefore the world) move out.

[ELA]

A couple of weeks ago I had lunch at the Edison Five Guys. I've read a lot of posts and opinions about how the quality has gone down since they've expanded, how the burgers are dried out and/or mediocre, etc. I wanted to see for myself. My burger was well done, but juicy and delicious. The fries were excellent and better than any fast food hamburger joint. The hot dog, a quarter pound Hebrew National, was also very good. Although I prefer a grilled frank with natural casing, this one was split and grilled, giving the dog a crunchy exterior.

I enjoyed my lunch and look forward to going back when I'm in the mood for a burger. There will be a Five Guys opening in Union at the Millburn Mall. It will be located where Syd's used to be. While I'm happy about getting Five Guys close to where I live, I'm sorry to see the place serving arguably the best hot dog in Jersey (therefore the world) move out.

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There you go. I think a place like this, as long as it's good, has a place or fit in the burger market. Apparently, there is one about 10 minutes or so from my office. I never knew that, although it's in a shopping center that you can't see from one of the main streets, and other than Home Depot, I don't think anyone knows what's there until they go there.

I'm going to try and get there this week for lunch and see what it's like.

Seems like a very basic menu, nothing fancy. I like it, LOL.

Eric

[NJ2FLA]

Out of NJ but somewhat relevant.

I went with a friend of mine to 5 guys here in West Palm Beach on Village Blvd. last Thursday night.

I ordered the little bacon cheeseburger with just fried onions on it. We also each ordered a small fry and drink.

The difference between the little cheeseburger and the regular one is the number of patties. The little size is one patty and the regular is two patties. The price difference is $1.00 more for the regular I think it rings in at $5.85 for the Bacon Cheeseburger.

The meal cost me nearly $9.00.

Yes, it is served in a paper bag and yes we could of easily split the fries. I enjoyed the fries.

The cheeseburger was tasty but nothing to drive out of my way for.

They also had the peanuts which tasted as if they had been in open air a bit long as they were getting stale.

-Scott