5 Guy's Hamburgers and Fries of Maryland - Simply Scrumptious

What if your Father and Mother said to their five Sons "would you want to use the college money we saved to go to college or would you rather use it to start a business?" That was what the legend says Janie and Jerry Murrell said to their five sons. Their sons decided to go into business. This was the start of 5 Guys Burgers and Fries in the Maryland and Washington DC area. Now with chain branches extending south to Florida, north to New York State and west to Indiana, it looks like they made the right decision.

I don't know if this story is 100% true or not. I do know that they have an quickly expanding chain which seems to be growing as fast as Starbuck's. I also know that they make the best tasting hamburgers, cheeseburger and French fries in the world. Their burgers are simply scrumptious. Why they are so much better than any other burgers? I have no idea. They just are. They are also very reasonable at $3 to $4 and change depending on whether you order one or two patties, cheese or no cheese, and bacon. There are dozens of toppings you can have them add to your burger. My favorites are caramelized onions, sautéed mushrooms and of course ketchup. If you don't like my choice there are dozens of other combinations you can select.

The burgers are all cooked well done so if you like rare meat, go to some other eatery. However, I think with all the bacteria in chopped meat these days, I wouldn't want it any other way. Did I say these burgers were scrumptious? Well I'm saying it again. They are delicious beyond comparison. I gave up McDonald's and Burger King. You may get them your way there but they don't taste as good, at least not in my opinion.

Let's talk about French fries. 5 guys French fries are cooked in pure peanut oil. They are whole with skin attached and perfectly cooked. Peanut oil is very high in mono-unsaturated fats. These are the healthy fats, actually binding with cholesterol and lowering your LDL count. LDL is very bad. It is known as the bad cholesterol. I wouldn't go as far as to say that eating lunch at 5 Guys is heart healthy. Give me a break, those burgers must be full of cholesterol to taste that good. Maybe just order the fries and a Diet Coke.

I've got one more thing to say about these fries. Order the regular serving size even if ordering for two. They fill up the generous sized container then add at least another similar amount of excess fries into your bag. This can feed two hungry eaters easily and all for only $2 and change. I can't even imagine what you get if you order a large size fries.

If you are hungry enough to eat more, Five Guy's provides loose peanuts by the box full. Fill up a small bag provided for that purpose and eat all the free peanuts you can. Water cups are provided for the customers, who can opt for the regular assortment of fountain drinks.

The conditions in the Five Guys branches I have eaten in are clean but nothing fancy. Each eatery is amply staffed with young order takers and cooking staff. There are no food servers. When your receipt number is called, just pick up your order at the counter. The one thing I don't like about this establishment is the large tip jar filled with dollar bills next to the cash registers. Imagine if Burger King had tip jars next to the cash registers. I don't think there would be too many people putting in dollar bills. I imagine it's the same here. They should just pay the workers enough where the customers weren't put in this situation. Otherwise, I love this place!