Five Guys piles on fresh flavors
Sometimes a meal is of such good quality that the appetite just gets sharper at the end of it.
In other words, having gone into the Five Guys burger place feeling only mildly hungry, I found myself wishing for a second kosher style hot dog ($3.59) after my first one.
My guests and I weren’t sure what whetted our appetites in such a way but believe it was the fresh product — nothing is ever frozen in the restaurant chain’s locations — and the grilled toppings.
Five Guys has a charming breeziness about it, with a red-and-white decor. Neatly stacked bags of potatoes and containers of peanut oil border the wait line for ordering customers and seem to make perfect sense in decorative use. While you’re eyeing the menu on the wall, help yourself to some raw peanuts to shell and munch on, available within easy reach.
Behind the counter is the large, open kitchen, where customers can watch the cooks perform their artistry over the grill.
The restaurant serves burgers, sandwiches, hot dogs and fries.
First-timers should know that, on the menu, the burgers without the word “little” in front of them have two of the grilled, hand-formed patties.
Guests chose the bacon cheeseburger ($5.99) and the little cheeseburger (a burger with one patty, for $4.59).
Diners can choose as many toppings as they want, at no extra charge. Grilled onions and grilled mushrooms are two of the available toppings, along with lettuce, pickles, tomatoes, jalapeno peppers and green peppers.
The burgers were a hit, especially when soft, fresh grilled mushrooms and onions, in long loopy slices, were added.
The kosher style hot dog ($3.59) was split and grilled and absolutely heavenly with the addition of the mushrooms and onions.
The bacon cheese dog ($4.79) was everything its name invokes.
The burgers and hot dogs come wrapped in foil, which keeps them nice and hot at the table.
The fries, which come in two versions, Five Guys style and Cajun style, are their own talking point, fried in peanut oil, with a nice texture and tastiness. The Cajun style, naturally, is just a bit spicier but not overwhelmingly so.
A regular order of fries ($2.59) is a generous size and is served in a brown paper bag, a homey touch that pairs well with the foil-wrapped burgers and dogs.
While we didn’t try a sandwich on this particular visit, the selections are a veggie sandwich, a cheese veggie sandwich and grilled cheese.
No desserts are on the menu, but then sometimes, who needs dessert?
According to its website at http://www.fiveguys.com, the restaurant really was launched by five guys — brothers — in Arlington, Va. in the 1980s and now has franchised restaurants across the country and in Canada.
The one we visited, just outside the north gates of LSU, is the second one in Baton Rouge, with the other being at Towne Center, near the Books-A-Million store.