Medill freshman Lauryn Chamberlain once drove across Michigan to visit a Five Guys Burgers and Fries in Detroit. Starting Monday, she and her friends will be able to enjoy the restaurant’s famously fresh food just a few blocks off campus.
“It is delicious,” Chamberlain said. “They have these giant things of fries, and you can split with everyone.”
After months of tantalizing passersby with the red and white Five Guys logo in its papered-over windows, a branch of the burger chain will open Oct. 25 at 816 Church St. Would-be customers can’t wait, Five Guys district manager Chris Obligato said.
“People have even come in when we didn’t have furniture in here,” Obligato said.
The restaurant’s name references Jerry Murell and his sons, who opened the original Five Guys in Virginia in 1986, Obligato said. Since the chain began franchising in 2001, it has opened more than 600 locations. Despite the nationalization of the brand, members of the Murell family still train all district managers, including Obligato, themselves.
This down-to-earth approach helps account for Five Guys fans like Chamberlain, Obligato said. Unlike other chains, the restaurant relies entirely on fresh ingredients – its stores don’t even have freezers. The sometimes lopsided shape of its fries reflects the handmade nature of the food, he said.
“Your potatoes are always going to be a little bit different,” Obligato said.
McCormick senior Josh Lau agreed. In addition to enjoying the flat, thin burgers Five Guys serves, he said the restaurant’s food seems less processed than the items other local chains such as Burger King serve.
“They give the illusion of a more wholesome product,” Lau said, adding that he was unsure whether this perception was based in fact.
Five Guys’ natural style makes it a good fit with Evanston, Obligato said. So far, the store has received more than 200 applications from residents hoping to work there, including many Northwestern students. Five Guys will likely hire 40 to 50 of the applicants, he said.
In addition to employing students, Obligato said he expects Five Guys to attract them as customers.
Students particularly appreciate Five Guys’ genuine approach, Obligato said. They also enjoy the unusual complimentary menu items.
“College students get a kick out of free peanuts,” Obligato said.
Medill freshman Michelle Wingard goes to Five Guys frequently in her hometown of Miami, she said. She and her roommate, who is also from Miami, have already made plans to visit the Evanston branch.
“It’s fast food, but it doesn’t taste like fast food,” Wingard said. “It tastes like something that you’d get at a restaurant you can sit down and order at.”
Obligato began his career with Five Guys expecting a quick transition to a sit-down restaurant of the kind Wingard described, he said. His family owns Italian restaurants in Wisconsin, and he planned to follow in their footsteps. But he couldn’t leave the Five Guys family behind.
“It’s by far one of the best companies I’ve ever been with,” Obligato said.
