Five Guys: UPDATED 7.31.09

PDX Gwailo is back in town and the feast continues:

Stopped in at one of our local “Five Guys Burgers and Fries” outlets. According to their website, Five Guys started in Arlington, VA, in 1986, and now has over 400 locations.

The menu is simple, hamburgers, hot dogs, and french fries, with an abundance of “free toppings” that enables one to have their sandwich served in any of “over 250,000″ toppings.

If one is to believe the posted sign endorsements, as well as repetitive statements on their website and menus, this burger is the greatest thing since sliced bread, having won numerous awards from various newspapers, websites, and magazines.

One curious category that these awards fall into is “Cheap Eats”, and I’m not sure north of $10 for a hamburger, fries, and drink fall into the genre. The small order of fries is 2.79, though the descriptor of “small” is probably misleading. The order comes in a small foam drink cup, but the server then pours a second serving in the bag, much like the old days of when you ordered a milkshake, got the serving glass as well as the mixing cup delivered to you.

Burger toppings, as I said, are abundant, “free”, and your choices include Mayo, Relish, Onions, Lettuce, Pickles, Tomatoes, Grilled Onions, Grilled Mushrooms, Ketchup, Mustard, Jalapeno Peppers, Green Peppers, A-1 Sauce, Bar-B-Q Sauce, Hot Sauce

The standard burger is two patties, and they also offer a “little hamburger” which one would assume is a single patty. Patties appear to be hand-formed, and, I have to say, are rather good. Fries need no extra seasoning, but a “cajun version” is offered along side the standard fries as a choice at no additional charge.

Five Guys
2606 Cedar Hills Blvd
Beaverton, OR 97005

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ORIGINAL POST: 12.28.08






Looks like Hamburgler is moving belt notches this holiday season:

Hopped in a urban camouflaged Grand Caravan to remain inconspicuous in route to the strip mall where Beaverton got its own Five Guys.

For fast food this is pretty much as good as it gets, and since we are from Portland should we bedwet about the Styrofoam cups? (we wouldn't, it would be disrespectful when visiting other cultures....besides, have you ever drank beer from a Styrofoam cup on a really hot day, its ice cold top to bottom!...going to fan on it more later).

Anyhow, they got the usual suspects. Its worth the trip if you are burgering, plus they have bacon and cheese hotdogs., HEY, they have bacon and cheese hot dogs. Get some problems already.

Five Guys
2606 SW Cedar Hills Blvd.
Beaverton, OR 97005

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George's Giant Hamburgers

UPDATED: 04.28.09





BigManBurgers isn't feeling it:

I'll admit, I had high expectations for this place. I am among other things, a connoisseur of burgers, so the concept of a GIANT HAMBURGER had me envisioning all sorts of things. I was let down.

I got the bacon cheeseburger, with a fried egg on it, and fries. It came out to $8.45. The burger and fries came in baskets diner style. When I got it the first thing I noticed was that the burger itself was not really giant. The place should be more called, Georges Mediocre Hamburgers, because it was, well, just sorta average. Not Giant, not small, just a medium sized average hamburger with a below average side of fries.

As you might be able to see, the bacon was stiff and brittle like my 95-year-old grandmother's wrists and hips, because when I arranged it on the burger it crumpled into little pieces. Party foul. The bun was nice and soft and toasted, and it looked like they buttered it, so that was a plus., but the fries were sort of bland and had a mild hint of egg taste (they must fry them in the same oil).

It's kinda neat because they have a toppings bar where you can put your own toppings on the burger, but by and large I was just not satisfied. It wasn't a bad burger, or a good one, it was just an average burger with an above average burger joint name. Thusly, overall I'd give Georges a 2.5 out of 5.

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ORIGINAL POST 12.18.08










The Duke of Hamburg (also know as The Guilty Carnivore ) makes us hungry visually and takes condiments personally:

George’s Giant Hamburgers is located in Tigard, just off the 99W as it transforms from Barbur Blvd. and leaves Portland proper.

As you can see, the windows boasts that they grind meat fresh. Daily. Except Sundays, when they are closed. So they are liars.

There’s a well-stocked garnish bar, with sauces that include a special-saucey 1000 Island-type concoction that for all I know is actually 1000 Island dressing. I don’t eat things named after mystical places.

The garnish bar includes a salsa fresca, jalapenos, and two types of pickles, even. Well, three, if you include relish as a type of pickle, and I don’t, but I’m not gonna fight you on this.

The bun at George’s is always toasted.

The fries are thicker cut, and fairly decent, though could be a bit crisper. Some people get all freaky about fries and shit and will only eat one style, but I personally like freshly cut and fried potatoes with the skin on.

A fully dressed hamburger. Verdict? The meat isn’t all that flavorful, but it tastes like beef. It’s an honest, simple burger, albeit overcooked to well-done. The pre-cooked weight of the standard burger is 1/3 of a pound. The bun is nicely toasted. At $4.45, it’s only a little over a dollar more than the Whopper™ Sandwich you’ll find just a couple hundred yards down the street, and much better since it’s not microwaved and sitting upon a bottom bun the consistency of refrigerated day-old gravy.

And as you can witness by the three fresh pickle spears, I enjoy over-accessorizing my burger. The quality and selection of the garnish bar makes George’s an infinitely better value than typical fast-food fare. Thick slices of red onion, freshly chopped lettuce, and uniform, meaty slices of tomato…as a comparison, nearly half the time I’ve had a burger at Burgerville the sole tomato slice was simply the very crown of the fruit with a hole in the middle. You won’t find this at George’s, because you’re master of your own burger domain.

Bonus Pickle!

Georges Giant Hamburgers
11640 SW Pacific Hwy
Tigard, OR 97223
(503)639-8029

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Arctic Circle

HambahgaStakee and FrySauce find an Arctic Circle (thought they disappeared along with A&W)....anyway, they have a cool font, goop, and always with the crispy photos:

I was talked into driving way the hell out to Gresham to pick up my good friend Fry Sauce. She was telling me about a place called, Arctic Circle. She rambled on about this special Fry Sauce (hence the name) that was some sort of mixture of ketchup, mayo and maybe mustard. A free meal can take me almost anywhere, so off I went.

It is your typical fast food restaurant, but the Black Angus Beef along with the Fry Sauce does have some panache that sets them apart a bit. I got the Double Cheeseburger combo that came with fries and a drink. Basic cheese, lettuce, pickles and another type of sauce accompanied the burger. Really, not bad... The golden brown fries were nice and crisp and took to the Fry Sauce very well. For a $3.99 meal, I was quite happy with what I had.

We were both asked if we wanted a complimentary ice cream cone, which rounded off our lunch experience very nicely. Whenever I'm way the hell out at 161st and SE Division, I'll be sure to stop by again...

Arctic Circle
16101 SE Division St.
Portland, OR 97236
(503)761-1281

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Burger Tour: Chicago/Detroit with ERS-1

BurgerBlogger did a little stint through Chicago, Detroit, Seattle, and Portland in route to Santa Barbara

Herein we follow the demise of his colon....nice too see booty beats are still alive in Detroit:


My crew SES had me up in Chicago to cause mayhem at the local hotdog stands and drink some Oldstyles till the break of dawn (literally, bars close at 4AM, burgers at 5:30am get to the eat them at 6:00 at home and enjoy one last Oldstyle)

That's a burger sticker in Wickerpark



This here burger was the healthiest burger I've had yet, a bit on the sweet side as the bun combined with the sweet onions made for a super sweet combo. I added some of the salad dressing and gave it that right amount of savory tangyness to the mix.

I had breakfast and lunch/dinner at that place. made it my office for 8 hours and worked. The oatmeal was good too. At Ear Wax



Below is Under dog Polish in Wicker Park. Summer colors. Insanely good, especially at midnight right before the dj set.


That's the homey that made the delish polish dog at Under dog.


The next night dj'ed, got the the place and my my crew Dj Abducted and his girl Julie got the urge for some tacos (can't have burgers all the time, specially in Chicago).

And, it just so happens that we found a place open at 6am, so i had the Enchiladas Poblanas, and since Chicago has the second biggest Mexican population in the US and A, well...it was super good. Mole sauce was just like the mole sauce in Puebla. Serious ting...not just the Oldstyle speaking.


Hardees at a truck stop near Kalamazoo.



After the Chicago madness we headed to DJ a couple jams in Detroit memorial day weekend.

Detroit pub burger, good standard burger. The fries where nicely spiced, the waitress wanted to come party with us as that was the vibe in Detroit, the Detroit Electronic Music Festival was going on and the Redwings won the cup.







Earwax Cafe
1561 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago, IL 60622-2009
Phone: (773) 772-4019


Detroit Pub
1326 Brush St
Detroit, MI

Underdog Hotdogs and more
1570 N Damen Ave
(between Milwaukee Ave & North Ave)
Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 384-4030
www.underdoggbucktown.com


I was too faded to remember the mexican restaurant

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Nevada: In N' Out (Las Vegas)

SpecialSauce keeps us asking why there isn't one here:

We all got Double Doubles, two patties with cheese and animal style, of course. For $5.39 our burgers came with fries and a medium drink.

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UPDATE: 4/19/08



Sarah X Dylan from the fantastic Rick Emerson Show makes the appropriate choice in Las Vegas. Magic Missile!

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ORIGINAL POST: 3/12/08




Hamburgler and Pickles&Ammo sneak away from work with one of them kids from North Portland's classy drinkin' spot the Florida Room (did you know one just opened in Miami Beach as well?) to put down some quickies:

Normally shy away from the fast food, but vacation diets permit such extravagance (and everyone telling us we had to go there) and the mythical lore of the lords message drawing us in (there are Christian messages on some of the packaging apparently).

All were pleased with this. Pickles&Ammo was befuddled since he has never eaten anything but the Double Double Animal style that there were single patty burgers at the table. The production line in this place is awe inspiring. It puts JIT inventory babble and homemade GTD moleskines to shame all with only one register.

As far as fast food burgers In N' Out lives up to the reputation. It's dirt cheap, tasty, and makes you feel funny to order from the secret menu.

Yep, those fries are done up "Animal Style".

In N' Out
4888 Dean Martin Dr.
Las Vegas, NV 89103
(800)786-1000

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Giant

Bacon Cheeseburger


Nacho Burger


French Dip Burger (Brawndo for illustrative purposes only)


The Filler


The Western


AmericanCheese (went twice), Hamburgler, and Pickles N Ammo just had to take a road trip to the land where the cars are taller then the signs, Lake Oswego:

They have some fantasy burgers here. They are priced well and the place is everything you could ask a burger joint to be.

That first one is your basic bacon cheeseburger.

The second the "Nacho Burger" with that delicious ballpark nacho cheese, yes nacho cheese (probably works like Burgermeisters theory that getting your face messy just aids in the lubrication to shove the food in your mouth).

Then there is the "French Dip" burger. It was a crowd pleaser (Brawndo: The Thrist Mutilator is not included...it's from Pickles N Ammo's private reserves of novelty beverages).

Pickles N Ammo dove right in on "The Filler", and that was the last thing he ate. Bacon, cheese, ham, two patty's, egg, condiments, and vegetables. Yes that yellow stuff on that bun is an egg yolk explosion. It takes special skills to be able to eat a thing of that magnitude.

The Western is great if you like BBQ sauce, and we sure do.

Giant Drive In
15840 Boones Ferry Rd.
Lake Oswego, OR 97035
(503)636-0255

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Nevada: Fatburger (Las Vegas)

Looks like a burgler bonanza. PicklesNAmmo, Burgermeister, VeggiePatty, and the Hamburgler splurge:

Fatburger is owned by Portland based Fog Cutter Capital Group Inc. (at least its headquarters) and has a couple celebrity franchisee's like Queen Latifah and Montel Williams, but still not one in Portland to date.

They have 1/2 pounders, 1/3 pounders, baby burgers, fat fries, skinny fries, and homemade onion-rings, real milkshakes, and a salad wedge. Of course you top it with bacon, egg, chili, and cheese as well.

Make no mistake, this is fast food, but they do it a bit better. No complaints here.

Fatburger
3763 Las Vegas Blvd S. #A
Las Vegas, NV 89109
(702)740-8001

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Burger Skills: Portland's Burger Family

UPDATE: 3/7/07

Oh so that's what happened to the sign and the "Mr." got some new paint.



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ORIGINAL POST: 2/6/07




Hiding in someones back yard in Portland are these gems. Lots more of these A&W classics looming around the country: LINK.

Land of Giants has the details:

The Portland Burger Family and Papa Burger are located in the backyard of a private residence. The Papa Burger was originally in Santa Clara, CA. In the 1970s, he was moved to a pumpkin patch / produce stand and remodeled to look like a farmer. He was moved to Portland in 2006 and will be restored.

The same owners acquired the Burger Family in 2007. These figures were found in a field in SD around 1995 and then brought to northern CA

Photos from Jeff at Vintage Roadside

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Colorado: Good Times (Denver)

PattyPusher hits up the Burgerville of Colorado:

A familiar sight on Colfax. Good Times is kind of the Burgerville of Denver with seasonal specials, seasoned fries and Coleman Natural Beef. They do still use the plastic cheese though. Oh, and they’re drive through/walk up only.

After ordering a Classic Deluxe with Cheese combo for five bucks (plus tax, forgot about that stuff), PattyPusher contemplated the staggering number of these that he consumed in high school. Wherever his old Volvo is now, it probably still has Good Times wrappers stuffed in some corner that were impossible to remove. This is one of the best fast food burgers out there and comes with all the latest accessories. Ok, well at least LTO, ketchup, mayo and pickles.

Good Times #113
3909 E Colfax Ave.
Denver, CO 80220
(303)321-1102

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Link: Digest's Taco Burgers

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While Karen Bernards is whipping up Thai Burgers the boys over there on Portlands Urban Honking blog Digest are taking the Hamburguesa to the next level.

Trying to have the best of both worlds they have created a "Taco Burger". What's not to love?

I'm really curious what the "Chili Cheeseburger Soup" is all about too.

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