Five Guys coming to Encinitas

[SDGourmand]

Just saw the sign for Five Guys.. Going to be in the old Daphanes spot a few doors down from Kaito..

[deeznuts]

Went to five guys last year in Temecula. Never been back. I'm sorry, the only thing novel about it was that you get to choose a lot of toppings. Big deal the burger itself was very unremarkable. In-n-out is way better.

The fries were decent though. yes you get a ton. I have yet to have a fast food burger better than In-n-out. Shoot Thomas Keller flies into LA with a bottle of wine and hits up an In-n-out. That is a man of exacting taste! :p

[littlestevie]

We went to 5 guys in Encinitas last weekend and I would completely agree with CTDub's report on the PB location as being the same for Encinitas. The fries were a greasy sodden mess, the burger was well done but without any char, the bun so-so. At least it appears that they are consistent from location to location. The kids that worked there were nice but their lack of experience showed, it was very haphazard behind the counter. The big positive was that the peanuts were good. If they are trying to compete with In and Out, good luck, they will need it.

[cstr]

That's what they do, it's a chain. The burgers are always cooked well done. On the East Side, 5 Guys is a cult following.

[Beach Chick]

southie..
Does 5 guys make a garden burger for this chicka..patty melt?

[cstr]

Just meat burgers BC and fries, they do have a veggie sammy and gvrilled cheese on the menu. I'd pass on both of those options.

[RB Hound]

I don't think In-N-Out is, in San Diego, primary competition at all - completely different atmosphere and price point. Smashburger seems a lot more similar, and in some respects, it is sort of Fuddruckers rebooted, isn't it?

[littlestevie]

I have not been in a Smashburger so can't comment, my spouse went and did think they were similar. Smashburger has more exotic toppings, salads and a chicken burger. 5 Guys just has burgers and dogs with a veggie burger. No salads. There is really not much seating in the Encinitas location, most of the seats were taken by people waiting for their orders. I think Fuddruckers was more a sit down type place, more like Islands? The first thing that popped into my mind when I was waiting at 5 Guys was too bad this wasn't an In-and-Out.

[RB Hound]

Your order at the counter in Fuddrucker's, and they bring out your food. Probably a tad bit more "sit down" than 5 Guys, but it still isn't a menu at the table type of place.

In somewhat related news involving a different protein source, Chick-Fil-A will be opening a place in Carmel Mountain Ranch. It is in the building formerly occupied by a mattress store, between Taco Bell and TGI Friday's. It's becoming pretty clear to me that Chick-Fil-A's San Diego strategy is to occupy restaurants that are close (in some cases very close) to an In-N-Out. :)

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Chick-Fil-A
3570 Sports Arena Blvd, San Diego, CA 92110

[Beach Chick]

Never been to a Chick-Fil-A...guess, I should since it has 'chick' in the title..

[littlestevie]

Never on Sundays however.

[bizzwriter]

p.s. Every time I walk/drive by the PB 5 Guys, it's a ghost town. They better be praying for more business. And soon.

[RB Hound]

Everybody that was there must be going to the one that opened last month in the Costa Verde Center (across Genesee from the UTC Mall). I get this ironic feeling inside when I'm leaving the Thursday afternoon Farmer's Market at the mall, and drive by 5 Guys on my way to Bristol Farms. :)

[Island]

Haven't been to 5 Guy, but it's hard to imagine any fries worse than In N Out's. They suck.

[Encinitan]

I just went to Five Guys, specifically to try their fries. They are the best fries I ever had at a fast food joint (by far), and better than any fries I have had anywhere in memory. The fries I received, and immediately began scarfing, were perfectly cooked and salted; they were not remotely soggy. The fries are cooked in peanut oil (big plus) and with skin on (another plus).

As an experiment, I saved some fries for 25 minutes later, and they weren't nearly as appealing. The lesson to this story is that if you get the fries, begin eating them immediately.

[littlestevie]

They must of had different fry cooks. I went last Friday and they were some of the worst fries I have ever had in my life.

[pab]

I went to Five Guys in Pt. Loma, couldn't wait. YUCK! Burger was like eating from my high school cafeteria, grey with a smushy bun. Fries were totally undercooked and raw. In N Out's fries are awsome, just need to be ordered well done...my fries have to be crunchy or they get tossed. I threw out half my burger and my husband said he would never go back. Way over hyped!!

[lawrence123]

I saw the sign too, but no improvments being done and there are still "for lease" signs in the windows. Did the deal fall through?

[Encinitan]

I saw evidence of construction work inside.

[robadam]

I love Five Guys. I wish them luck. I think that they will do very well in Encinitas

[Encinitan]

In other fast food news, the Taco Bell on Encinitas Bld has been completely demolished.

Hold the applause please. The replacement structure will also be a Taco Bell. Apparently, that's how Taco Bell does remodelling.

[CTDub]

I tried Five Guys in PB last week and was unimpressed.

The positives: for a $5 burger the double patties were a decent total size and juicy despite being cooked to the corporate-mandated well done, the staff was super friendly, and there was lots of seating (as opposed to BL in La Jolla, which is small and often packed).

The negatives: the beef tasted underseasoned and underflavored (or overcooked), there wasn't any good crust or char on the burger (might as well get that if you're going to cook well done), and the decor felt cafeteria-like.

The many available free toppings are appealing, but I had my burger with grilled mushrooms, lettuce, tomato only to better judge the flavor. I won't rush back anytime soon.

[Indirect Heat]

I'm with you. FIve Guys is like In 'N Out. Sure, it's better than McDonald's, but that's not saying much. I'll eat Five Guys in an airport (Dulles), but I certainly won't eat it anywhere else.

[yanks26dmb]

Maybe I'm biased because I grew up on 5 guys and used to go to them when they only had 2 stores back east, but in my mind, there is no way in-and-out compares in terms of burgers. If you want fries, I'd say skip 5 guys. They are greasy, give you way too much, and not that great. But the burgers...oh man. If you want a burger done right, 5 guys can't be beat. Although, I will admit, since they began franchising many years ago, quality isn't what it used to be when they were a one shop place.

[Encinitan]

I just took a look at the online menu for the Pacific Beach Five Guys. A small order of fries is 2.60 and a large order is 5 bucks. They must be huge servings. Why can't they just serve a reasonable portion of fries?

[srk]

I went to the Pacific Beach location with 3 other guys. Between the four of us, we got 3 small orders of fries. At the end of the meal, I think we had more fries than what we started with. It was biblical. I agree with your question about why they can't serve a reasonable amount for a more reasonable price. Bottom line on the Five Guys vs. In-n-Out debate is this: if you want to go out for a burger, fries and a drink, it'll cost you $3.50 at In-n-Out and $10 at Five Guys. If I'm going to spend the extra money, I'd prefer to go to Burger Lounge. Too bad they're not opening one of those in Encinitas.

[encinitaseater]

We saw it too. It's about 100 yards south of where I heard Chick Fil A is going to in (the old bank that then was a Baja Fresh in that same shopping center). And Kohl's is supposed to go in that big former Albertson's, too. Can you say traffic jam?!

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Baja Fresh
9828 Mission Gorge Rd, Santee, CA 92071

[littlestevie]

I am pretty sure Phil Mickelson is an investor in 5 guys. Since he lives in RSF, it only makes sense to have one close to his home, so he can get his fix.

[cgfan]

He's also a Kaito customer, who as SDG correctly notes is just a few doors down from the new Five Guys location. Imagine, curing both a hamburger and a Sushi fix in a single visit... :-)