I spent the entire day at a CLE (that stands for continuing legal education, for you non-attorneys) program at the Brooklyn Bar Association today in Brooklyn Heights. And in between a presentation on defending DWI charges and a presentation on the do's and don't of oral argument, I squeezed in a visit to a rare New York City outpost of the Washington, D.C.-based Five Guys Burgers and Fries around the corner.
I eat fast food very rarely, usually only during long car rides. And since I read "Fast Food Nation" several years ago, I NEVER order hamburgers at fast food restaurants. This position was only further cemented after I read this disturbing article about e-coli in hamburger meat from an October issue of the New York Times. Instead, I go with bean and cheese burritos when at Taco Bell, chicken nuggets and baked potatoes at Wendy's, and ice cream or Egg McMuffins at McDonalds. Those are literally the only things you would ever hear me order at any fast food place. Period.
Why then, you may wonder, was I so excited to get my paws on a Five Guys hamburger? Because I am very impressionable and heard these weren't your "average" fast food burgers. In fact, anyone I know from the D.C. area has raved about Five Guys. Plus, I know our President likes their hamburgers. And I like him. (You may recall from an earlier post that I was equally determined to eat an In-And-Out burger while I was in California a few years ago, also because of all of the praises I'd heard sung about those.)
But enough about me and my easily-compromised principles - how was the burger? DELICIOUS.
A sign above the counter at Five Guys details their handful of unhealthy offerings, which I think were limited to burgers with optional bacon or cheese, hot dogs, fries, and numerous free toppings. Also listed is the caloric value of each item. New York City passed a very annoying law recently which requires that restaurants with multiple locations post the calories of each of the items on their menus. It is shocking and disheartening and all around no-fun to see how many calories there are in something you're excited to order.
Even though the difference between a hamburger (700 calories) and a cheeseburger (840 calories) was significant, I went with the cheeseburger since I really like cheese on burgers. In for a penny, in for a pound, right? Actually, I really like cheese on everything. Plus, it felt like a special occasion to be in Brooklyn with a long lunch break, and to have found a Five Guys. So I ordered a cheeseburger (they only have yellow American cheese) with pickles, sliced tomato, and onion -- I like raw onion on a burger --- but suppressed my urge to get fries (620 calories for a regular, 1464 calories in a large - so precise!), too, even though they really looked tempting. I must admit that Five Guys also had "little" burgers on their menu (~400 calories), but I thought that would be a kid's portion, so I went with their standard size. Which actually has TWO patties of beef. I'm not sure why they didn't explain that their average burger is actually a double-burger . . . I probably would have gotten the bigger version anyway.
The burgers were more well-done than I would have ordered at a restaurant, there was no negotiating that, and really messy to eat. I got melted cheese, ketchup, and burger juice all over myself. But it was also so yummy I didn't care! It tasted really fresh (they don't use frozen beef) and just exactly like a cheeseburger should taste. I was thoroughly impressed. And I think you will be, too, if you can find a Five Guys and simultaneously cast aside your concerns about industrial ground beef. (I have no e-coli to report, yet.)
**
Details:
138 Montague Street
Brooklyn, New York
(718) 797-9380
Excellent cheeseburger for one: $7
No comments:
Post a Comment