We all like to be different. We all want to be the one who discovers a little-known independent spot that serves up chorizo burgers with quinoa buns and a side of kale chips. But quality can be found in many places, and sometimes that place is the easiest and most accessible. If there’s space for the fancier fare, then it’s fair to say that there’s also space for proper diner burgers – the sort that drip on your jumper and come with sides of deep-fried goodness.
At Five Guys, you are treated to a foil-wrapped packet of peanuts before you get to the meat of the matter – inmost cases, a burger built to your own judicious taste using a selection of free toppings (from £4.75 to £8.75). Rustic, skin-on fries are cooked in peanut oil and come in three sizes. This isn’t gourmet, this is an experience. This isn’t drinks served in a jar – they are in a paper cup, and you have to use the machine yourself, you lazy swine.
Speaking of swine, Five Guys’ dogs are also pretty special, best topped with bracingly crunchy bacon and cheese. The Bacon Cheese Dog at £5.50 is soft with snap in just the right places, and heartily coronary-inducing. This isn’t a first-date kind of burger joint; it’s a catch up with the mates after said first date burger joint. And that’s just fine.