Five Guys in Carson
Five Guys Burgers & Fries, whose reputation in the East Coast rivals that of In-N-Out Burger in California, moves closer to O.C.
The burger chain recently opened its second California location in Cerritos. The launch comes six months after it opened its first West Coast eatery in Carson, roughly 13 miles from Cerritos. The second Five Guys is at 11461 South Street at the Cerritos Promenade mall — much closer to O.C. border and the city of La Palma. (see map below)
Franchisee Phil Ratner, who lives in Laguna Niguel, said the store — open only a week — is beating expectations.
“We’re busier at nights and weekends” compared to the Carson store, he said Tuesday, as he headed to work. “We’re off to a very fast start.”
Five Guys cuts and blanches its Russet potatoes before frying them in peanut oil.
The Cerritos location will be closed Thursday for Thanksgiving, but will re-open for mall shoppers Friday, said Ratner, a former Chief executive at Marie Callender’s.
Crowds should “should be enormous” on Black Friday, said Ratner, pointing out that his burger joint is near a Target.
Ratner owns the rights to expand Five Guys in parts of Orange and Los Angeles counties. Unfortunately, negotiations to open a third Five Guys in La Habra went sour, he said.
“We’re closer to another Los Angeles location,” he said. “I really wanted to be in La Habra, but that didn’t work out. We’re scouting around (in O.C.). We’ll find something.”
Five Guys background: For those of you new to Five Guys, here’s what I’ve stated previously about the burger chain:
“Every meal is made from fresh, not frozen, products. So there’s no freezer in the kitchen. All burgers are hand-pressed into 3¼-ounce patties made from 100 percent ground beef. The fries, perhaps the best I’ve ever eaten, are cut from potatoes and blanched on site. By doing this, the fries — which are fried in peanut oil — come out crispier.”
Read more details on Five Guys here.
Map below, click to enlarge:
Related links:
- Five Guys opens first California unit in Carson (May)
- Review #1: Maven’s first run-in at Five Guys in Virginia
- Quiznos founder bringing Smashburger - a gourmet burger chain to O.C.
- The Counter: Big Burgers at Big Prices
- Survey says: Burgers more popular than ever (2008)
- In-N-Out claims Utah burger joint is a copycat
- Is Chick-fil-A stalking In-N-Out?
- Utah gets first In-N-Out
Carson is 13 miles WEST of Cerritos, not north. Take a look at the map — the 405 isn”t a compass….
Thanks.Eric. That item published before I could give it a final read.
Next time I’m in Cerritos, something to do. Long way to go before they rival In & Out. Nancy, Isn’t it true that In & Out will never expand to the East because the more they expand, less control of quality and ingredients.
Yes, Mike you’re right. INO’s only full service distribution hub, where all the meat patties are produced, is in Baldwin Park. So, the INO team believes most eateries must remain within 500 miles of that hub, to maintain freshness/quality.
What happened with La Habra? We like good food too!
The hot dogs are amazing at 5 Guys!!! We get ours with Bacon and Cheese…and the fries are truly exceptional. For awhile, my husband had us headed to Carson every Friday afternoon with the return trip to North OC in Friday TRAFFIC!!!! As far as In-N-Out goes, THAT is our place for burgers and always will be.
Aw man! La Habra would have been awesome! I am the Brea/Fullerton area, so it would have been just up the road. Keeping my fingers crossed that they keep looking in North County or close to my work (I happen to work near the OC Register building.
Nancy- Have you heard about any other potential locations?
I liked their burgers and fries a lot and my husband loved his bacon and cheese hot dog. I wouldn’t say they rival INO because I consider 5 Guys to be different enough not to. They are both exceptional in their own right.
Yawn. Yet another burger joint-restaurant. Why the American fascination with burgers? A piece of cheap chuck meat ground-up into a patty and placed between two bland pieces of bread with some condiments added. You know, I like a good burger, once in an odd while, but I don’t personally need burger joints on just about every street corner.
Every region of the country has it’s own sandwiches (the pastrami in NY, the muffalata in New Orleans, the pulled-pork BBQ of the south, the steak & cheese sandwich of Philadelphia, the lobster roll of New England), but the best Orange County can come up with is Carls Jr. & Taco Bell! Even LA claims the French dip as it’s own. Come on folks, let’s put our noggins together and try to simply stop replicating everyone else and come up with something that is original and our own. Ahw, screw it. Good night.
FIve Guys will take over the highly overrated INO.
Finally OC will understand what a real hamburger is like.
Are they better than TAM’s Burgers? Can they do a double Pastrami , Bacon and Jalepeno without missing a step? Five Guyz ? rookies.
In N Out is WAY better than 5 Guys. 5 Guys’ fries are pretty good but their burgers are no match unless you want 15 toppings and a slimy slippery soggy bun.
I went to a 5 guys in Florida, it was good, but not fast, no drive thru and wasn’t that cheap. Think it will be a nice addition, but it won’t overtake INO.
If you think any burger and fries are better then In & Out, please move back to the East coast or where ever else you crawled out of. Nothing compares and nothing ever will.
In & Out is the So Cal culture, not just a burger joint.
SicknTired: As grandma always says, “Don’t knock it before you try it?”
Have you tried Five Guys? Personally, I don’t think it is superior than INO. But, it’s another great option out there. to be honest, The Habit is much better. But, the fries at FIVE GUYS are superior than INO. If you l ike chips as fries, then INO is your place.
It’s nice to have some variety, but INO will always be the best fast food burger in the country. I used to have Five Guys across from my apartment in Maryland this past year and would never put it in the same sentence with INO. I really don’t know what the hype is about this restaurant. There’s just more variety at Five Guys (you can get a bunch of toppings, incl. A1 sauce on top of your burger or hot dog), that’s about it. And IIRC, Five Guys also charges more for their burgers than INO.
I LOVE 5 Guys!!! I grew up on In N Out, but my years spent in DC saw many trips down to Alexandria, VA to get the best fries around. Can’t wait to get another bag of those yummy fries!!!
I ask you — with the world going to He11 in a hand basket, is this really news? Or - is it another venue for the obese slobs to dine?
Ho hum…another burger joint…and “In&Out” is nothing tot write home about…the fries are inedible! (McDees & Wendys are better)
how ’bout some Memphis barbecue !!!
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…now you’re talking!
Yep, I know about Johnny Rebs in Orange but a little competition closer to the coast would be nice!
I ate there and had an MSG attack. I had a burger and fries. I wonder if it’s in their seasoning or something else. Enjoyed the food, but won’t go back until I find the source of the MSG.
INO fries are awesome…they just have a short shelf life. Once they get cold or lukewarm theyre done. Some tips though-try the fries Animal Style or at a minimum well done.