GrubGrade

Fresh off President Obama’s trip to Five Guys, let’s show off a couple of their staples.  When it comes to burgers, there are plenty of options.  McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s are the most well known, but for my money none of them can touch the burgers at Five Guys Burgers and Fries.

Five Guys currently offers 4 different burgers, the hamburger, cheeseburger, bacon burger and bacon cheeseburger.  Each of these choices are also offered in a “little” version which has one hamburger patty instead of the two patties found on the standard versions.  Five Guys offers a good number of free toppings for their burgers.  In addition to burgers, Five Guys also serves french fries, hot dogs and grilled cheese sandwiches.

On my latest visit to Five Guys, I ordered the bacon cheeseburger topped with mushrooms, jalapeños and A1 sauce.  The burgers here aren’t those paper thin patties you find at many other fast food burger spots.  You receive 2 rather thick and juicy patties.  The patties are smothered in American cheese and enveloped in a soft  bun.  You would expect such a large burger to fall apart and become sloppy.  Surprisingly the bun stays in tact and keeps the burger manageable.  By the time you unwrap your burger the cheese has melted to perfection, mixing with the other toppings to create a medley of flavor.  The bacon is crisp and tasty, but nothing extra special.  The A1 sauce adds the perfect kick that could not be achieved by plain old ketchup.  The fresh jalapeños add a crunch and a nice amount of spice to the burger.  Five Guys Cheeseburger - GrubGrade: 9.25/10 (Exceptional)

Since the place is called Five Guys Burgers and Fries, I assume you cannot have one without the other.  I decided to go with a regular order of fries.  The size of the order is anything but “regular’.  Any room in the brown paper bag that is not taken up by the burger is filled with fries.  The fries are fresh cut daily.  On the whiteboard next to the register was a sign stating that today’s potatoes were from Teton, Idaho.  The fresh cut  potatoes with the skin on are lightly salted, wonderfully crispy and delicious.  Topped with malt vinegar and a little ketchup these are some of the best fries around.  If you like your spuds with a little kick, you can order cajun fries, which come with seasoning salt.  Five Guys Fries –  GrubGrade: 9.50/10 (GrubGrade Hall of Fame)

Five Guys is one of those places that isn’t shy about what it offers.  Big, thick, greasy burgers.  Every brown paper take-out bag from Five Guys I’ve ever had did little to hide the evidence of grease spots.  This is an award winning burger spot born out of the Washington Metro Area and it’s a growing chain that proves the customers know what they like.

• Pros- I really don’t know where to begin.  The burger is juicy, delicious and perfectly cooked.   Large variety of toppings. Soft bun keeps everything where it’s supposed to be.  The fresh cut fries are crisp and tasty.  When combined with the malt vinegar they provide the perfect complement to the burger.
• Cons- Taste wise there are no cons.  Nutritionally there are plenty, but we won’t talk about those.

Taste: 9.25/10

Value: 7.50/10

Grubbing on the Go: 7.50/10

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Five Guys Cheeseburger – GrubGrade:  9.25/10  (Exceptional)

Five Guys Fries – GrubGrade:  9.50/10 (GrubGrade Hall of Fame)

(Overall GrubGrade is not an average)

Price:  $5.39  (Bacon Cheeseburger)  -  $2.59  (Regular Size Fries)

FiveGuys.com

Nutrition Information:

Bacon Cheeseburger has 920 calories, 62 grams of fat 180 mg of cholesterol, 1310 mg of sodium, 40 grams of carbs 2 grams of dietary fiber and 51 grams of protein.

A regular order of fries has 620 calories, 30 grams of fat, 90 mg of sodium, 78 grams of carbs, 6 grams of dietary fiber and 10 grams of protein.

Yesterday was the Race for Hope in Washington D.C. (show your support, it’s a good cause)  It was a rain-soaked charity event that left me and my friends looking like drowned rats.  As post race grub is concerned, what better choice is there than a big, juicy burger?  We can’t forget that it’s National Hamburger Month.

Top Left- The Capitol Building, Top Right- The shaky, vomit-inducing metro into DC, Bottom Left- The finish line, Bottom Middle- Pondering my grub order, Bottom Right- Post race crowds

An escape from the dry bagels, power bars and trail mix that litters the charity race grounds.  A visit to Cheeburger Cheeburger was just the thing I was looking for.  So, what was the order today?  A Semi-Serious 1/3 pound Cheeseburger with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion and Thousand Island dressing…an order of Frings (Fries/Onion Rings)…a lemonade…and for dessert I perused through the 378,000 possible combinations of shakes and decided on a Rocky Road shake in a to-go cup.  It’s about 8 hours later as I write this, and I’m still recovering.  When I put the meal into writing, I applaud my gluttony.  What can I say?  This meal really hit the spot.

• The Semi-Serious 1/3 pound Cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, onion, American cheese and Thousand Island Salad Dressing.  Cooked medium-well.  Delicious.  Price: $6.29 GrubGrade: 9.25/10

• Frings (also known as the “Best of Both” basket of fries and onion rings), potatoes cut fresh daily and some great tasty onion rings dipped in a secret batter.  Big enough to share.  Price: $4.29  GrubGrade: 8.75/10.

• Lemonade served in a jar.  Price: $1.89
• Rocky Road shake to go.  Once you’re done, you’re not really done.  Most of the peanuts don’t make the journey through the straw so you’ll have a bunch waiting at the end.  It was the first time I’ve had a Rocky Road shake and I will definitely get it again. Price: $3.29  GrubGrade: 9.00/10

I hope you’ve enjoyed the pictures of grub as much as I enjoyed devouring it all.  Like I said before, it was the perfect lunch after being rained on for the entire morning and experiencing motion sickness for the first time from the usually not-so-shaky metro rail.  Be sure to check back often to GrubGrade this month for more National Hamburger Month appreciation.  It’s a good month to grub on some great burgers.

It’s Friday the 13th, time for another seafood review.  On Fridays, during the season of Lent, GrubGrade will feature and review some tasty fast food ocean options. Today we will spotlight a fan favorite from the “Lousiana Kitchen”.  It’s back and returns with a new packaging.  Introducing the Butterfly Shrimp Tackle Box from Popeyes.

The Butterfly Shrimp Tackle Box (also known as the Seafood Tackle Box) comes packed with a nice combination that is sure to fill you up.  It features eight butterfly shrimp, Cajun fries and a buttermilk biscuit.  You can substitute the fries for a different side item but, on this occasion, I kept it standard.  The Cajun battered fries are spiced just right, so I find no need for added salt or ketchup.  The Cajun spices pack a lot of flavor in each bite.  They are crisped just right and are plentiful.  The fries act as the bed for the fried shrimp and biscuit.  The shrimp is heavily breaded to the point where it may be difficult to determine what exactly it is that you are eating by the looks of them.  You might mistake the shrimp for chicken nuggets they are coated so thick.  This doesn’t take too much away from the shrimp as the breading does provide a nice flavor of sometimes-spicy Louisiana seasonings.  Also notable, of the eight shrimp, some may have tails and some may not.  The biscuit, as always, is crusty on top and soft inside.  Popeye’s biscuits have always been a favorite of mine and they are lightly coated with seasoning.  With your platter you will receive cocktail sauce if you wish to dunk your shrimp.  I would be fine without since there is already a lot of flavor coming out of this loaded box of food.

As the Lent season ends, the Popeyes’ Butterfly Shrimp Tackle Box will be taken off the menu.  This limited time offering will be missed.  Like the occasional Cajun Crawfish Platter that makes an appearance from time to time, these shrimp will end up taking a backseat to the chicken.  

• Pros- Delicious cajun spices on everything.  Plump, flavorful shrimp.  A lot of food for $4.99.  Nice, sturdy, portable, ventilated box. 
• Cons- Some shrimp have tails still on.  Shrimp can be a tad over-breaded and spicier than others.  Very fried, very greasy box of food.  860 calories and 49 grams of fat according to the Popeye’s website nutrition facts.  A ton of fries, could have been replaced some with a couple extra shrimp although it would have increased the price.

Taste: 9.25/10

Value: 8.50/10

Grubbing on the Go: 7.75/10

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GrubGrade: 8.75/10  (Very Good)

(Overall GrubGrade is not an average)

Price: $4.99

Popeyes.com

Nutrition Facts – Butterfly Shrimp (Grams-102)

Calories – 310

Total Fat – 19 grams

Saturated Fat – 8 grams

Trans Fat – 1 gram

Cholesterol – 90 milligrams

Sodium – 800 milligrams

Carbs – 22 grams

Dietary Fiber – 2 grams

Protein – 13 grams  

Nutrition Facts – Fries (Grams-88)

Calories – 310

Total Fat – 17 grams

Saturated Fat – 7 grams

Trans Fat – 1 gram

Cholesterol – 7 milligrams

Sodium – 660 milligrams

Carbs – 35 grams

Dietary Fiber – 3 grams

Protein – 4 grams

Nutrition Facts – Biscuit (Grams-60)

Calories – 240

Total Fat – 13 grams

Saturated Fat – 7 grams

Trans Fat – 0 grams

Cholesterol – 0 milligrams

Sodium – 490 milligrams

Carbs – 26 grams

Dietary Fiber – 1 gram

Protein – 4 grams

Note:  The Popeye’s Nutrition Page showed portion size as 1 for the shrimp, 1 for fries and 1 for the biscuit.  It doesn’t seem as precise as some other sites so keep that in mind.  This platter contains 8 shrimp, a ton of fries and a biscuit.