Five Guys Burgers and Fries delays opening until January
The opening of the Five Guys Burgers and Fries hamburger chain that was set to happen this fall in the space once occupied by Shaman Drum Bookshop has been pushed back to January.
The restaurant, which will become the 11th in Michigan and join over 625 national locations, moved into the space at 311 S. State St. when the lease was signed in June. Despite plans to open on Nov. 15, co-owner Michael Abrams said construction delays have pushed the opening to Jan. 17.
“Renovations are about 80 percent complete,” Abrams said. “The place is looking great but it didn’t make sense to open during Thanksgiving and it didn’t make sense to open during Christmas break, so we figured we’d open up after the first of the year.”
Abrams and his partners, Brian Adelman and David Pittaway, currently own nine Five Guys in Michigan.
“They own rights to almost the entire state and they plan to open a total of 40 locations,” Five Guys spokeswoman Molly Catalano said. “It looks like they should probably open a total of 40 in the next ten years.”
Abrams, who said he has been in the restaurant business his whole life, said he decided to buy into Five Guys after checking out the headquarters in Virginia.
“We decided it was a good thing and so we bought in,” Abrams said.
Despite facing competition from places like @burger on E. Liberty St. and Quickie Burger on S. State St., Abrams said these other restaurants should not pose a threat to his business.
“I think there’s enough room for everybody to do well,” Abrams said. “Five Guys is a great product, and I think other people’s products are great as well.”
Five Guys Burgers and Fries plans to open its location on South State Street in January.
Photo by Flickr user MrMatt
The hamburger chain keeps things simple by offering a basic menu of hamburgers, hot dogs, fries and Coca-Cola products. The chain also has vegetarian options of grilled cheese and a veggie sandwich.
With their “great product” and by “word of mouth” advertising, Abrams hopes to bring in a large student customer base. He said they even added more seating in the basement due to limited space upstairs.
“This location has a lot of foot traffic and young adults is our target demographic,” Abrams said. “During the summer we’ll probably have more adults that live in Ann Arbor, but for the most part during school it will be young adults.”
Lizzy Alfs is a freelance reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach the news desk at news@annarbor.com or 734-623-2530.
Comments
Some Guy in 734
Mon, Nov 15, 2010 : 11:04 a.m.
Forgive the double-post, but to somewhat concerned: I would argue that when the McDonald's on Maynard left, yes, downtown lost a smidge of what was unique and interesting. And you don't get any chainey-er than some McDonald's.
johnnya2
Sun, Nov 14, 2010 : 2:35 p.m.
@somewhat concerned I disagree that the retail outlets in a town are what make it special to live in. Based on that logic people who shop at Macy's in New York City have nothing different than those who shop at Macy's in Westland. Sorry, I don't buy into that thinking.
God Loves Us All
Sun, Nov 14, 2010 : 5:36 a.m.
All this chatter about heart stopping fat laden burgers???? What about the Churches and the help they provide the poor. Or the fact Michigan cant win a football game??? God bless America
JimB
Sat, Nov 13, 2010 : 10:28 a.m.
Five Guys is pretty good...maybe the a little over hyped through. They burgers are definately fresh. The fries are fresh cut and very plentiful. Great Plains on Plymouth is the exact same thing. Smash Burger has better burgers.Ann Arbor needs one of those stores.
Somewhat Concerned
Sat, Nov 13, 2010 : 8:34 a.m.
Any town can have a Five Guys, a McDonald's, a Subway, a Starbuck's, a [fill in the name of a successful chain here]. Most of them are pretty good or they wouldn't be so big. A question for any town, is "what does the arrival of one of these chains do for the town?" If you are a backwater, under-served town, the arrival means that you have arrived - you now are a more sophisticated place because you now have a Starbucks, just like Allentown, PA or Grand Rapids (and might now have better coffee - or not). If you are town with any confidence, that is not under-served, a town that is a little bit nicer place to live because you have restaurants and stores that are different than every place from Allentown to Grand Rapids, the arrival of Five Guys or Subway or another Starbucks is not good news, especially if they have the marketing muscle to crowd out what was unique and interesting about your town. There are lots of Allentowns. There is nothing special about living there. We could be next.
63Townie
Sat, Nov 13, 2010 : 8:27 a.m.
Ann Arbor is turning into a giant food court.
johnnya2
Sat, Nov 13, 2010 : 1:21 a.m.
@ Ron Granger Your computer example is EXACTLY the same as what 5 Guys is doing., Their parent organization may be based in Virginia, but who will they employ at the store on State St? Probably local residents. Who will deliver their food? Probably a local company. Who will they pay rent to? A local landlord who pays TAXES to the city of Ann Arbor. Who will 5 Guys pay taxes to? The city of A2 and state of MI. The ownership group is based in MICHIGAN, so when they make a profit, and open up ANOTHER unit in Ypsi or on the West side, then how much does that improve exponentially? Let's take a perfect example. Panera Bread has multiple locations in Ann Arbor. Plymouth Rd, North U, Jackson Rd, Eisenhower. Do you think the amount of economic activity they bring to the city and county is more or less than Blimpy Burger or any other individual concept. By the way, how many Ann Arbor business owners LIVE in the city? I know plenty who live in the townships or some who actually live in Ohio. I will buy local if a local business provides the best value and service for the price. I will not support a crappy local business just because it is local. I would also say that some things are not as good locally. Have you tried a Michigan wine versus a California wine. Not even close. Strawberries, tomatoes are other examples. How about those great Michigan oranges? There are some great local Ann Arbor restaurants, but there are also some crappy ones too. I can name plenty of them that went out of business because of the phrase " I USED to go there all the time...." or " I remember when they had....." Memories don't pay the bills.
Soothslayer
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 11:32 p.m.
Excellent, we'll all get to live a little bit healther a little bit longer.
Buster W.
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 10:39 p.m.
@Ron Granger...This whole buy LOCAL thing has become overblown. So if you're a local resident, you wouldn't want non-residents to support Domino's or Cottage Inn which are Ann Arbor-based??? By the way, I've only been to 5 Guys once (Detroit) and was less than impressed. Way too loud, incredibly greasy and soggy fries, sloppy burgers, sacks of potatoes stacked all over is odd.
Ryan Munson
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 9:47 p.m.
Well shoot. I was hoping to consume a few thousand happy calories this fall.
M.
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 6:58 p.m.
Agreed RudeJude :) Can't forget about Sidetrack's burgers...featured on the Food Network and voted top burger in the state in a few contests. :)
Ron Granger
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 6:45 p.m.
This is the first time I've seen someone argue against LOCAL. Just because some things can't be sourced locally is no reason to not give preference to local whenever possible. Like many people who support their local community, I think sourcing local is important. As an example, while it is true that my CPUs and hard drives are not built in Ann Arbor, I can buy the computer from someone who assembles the components here (rather than Dell, etc). That person spends a good portion of that money in Ann Arbor. I can buy a pair of shoes on the internet and save a few bucks, or I can support a small local retailer who has retained the same staff for decades. Loyalty to the local economy makes all the difference in maintaining jobs and the standard of living in our community. You can spin the alternative any way you'd like, but you either support your neighbors and the community, or you don't.
Ron Granger
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 6:44 p.m.
I'm sure this burger chain will be a great addition to many towns... We are just gluttonously fortunate in Ann Arbor. Of course there is that important question of char grilled vs. fried. I love both. Though nobody has fries that compare to the cheese waffle fries at Ray's Red Hots.
johnnya2
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 6:20 p.m.
@timjbd I think that is ridiculous logic. Based on your philosophy people should stop purchasing Kelloggs cereal in California. You should throw away the computer that you typed on, since it was NOT made in Michigan. How about we not shop anything that is not local. Tell me how you will feel about living in the dark (no light bulbs are even made in the United States), with limited electricity (Michigan utilities buy coal from other states) and no ability to drive your car (since there is not enough oil in Michigan to power all our vehicles). I will eat where ever the food is best quality at the best value PERIOD. Five guys has no interest to me, since I do not eat burgers, but I eat at local, regional, and national restaurants. My paycheck comes from a company based out of state. I am pretty glad they didn't have your philosophy about money not leaving their state.
RudeJude
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 5:43 p.m.
Nothing beats The Sidetrack in Depot Town. A trip back home to Michigan is never complete without stopping there for a burger and sweet potato fries. Now I'm homesick...
michiganexpats.com
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 5:39 p.m.
I bet this chain will do well in Ann Arbor. It holds a special place for a lot of East Coast peeps, so I think U of M students will definitely frequent it. However, I do agree that there are a TON of burger places in AA!
jameslucas
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 5:27 p.m.
I enjoyed the story, and I have eaten at two Five Guys restaurants, both were good. But there does seem to be a glut of good burger joints in Ann Arbor. I dont think I would choose Five Guys over the already mentioned good hamburger eateries in Ann Arbor.
timjbd
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 5:26 p.m.
When you eat at a national chain (like 5 Guys)- on average- 67% of the money you spend leaves the state. When you eat at a local establishment (Like Knight's or Casey's), only 34% of your money leaves the state. If you eat at a local establishment that sources their food and supplies locally (like Cafe Verde), that percentage of your money leaving the state goes even lower. 5 Guys is a great choice to make when the state is hemorrhaging money.
Atticus F.
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 4:48 p.m.
Janelle, I'm a burger fan. I am looking forward to trying them. I personally think Blimpy's is the best in A2, but I love a good burger(key word being GOOD) No matter what restaraunt it's from.
Janelle
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 4:33 p.m.
Atticus - Don't worry, Five Guys will do great in Ann Arbor. I had my first 5Guys burger in Tampa and was ecstatic that they're opening them all over Michigan. Matter of fact, we're going to the one in E. Lansing tonight (boo, Spartan country!) I guess you didn't hear that they won for best burger, beating In-N-Out and I'm not surprised one bit. Now if they could just open one in Brighton, I would be a happy girl!
applehazar
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 4:12 p.m.
Joe are you having a bad day? Many readers, including me. wondered what happened to the opening of 5 Guys. This is news. You don't have to click to open the entire story. Chill. :)
Atticus F.
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 4:06 p.m.
Lighten up Joe... It's a business review written by an A2.com intern. The reason it was at the top of the page is because it was the most recent posting at the time.
joe average
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 3:50 p.m.
(I know that a2.com guidelines eschew the use of capital letters, but bear with me during the following sentence. Thank you.) HOW AND/OR WHY IS THIS CONSIDERED 'NEWS'?????? This is the first story that appears when I open this website. You cannot convince me that there is NOTHING of greater social import that has come to light in the past twenty-four hours within a2.com's readership area that might warrant attention. This is the new face of 'journalism'? God help us all.
Atticus F.
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 3:44 p.m.
I get the sense that alot of these entrepreneurs are unaware of the high failure rate of businesses in Ann Arbor. I saw another burger place open up recently, and I can only imagine the conversation between management; "How can we generate more business?" as the other guy suggest "how bout we block of the ally next door and put some tables next to that dumpster". I get the feeling that the reason rents are so hi in Ann Arbor, is because there is always some entreprenuer who's willing to gamble his/her entire life's savings on their brainchild. I hate to be so negative, but I've seen so many businesses die in Ann Arbor over the years, that I really think you need something special to survive as a business here.
Olan Owen Barnes
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 3:13 p.m.
Ron it is the market place that decides how many is enough of any one product or service.
Ron Granger
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 2:26 p.m.
With so many great *local* burger places in Ann Arbor, I just don't see the need for a chain. And with a goal of 40 locations in Michigan, that's just another chain. My favorites, when not making my own: Blimpy's Ray's Red Hots Roy's in Milan Knight's Casey's
Bertha Venation
Fri, Nov 12, 2010 : 1:57 p.m.
We had 5 guys when I lived in Virginia. It was WONDERFUL, but like anything else, it's not the franchise, it's the chef! Hope we get a good one!