Five Guys Famous Burgers and Fries offers customers a variety of burgers, hot dogs and fries. There are currently two locations in Ohio, including a restaurant at the Westfield Park shopping mall in Strongsville. Five Guys has won numerous awards, includi

Credit: Ron Soltys

Five Guys Famous Burgers and Fries

500 Southpark Center,Strongsville, Ohio

Open seven days a week, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Stater rating (out of five): ****

Five Guys Famous Burgers and Fries brings American food back to its basics.

They sell burgers wrapped in tin foil.

They sell fries in Styrofoam cups.

And they hand it over to you in grease-soaked brown paper bags.

The menu sets the tone of the restaurant. It’s simple and straight forward, lacking any unquestionable doubt as to what each food item is. At McDonald’s, a Big Mac is, at its heart, an obese cheeseburger. At Burger King, a Whopper is an unnaturally large hamburger. At Five Guys, they call it what it is. If you want a cheeseburger, you say you want a cheeseburger.

The toppings are free and by choice. Do you want fried onions, sautéed mushrooms and green peppers? Or lettuce, tomatoes and barbecue sauce? Or all six? It brings a new meaning to “have it your way.”

While the range of fixings for your burger are numerous, the menu itself is sparse. The name of the restaurant sums up the place nicely. Besides burgers and fries, you can order a hot dog or a grilled cheese sandwich. Unfortunately, Five Guys Famous Burgers, Fries, Hot Dogs and Grilled Cheese doesn’t have the same ring.

But what they lack in quantity, they make up for in quality. The burgers are mouth-watering and flavorful almost to a fault. They’re made to order, using fresh ground beef, and you can watch a slew of teenagers and 20-somethings in red T-shirts grill your meal-to-be. An order of fries is a must, and the portions are extremely generous. Doused with malt vinegar (optional), the fries are reminiscent of the kind you buy at the state fair, only better, and the guy who takes your order has all of his teeth.

The prices are reasonable for the amount of food you get and you’ll fill up fast, especially if you take advantage of the complimentary peanuts.

Maybe Five Guys isn’t all that famous in Northeast Ohio, but by the amount of critical praise they’ve received thus far, it’s only a matter of time.

Contact all correspondent Jinae West at [email protected].