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tesg's guide to big chain road food consumption
CHAIN -- smashburger Somebody recently billed Denver as the "birthplace of fast casual". They have a solid argument...Chipotle, Qdoba, and Noodles and Company all originated along the front range. Now, some of the guys who made Quiznos a national brand have started a burger chain. Because apparently there's just not enough of them already. Rick Shaden and some ex Quiznos execs put together a capital partnership in 2007 to fund the launch of new franchise businesses. The first was 1-2-3 Fit, then came smashburger (the logo is all lower-case), who gets its name from putting a ball of "certified Angus beef" on a butter-coated grill and smashing it into form, caramelizing the fat into a crust on the patty in the process and sealing in the grease (sorry...'juices').. The corporation opened seven stores along the front rage over the next couple of years. The first outside of Colorado (and the first franchise) was smashburger number eight in Wichita, Kansas, a town already home to the excellent Spangles and Freddy's. There's already several development agreements for a bunch of stores in place. There's also a dedicated fan base already singing their praises too. smashbuger fits into the mid-range strip mall burger category alongside Fatburger and Five Guys. Decor is grey, red, and slight off-tones. The booth seat backs have these ovals in them that remind me of grade school SRA test forms. The bathrooms of every smashburger I've been to have Dyson Airblade hand dryers. These are worth the trip alone. The Airblade is pretty much the most awesome thing ever. The format is walk-up-and-order, you're given a number, and your food is brought out to you when ready ("in five to seven minutes", says Smiling Counter Girl). It isn't cheap. My usual order totals $10.25 (mushroom-Swiss, haystacks, drink). The cheapest meal I've had was just below $10. The menu includes some dedicated smashburgers like the Classic (it has a mustardy special sauce), the All American (it has actual mustard instead of the special sauce), BBQ Bacon and Cheese, Spicy Baja, and Mushroom Swiss, or you can create your own concoction with the available toppings and condiments, some of which cost extra. Entree salads and hot dogs are also available. Local smashburgers add local flavors to the mix...Iowa has a smashburger with Maytag blue cheese on the menu as well as a "state fair smashbrat". Oklahoma has a smashburger with fried pickles, pepper jack cheese, and buttermilk ranch dressing. Texas, as you might imagine, has a mustard smashburger. Idaho has one topped in potato chips. Minnesota has a smashburger with "layers of melted cheddar bar cheese, Swiss cheese, and garlic grilled onions". I've had it. It's WAY too much cheese. Way too much BLAND cheese. The Wichita area stores have a "Shocker" smashburger, a spicy concoction that has chipotle mayo, barbecue sauce, fried pickles, and grilled onions on a chipotle bun. This is my favorite of the regional smashburgers. It has a great flavor. Add-ons vary by store, but typically include chili, egg, guac, grilled onions, and "Haystack Onions", which are thinly-sliced cripsy onions that are also available as a side. There's even three bun options: Classic egg, multi-grain, and spicy chipotle. You can also have no bun at all. Sides also include regular fries, "smashfries" (seasoned with rosemary, garlic, and olive oil), haystack onions, fried vegetables, a salad, and chili. Entree salads, hot dogs, and Haagen-Dazs milkshakes, malts, and root beer floats are available for dessert in chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry. Did you know that like half of Oregon's strawberry crop goes to Haagen-Dazs? That's why it's the best. A properly cooked smashburger will sort of 'pop' when you first bite into it. This is the locked-in juices, which flow out and create a wonderfly flavorful patty. Vegetables are more premium than you're used to...leaf lettuce instead of iceberg, fancier pickes, red onion...which you may like or you may not. I was hoping the smashfries would give me a flavor something like the garlic Fryz I had at Sheetz a couple of years ago, but these were a HUGE disappointment. The olive oil is far too prevalent. These just tasted WRONG. NOT the side you want here. The side you DO want here is the haystack onions. Lightly battered fried thin onion strips. Fantastic. The chili dog is perfectly decent, if not overly fancy. Like the burgers. I suppose there's lots of markets that Fatburger and Five Guys haven't touched yet that would go for this. You would have thought the burger market would have saturated years ago, wouldn't you? But smashburger just might have its niche. Click here to return to tesg's guide to big chain road food consumption |
