This Is How Five Guys Preps Its Iconic Burger Patties

Heading to Five Guys for a burger is always a treat. Whether it's the unlimited toppings, the crunch of peanuts as you wait for the meal, or the generous portion of fries spilling out of the carton, Five Guys knows how to turn a meal into an event — there's a reason even President Barack Obama got his burger there. But one thing you may not have stopped to think about is how the company gets its famous smashed burger patties so consistently shaped and ready to cook immediately upon ordering.

Business Insider sent a reporter to uncover this industry secret, and it turns out the answer comes from the extreme precision the chain requires in every facet of its food preparation, from the handwashing station to the folding of aluminum foil in order to keep cooked burgers in pristine condition. But the most impressive of all was the careful way that employees craft the burger patties. Every uncooked ball of ground beef, which must weigh between 3.5 and 3.7 ounces, is put between squares of parchment paper, hand-flattened, and then fully smashed using a metal burger press — a system that ensures no major outliers in terms of size or circumference.

This factory-line uniformity is crucial for Five Guys' success, as the company prides itself on being one of the notable fast food burgers that are fresh, never frozen. The company famously doesn't even have freezers in-house, instead keeping the prepared burger patties either in walk-in fridges or, once service starts, in a cooler drawer within easy reach while at the grill.

Five Guys burger patties don't just get smashed during preparation — the cooking process for each burger is actually a three-step process. Once the underside of the meat is ready, the patty is flipped and given one final smash using an even larger burger press. The chain even requires cooks to use a specific tool for proper flattening while heated on the grill, per Business Insider. This last compression of the meat is crucial to keeping the consistency in bite from burger to burger, as well as keeping the cooking temperature the same. It can be easy for a smashburger to fall apart on the grill if you don't have a regimented system; Five Guys' reputation rides on making sure that doesn't happen.

As delicious as these patties are, it's also true that Five Guys is expensive compared to other fast food chains, which is a genuine source of consternation for fans, especially as prices have risen more than the burger joint's competition over the years. But it's worth noting that this attention to detail and dedication to fresh, high-quality ingredients is one of the principal reasons for the higher prices. For many customers, the chain's consistency and superior taste and texture are worth the extra few bucks.