Free Food and the Five Guys experience
Five Guys gave me something that I haven't had in a long time.Free food.
It's difficult to describe the exhiliration that shoots through one's body while eating free food. I don't mean hand-outs. I don't mean crappy food that people give away because no one else will eat it. I don't mean french fries that your friend doesn't want because he's on a non-french fry diet. I mean quality food, normally priced but at this particular moment given to you for free.
Many of you may have heard of the free food extravaganza at Five Guys on the eve of their opening. I called up a few of my friends to meet me there only to discover at the door that it was invitation only. We were about to walk away in shame and hunger when one of my friends told the burger bouncer that I worked at the newspaper. Thinking this meant I might write an article about the place, he let us through.
This isn't a newspaper article, but, with the recent cutbacks, it's the best I can do.
It was a friends and family night, blogreader. Only people friends of local business owners (who received special invites) were there. It was a celebrity-stuffed event. I saw the dark-haired guy who works at Moe's and the short Latina who works there as well. Starstruck. That's what I was.
On this special "Friends and Family Freebie" night, Five Guys had, approximately, 57 employees working behind the counter. Many of whom, I recognized from other stores in the same plaza. Every store except for Starbucks seemed to contribute some employee. Which makes me question Starbucks' devotion to the community.
The actual process of eating was magnanimous. A warm feeling premeated my entire body as I realized that me and my compadres were eating a free meal and, blogreader, you should know something about Five Guys burgers if you don't already. They are tremendous. Not in size, mind you, but in spirit. I imagine the cows they used were once avatars of some kind in India or perhaps steer trained in the art of transcendental meditation, as the meat had a wholeness and a vibrancy to it not known among other "fast food" restaurants.
After leaving Five Guys, I felt satisfied: bodily, mentally and spiritually. Although I'm not quite sure if every trip to Five Guys will be this glorious, this one time was enough for me.
Amen.
Posted by
on 09/04 at 09:02 AM
Wow, 5 guys, a wonderful place to eat; but not for someone on a diet. The best thing to order there is a small cause they still load you up on french fries, which are soooooooo delicious. I felt just like you when I left. LOL