Ann Arbor residents looking for a burger fix will have even more options in the near future as gourmet burger restaurants Fatburger, Five Guys Burgers and Fries and @burger are in the process of opening new locations on campus.
The opening of the three burger restaurants — two of which will open before the end of this year — may be in response to high student demand for more fast-food options on campus, according to the restaurant managers and owners.
Five Guys Burgers and Fries will open in September at the location on State St. once held by Shaman Drum bookstore, said Molly Catalano, a spokesperson for the company.
According to AnnArbor.com, Fatburger is set to open an Ann Arbor location next year. However, no location has been confirmed yet.
@burger — which is planning to open on Jul. 17 in the McKinley Towne Centre at 505 E. Liberty St. — is a new venture that restaurant chain Big Boy has decided to test out in Ann Arbor, which could be the first location of a national chain, confirmed Kurtis Hoeve, assistant manager of @burger.
Hoeve said the restaurant could serve as a place to get fast, casual food, and would be a good place to go between classes.
Hoeve added that while he expects people of all different ages to eat at the restaurant, he knows that students will be their primary customers because of the location.
Varujan Arman, the owner of Quickie Burger, said the influx of burger places to Ann Arbor is a response to students’ demands for a good product at an affordable price.
Burgers are also a popular product because they’re the “All-American food … It’s our food,” Arman said, noting that the current state of the economy has driven many customers to avoid spending too much on other foods.
Hoeve echoed Arman’s sentiments, saying that burgers restaurants are popular at the moment, because students are looking for fresh food and good service.
Arman said he chose to open Quickie Burger in Ann Arbor because while he was a student at the University, he noticed the only late-night food options were pizza and burritos. He added that people seem to appreciate the variety that burgers allow, and he believes all of the incoming restaurants will do well in Ann Arbor despite the competition, because they have something different to offer relative to one another.
To add to that variety, many burger restaurants are offering health-conscious options like vegetable burgers and salads because of the popularity of those choices in Ann Arbor.
Hoeve said the food, ultimately, is the reason customers will visit, and at @burger customers can expect special meat recipes and homemade sauces.
Great food is necessary to sustaining restaurant business, Arman said, but good service is another key ingredient in any burger restaurant.
“We appreciate our customers, because without customers we don’t exist,” he said.