South St. Burger Co

So wouldn’t it be nice to call a place where they make assembled burgers and you have to wait 10 minutes for them to make them, but instead you could call them and order in advance? Most places allow for this. South street doesn’t so they lost my business and I went to shamrock burger in Ajax!!!
Way better!

Actually more like a 4.5, had the True North, an excellent little burger — opted for the 4oz, not disappointed– or hungry. Great flavours, you can taste the difference fresh makes — I’m not sure which restaurants tag line that is but it applies here 100%, nice ambiance in restaurant, great accompaniment to NYF.

A burger chain that is a cross between Wendy’s and Subway. That is, great tasting burgers where you get to pick the type of bun and toppings you want with it.
There’s a significant variety of toppings that gives you a lot of options to try. And, like I alluded to, the burgers are very good.
Fries are decent, not super amazing, but a worthwhile side to your burger.
They cater for kids too, having varied sized burgers, including smaller ones for smaller appetites.

Where South Street sets itself apart from competitors like Five Guys is in the toppings. Cajun onions, garlic mayo, guacamole, etc. They also have toppings for the fries (both spices and poutine styles).
The regular burger is 519 calories and the small burger is 289 on a whole wheat bun.
The small fries is 400 calories with 1.5gr saturated fat.
See Nutrition info at the website (PDF). Really appreciate it when they offer this.

I just went to South St. Burger Co. for the first time (in Ajax), & thought I’d share. It’s a slightly more upscale burger joint with nicer décor & ambiance than your average burger shack. They do a few things to help separate them from other places, & give them a different identity. Their prices are a bit higher than standard fast food places, more like Lick’s or Five Guys Burgers & Fries. For this review, I’ll be comparing South St. head-​to-​head vs Five Guys.
First, I’ll start with the atmosphere, since it’s one of the first things you notice when you walk in. South St has nicer décor, furniture, & ambiance. Like I said before, it feels more like a restaurant than Five Guys, which definitely has more of a fast-​food feel to it. When you’re going out for a burger, you don’t need anything fancy, but sometimes it’s nice to sit at a table & not feel like you’re sitting down to quickly wolf down your meal. The food isn’t served on standard plastic meal trays, but in aluminum pie pans, which is different. Their tray liners are circular to fit the pie pans, & it’s a neat idea that I’d never seen before. South St definitely wins in this category.
Next, I’ll move on to the most important category & talk about the burgers. South St. gives you the option of a white or whole grain kaiser, which is a nice choice to have, & not one offered at many burger joints. The buns are done by a local bakery, & mine was nice & fresh. They use hormone & antibiotic-​free beef, while Five Guys website just states that they use «fresh ground beef» & that nothing is ever frozen. South St gives you one large patty on their standard burger, whereas Five Guys gives you two smaller patties. South St burgers are flame-​grilled, compared to Five Guys & their flattop. I prefer the flame-​grilled taste, & the larger patty, so I’ve got to go with South St. Their burger was cooked perfectly, & was very juicy. Five Guys burgers were good too, but I have to side with South St on this one, although that’s just my personal preference. Another reason I think they’re better is that they offer a wider array of toppings & sauces, as well as five different kinds of cheese to choose from. They offer four different types of mustard, two kinds of ketchup, four relishes, three different mayos & three kinds of sauces to enhance & personalize your burger. A tidbit on Five Guys’ website states that there are over 250,000 possible ways to order a burger at Five Guys, & because I suck at math, I can only guess that means there’s over 1,000,000 different ways to order at South St. Another important factor to consider is price, & whereas Five Guys will charge you $ 6.49 for a regular burger, South St’s price is only $ 5.75, & you get a $ 1.00 discount if you buy a combo, unlike Five Guys.
Next is the battle of the fries, which some people would argue is as important as the burgers. South St uses New York Fries, whereas Five Guys uses freshly cut, homemade fries. Even though South St’s website states that their NYF are hand-​cut daily from fresh potatoes as well, the edge here goes to Five Guys. Their fries are better than some chip trucks I’ve been to, & the portion is massive. Two people can easily split an order of their fries, & even though a regular order of fries is $ 1.00 more than South St, it’s well worth the extra dollar. The NYF portion is standard & I just didn’t enjoy their fries as much. Even though they have several different seasonings to use on the fries, Five Guys have got them beat here.
Miscellaneous factors, Five Guys offers free refills, & while South St might offer them too (I don’t know), you’d have to go back up to the counter to get it, which is a pain, particularly if you’re there at a busy time. It’s nicer when you can just go refill your own cup, so Five Guys gets another nod here. The free peanuts offered by Five Guys surely appeal to some, but I doubt anyone goes there specifically for that reason. Besides, those peanuts are so incredibly over-​salted, that you should be entitled to those free refills by law. One other small thing that South St does better than Five Guys is their website. Their menu actually has prices on it, so you can see for yourself what things will cost, & you’re not soiling your pants when you find out your total. Also, South St uses local businesses for supplies & lists many different ways that they «go green» whenever possible. Some people might not care, but I think it’s nice to see a business with a conscience.
So after all that, I’ve got to give the edge to South St. Burger Co. over Five Guys Burgers & Fries. Aside from the flame-​grilled burgers & wide array of toppings & sauces, they were a slightly better value, they did more of the «little things» right, which is why I gave them three stars to Five Guys’ two. I’m still waiting for Big Boy’s Burgers to open in Whitby, & I’ll be sure to post on them ASAP. In the spirit of Christmas, Season’s Eatings, everyone!