Last visit: Mar 2022 (Colorado Springs - Promenade)
First visit: Oct 2009 (Denver - DTC)
I've been a bit hard on the Smashburger chain, only in that it's so transparent that business comes first, food second. Though in theory one concept should help the other. But just to evaluate the restaurant on the burger alone (I had the double), it does standup well with peers like In-N-Out and Five Guys. I had no need on this visit to try the fries again, and I would have loved to divulge in a shake, but I had other priorities this day. Besides, I tend to cringe when fast food meals start to cost $15 or more. Smashburgers are sloppy and salty, but very flavorful. I also enjoy their secret sauce which is different than the usual Thousand Island dressing. All in all, a worthy fast food option, though not worth seeking out if traveling, more as a matter of convenience.
As it turns out, my prediction for the NE Tarrant location came true and it is no longer in business. There are currently 5 total in the Dallas area and none in Fort Worth. Of course, they are much more present here in Colorado, given that they are based in Denver. The Springs has 3 to themselves. Their website "locations" option totally sucks, so I had to use Google Maps to determine just these small facts.
---original 1/26/13 review (Fort Worth, Texas)
It appears all along that Smashburger was designed to be the next big thing in burgers. Their website is quite telling. There's no history talking about how Mom spent years working in the back kitchen of a bakery working out a special burger recipe, and finally scraped enough pennies to open her first store. And by word of mouth, it was so popular a second location opened up 10 years later. And finally some investors came in, and bought out sweet old Rosie May, and began to franchise the concept. NOPE. What you get to read about instead is their Executive Team and Board of Advisors. Even McDonalds has a good story to tell. Not Smashburger, unless you're enthralled with something that goes along the lines of: "We sat in a boardroom, and came up with a new winning concept regarding the QSR industry. Our return to investors is...". Smashburger is based in Denver, and really that is an excellent locale to seed their idea. Other than the drive-through only Good Times Burgers, there really isn't any major local burger chains in the area. And Denver is a proven stomping ground for chains in the making - one needs to look no further than Quizno's, Chipotle, and Qdoba to determine that. As you all well know by now, the RJG resided in Colorado (mainly Denver) from late 1993 to early 2003. There were no Smashburger's then. We first heard of the chain while spending the summer of 2009 there. I tried the location in the Denver Tech Center (Greenwood Village). It was packed to the rafters, and quite frankly the burger is indeed very good. I vowed to return, but there were just too many other places in Denver to try, and I never made it back.
As mentioned in the premise, Smashburger wasn't meant to be a local or regional chain. And now they're spreading the country like a weed. DFW already has many locations, most opening up in the last couple of years. And Watauga was chosen for our Northeast Tarrant location (technically Fort Worth for that one guy who gets bent out shape about these things).
Since this is really a Corporate America restaurant, I'd say this location is already on its back heels. Because it's all about money, I don't know if it will be given a chance to thrive. There were only a couple of folks in the restaurant, and it was Noon time. It was nothing like the scene I saw back in Denver. But the reality is this: There's only so much burger dollar out there. DFW isn't Denver. We have tons of burger places already. And with the new genre of burger houses offering up a full array of beers, and other libations, that alone wipes away part of the market. As for strictly fast food options, not only do we have our indigenous Whataburger and Mooyah, but we've been invaded by popular outsiders such as In-N-Out and Five Guys (we've written about all of these in the past). And that doesn't even begin to discuss the mega-chains, and popular local places. As a corporate guy myself, I'm going to say that Smashburger didn't do their homework regarding this market. We'll see. I'm sure some locations are doing OK, but the Watuaga one is way too lonely of a space.
Oh, you came here to read about food, and not business? Sorry about that. So there's a lot less to talk about regarding the food. It's a burger joint. Their gimmick? Roll up the patty like a big ol' meatball, and then... (can you guess this part?)... they SMASH it. Wowweeeee. Amazing. Is it good? Heck yea! It has that key ingredient that makes all of our favorite burgers so great: Salt. And I like the egg buns, which are soft and delicious. And be sure to use their spicy chipotle mayonnaise as a condiment. In the end, Smashburger is good at what they claim to do.
But will I be back? Maybe. If I'm in the area, or if I haven't been in a long time. Hopefully they'll still be there, but I have my doubts. There's just too many other choices out there right now. Perhaps if they open a location within 5-10 minutes of our house, that could increase the chances that we'll go.
As mentioned in the premise, Smashburger wasn't meant to be a local or regional chain. And now they're spreading the country like a weed. DFW already has many locations, most opening up in the last couple of years. And Watauga was chosen for our Northeast Tarrant location (technically Fort Worth for that one guy who gets bent out shape about these things).
Since this is really a Corporate America restaurant, I'd say this location is already on its back heels. Because it's all about money, I don't know if it will be given a chance to thrive. There were only a couple of folks in the restaurant, and it was Noon time. It was nothing like the scene I saw back in Denver. But the reality is this: There's only so much burger dollar out there. DFW isn't Denver. We have tons of burger places already. And with the new genre of burger houses offering up a full array of beers, and other libations, that alone wipes away part of the market. As for strictly fast food options, not only do we have our indigenous Whataburger and Mooyah, but we've been invaded by popular outsiders such as In-N-Out and Five Guys (we've written about all of these in the past). And that doesn't even begin to discuss the mega-chains, and popular local places. As a corporate guy myself, I'm going to say that Smashburger didn't do their homework regarding this market. We'll see. I'm sure some locations are doing OK, but the Watuaga one is way too lonely of a space.
Oh, you came here to read about food, and not business? Sorry about that. So there's a lot less to talk about regarding the food. It's a burger joint. Their gimmick? Roll up the patty like a big ol' meatball, and then... (can you guess this part?)... they SMASH it. Wowweeeee. Amazing. Is it good? Heck yea! It has that key ingredient that makes all of our favorite burgers so great: Salt. And I like the egg buns, which are soft and delicious. And be sure to use their spicy chipotle mayonnaise as a condiment. In the end, Smashburger is good at what they claim to do.
But will I be back? Maybe. If I'm in the area, or if I haven't been in a long time. Hopefully they'll still be there, but I have my doubts. There's just too many other choices out there right now. Perhaps if they open a location within 5-10 minutes of our house, that could increase the chances that we'll go.
10/9/09; 1/26/13 (new entry); 1/28/16; 6/24/19; 3/28/22
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8 comments:
RJG - Good review and I like the corporate/business food talk. The Smashburger on University in FW seems to do very well. When my youngest son is home that's his burger of choice. I like the burger but I'm not going to out of my way to get one and I prefer less hat and more cattle, like Five Guys, if you know what I mean. How much room is there for new burger places? It appears lots, but we'll see how the gourmet burger places shake out in the next five years. If In N Out, not gourmet but a part of that expansion, were publicly traded I'd buy. Thanks. Now to read the In N Out post.
Thanks Francis. I always appreciate your insights! I agree with you - more cattle and less hat for sure!
Love the SmashBurger. I prefer the thin burgers, so Smashburger is perfect for me.
The onion strings are good, as are the sweet potato fries. And, you can't go wrong with the tea, it's the same Tazo Black that StarBucks serves (cheaper than StarBucks and free refills)
Thanks Cowboy Fan for the comment. I admit to liking thin burgers too, so they definitely score on that front.
Oh, yeah, I have been to that particular SmashBurger twice now, both times in the evening and it was standing room only both times. We were lucky to get a seat.
Perhaps that isn't the area that gets the noon rush due to the lack of business parks and the abundance of other eateries.
But, at night, that place is packed. And, when Bahama Bucks arrives right next door, that area will be hopping with people even more.
Oh, yeah, have you tried Lee's Grilled Cheese further west?
OK - that is telling. I think you're right about the dinner verse lunch crowd. That's good to hear that they're doing well then.
Lee's Grilled Cheese is very high on my places to try. In my Top 3. I'm taking a break this week and eating at home. Probably by the weekend or next week.
I tend to find it irritating when I have to go to Google to find their locations because their website can't provide a good list or fall back to "nothing is within 50 miles of you, but here's the next closest ones."
Thumbs up to that! Drives me nuts - and in this case, it didn't even do that!
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