Five Star Burgers, Clayton - Visited May 2016

The "Big Mick" at Five Star Burgers

Today was my son's last weekend of his first year of college and he picked a lunch spot worthy of a hungry college student, Five Star Burgers in Clayton. As usual the parking there is tricky, but we were lucky to find a street parking spot just a little further west of the restaurant on Maryland Avenue. When we entered the restaurant, the entire dining area was empty so we picked a table against the side where half the table had soft cushions, so it was a pretty comfortable spot.

I had checked their Facebook site before and realized their burger of the month was called the "Big Mick", their take on McDonald's classic burger but with premium patties, so I had to try it out. My son wanted to try it too, so he ordered his usual Blue Ribbon burger and we decided to split both burgers so we could both enjoy half of each. I also split an order of their onion rings with my wife (who ordered a plain 5 Star burger with gorgonzola cheese.) My mother-in-law ordered the grilled cheese with a side of sweet potato fries. Most of us drank water, but my wife ordered iced tea. When they brought her tea they did not bring sweetener and there was none on the table, so she had to wait until we ordered to tell our server that she needed sweetener.

It did not take too long for our meals to arrive and everything was delicious as usual. The "Big Mick" had two thin patties that were grilled medium and they almost melted in your mouth. They were, of course, vastly superior to the patties they use at McDonald's, if those really are 100% beef. The Five Stars "special sauce" was pretty similar to the McDonald's version, but was served on the side so we could add as much as we want, as well as distributing the generous pickles, lettuce, onions and tomatoes as we pleased. There was really no contest and the Big Mick easily beats any Big Mac I have ever consumed (and I ate quite a few in my younger years.) My son's Blue Ribbon burger was very good as well, with a thicker patty where you could really taste the ground beef, and the pickles, bacon and gorgonzola cheese adding their own strong flavors to the burger. It is hard to find a better burger in town that the ones at Five Star. Their onion rings are also very crisp and flavorful, and they were also quite good dipped in the extra special sauce!

5 Star "Blue Ribbon" burger being held by my son

The service was mediocre as it often is there, with our server not being too attentive. My wife visited the ladies' room and said their "automatic" soap dispenser was not working well, not dispensing when she wanted some and then firing some on the counter later. They need to fix that! Luckily their delicious burgers make up for their inattentive service and poor maintenance. We are also looking forward to visiting their new location in Creve Coeur which has just opened and is quite near our church. I think I know where we may be eating some after church lunches.

Food Quality

Service/Maintenance