Last evening, I took my pedometer and went for a walk. It was 4.6 miles from my home to my bank to the Five Guys that recently opened near me, then to one store and back to my house.
The Five Guys was crowded, which surprised me a little. It's in an area where restaurants get tons of lunch traffic from all the offices around but are usually empty after work lets out. A Koo Koo Roo that closed down nearby always had a line out the door if you went at 1 PM but you had the place to yourself after about 7:00. Guess that's why it closed down.
The folks at the Five Guys looked like they'd been doing it for years. Nothing I saw tipped the fact that the place had only been open since Tuesday. Nothing except that most of the customers were eyeng the Five Guys menu like they'd never seen it before.
As I waited to place my order, a woman was studying that menu and moaning that a hamburger was more than five dollars. "You can get a hamburger at McDonald's for a dollar," she said to no one in particular. Being no one in particular, I responded. "Yeah, but these have meat in them," I said.
This is one of my — you'll excuse the pun — beefs. You can't compare two items of different content. When I see a sign that says "Slice of Pizza, $1.50" I don't think, "Wow, what a bargain for pizza." I think, "Gee, wonder if it's the low quality or the small size that enables them to sell it for that."
The lady was dressed in clothes that suggested that she was either homeless or that was a distinct future possibility. She asked me if I'd eaten there before. I said, "Not at this one but I've been to other Five Guyses." She asked me if I thought they were good. I consulted the pedometer and told her I'd just walked 2.2 miles to get to this one. "These are the best fast food hamburgers and fries I've ever had."
She wanted to try one but was concerned about the cost. I told her the Little Hamburger, which was three and a half bucks, was more than enough for a meal. That's what I was ordering. She decided to give it a try. She got one but apparently didn't have enough money for fries or a beverage. She got the counterman to get her a paper cup of tap water.
When I got my order, I separated out the fries with skin on them (the ones I don't eat) and passed them over to her at her table. "Be my guest," I told her. She was quite grateful for them and told me she liked her meal very much. When I finished mine, I went over to the cash register, bought a Five Guys gift card and gave it to her. She thanked me so many times that I told her, "If you want to thank me, stop thanking me." She thanked me for telling her that.
We were leaving at the same time and she told me, non sequitur, that she had five children and never heard from any of them. I asked her if she had a place to stay. She said, "For now." Then she added, "I guess the way the economy's going, we're all like that." Then she headed for wherever she was going and I went wherever I was going.