When a restaurant says their specialty is ‘handmade’ something-or-other one tends to be a bit skeptical. Particularly when it comes to hamburgers. Sure, they can say they’re ‘handmade,’ but they usually mean at the factory where the patties are pre-cooked, flash frozen, and packed for delivery.
Not the case with Jake’s Hamburgers. When they say their burgers are handmade it’s actually true. Especially when you see them making your patties minutes after you place your order. The result is a fresh and tasty alternative to normal fast food burgers.
With a little more than a dozen eateries spread along the Eastern Seaboard, Jake’s is a different type of fast food franchise. Instead of being housed in large cinder-block buildings that feature indoor playgrounds and Happy Meals, the restaurants are usually tucked away in non-descript strip malls, stucco buildings, and even old houses that come complete with wraparound porches. That doesn’t mean that Jake’s is unknown. On the contrary, while their venues may be small, their advertising covers a wide area.
And when we say advertising we’re not just talking about print media and radio ads. We’re also talking word of mouth as well. In fact, the high marks from both the public and the press have been more effective in bringing business into these stores than any traditional advertising has. This is good news since Jake’s burgers are somewhat higher in price than your average McWendyBurgerKing burger (around $5).
Jake’s menu is pretty straightforward. There are three types of burgers they sell: the single Jake Jr., the double patty Signature Burger, and the three patty Big Jake. You can choose either with cheese and/or bacon. The bacon, rather than being in strips, is circular in nature. This makes me think it’s a member of the Canadian Bacon family, but I can’t be too sure. All burgers come with your standard lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, ketchup, and mustard.
During my trip to Jake’s I ordered a Signature Burger with cheese and all the fixings save for the onion. I had it to go, but I knew it was fresh from the moment I picked it up from the grease stains peppering the brown paper bag. Despite the heaviness of the 6.6-ounce burger I found the meat cooked evenly with a nice amount of seasoning. The only downside to the burger was how messy it was. This was probably due to the soft bun, which aborbed the condiments like it was a sponge.
Being a place serving burgers, Jake’s also sells its share of sides (it’s the law, I believe). The fires are thick, lightly salted and seem to be cooked per order. If you order cheese fries you receive a fairly large cup of melted cheese that has a slight kick to it. Also available are chili fries, the heart-stopping (literally) chili cheese fries and homemade onion rings.
Jake’s has a small selection of entrees, salads and other sandwiches. Included are chicken fingers, which are actually smalll, breaded chicken wings. At least that’s what they looked like when I took them out of the bag. In no way did they resemble chicken fingers. For about $4 we got three ‘fingers’ with dipping sauce that lasted us through two meals.
In addition to its burgers, the other thing that Jake’s is famous for is its milkshakes. For under $4 you have a choice of 11 hand-dipped flavors as well as the M.O.M (Milkshake of the Month). Unfortunately, though friends of mine have raved about these shakes, I didn’t partake in one during my visit. However, since Jake’s Hamburgers has now been added to my list of eating joints, I hope to partake in one of their world-famous shakes soon enough.
Clacked by Richard Keller 
on Jun 10, 2009 @ 11:00 EST5EDT
