From Arlington Carry-Out to 2,000 Stores: Five Guys’ Alexandria HQ

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Before Five Guys became the place where a burger can arrive with a small novel’s worth of toppings, it was a modest Arlington carry-out with a very family-style origin story.

In 1986, Jerry and Janie Murrell gave their three sons a choice: go to college or start a business. The boys picked the business. Forty years later, the result is 2,000 Five Guys restaurants in 30 countries—and the company’s corporate office is right here at 1940 Duke St. in Alexandria.

Five Guys announced Friday that its 2,000th restaurant has opened at Universal CityWalk at Universal Orlando Resort. It is a long way from that first Arlington counter, but the company says the original idea has not changed much.

“We really just wanted to make burgers we could be proud of,” founder Jerry Murrell said in a company statement marking Five Guys’ 40th anniversary earlier this year.

From a Family Decision to a Global Burger Brand

The name Five Guys ultimately came to reflect the Murrells’ five sons. The family spent its first two decades refining the burgers, hot dogs and fresh-cut fries in the Washington area before turning to franchising in 2003. In less than 18 months, Five Guys had sold more than 300 franchise units, according to the company.

International expansion followed, beginning in Canada in 2010 and then London in 2013. Today, the Alexandria-headquartered brand has restaurants across five continents, serving its familiar made-to-order burgers and fries from London to Seoul to Dubai.

For Alexandria, the milestone is a reminder that one of the world’s most recognizable fast-casual brands is still managed from Duke Street—even if its newest restaurant happens to be inside a Florida theme-park complex.

Five Guys calls its guiding formula “freshness, quality and the simple-but-serious pursuit of great burgers and fries.” After 40 years and 2,000 stores, that is a lot of potatoes.

Sources: Five Guys; Five Guys announcement.