Five Napkin Burger makes Boston its first venture outside New York City

By: Allie Ehrhart, News Staff

A French restaurant turned upscale New York City burger restaurant is coming to Boston. Five Napkin Burger, which has three locations in the Big Apple, is opening at 105 Huntington Ave. in early March.

The name Five Napkin Burger originated from a dish that part-owners Robert Guarino, Simon Oren and chef Andy D’Amico served at their French restaurant in the Upper West Side of New York City, called Nice-Matin.

“It was this big, messy burger that we called the ‘five napkin burger,’” Guarino said. “Andy got the idea, and we decided that if we started a new restaurant, we would name it after that dish.”

The decision to come to Boston for their first venture outside of New York was easy: The partners agreed they love it here. D’Amico even got his culinary start working at The Omni Parker House on 60 School St. in downtown Boston.

“Boston is a major city close to us in New York that we love visiting and we wouldn’t mind being in a lot,” Guarino said.

This is one of the reasons the owners are reaching out to the Boston and Northeastern community about creating “The Boston Burger.”

Eric Giandelone, director of food service research at Mintel Product and Market Research, said this contest will draw excitement about the restaurant.

“It should create some buzz,” he said. “It builds involvement and people enjoy that. People feel like the menu is personalized.”

Owners are now accepting submissions of burger ideas until Feb. 22 from anyone with a New York or Massachusetts address. Guarino said mailing addresses students have at school would suffice.

Guarino said the Boston burger does not have to necessarily be representative of the city, but it could be a fun idea.

“It’s really open to interpretation,” he said. “It could be fun to have [it represent Boston]. We may push it in that direction in other cities if it works.”

Five Napkin Burger is opening more branches in Atlanta and Miami later this year.

Chef D’Amico, who has been the brains behind every burger on the menu, will have the final say in the winner of the Boston burger contest winner. It will be announced on the restaurant’s Facebook page on the day it opens.

The winner will receive a $1,000 gift certificate to eat at any Five Napkin Burger location, and his or her burger creation will be featured on the menu.

While Five Napkin Burger is reaching out to students in the area, it is marketed as “the only upscale restaurant devoted to the art of the hamburger,” which could prove difficult in enticing students to walk through the doors. But owners said they have no concerns about getting students as customers.

“We’re not inexpensive, but we’re also not terribly expensive,” Guarino said. “I think we offer a lot of value with the atmosphere and the good food.”

Giandelone agreed with the value, but said it might be difficult to get students as repeat customers.

“The price point is a little high for students to do every week,” he said. “Especially since on-campus options have a lower price point. But it’s definitely higher ingredients, which justify the cost. You don’t see Gruyere cheese everywhere.”

With a menu featuring burgers, salads and other entrees, it may be a surprise to find sushi on the menu as well. The owners said they are proud of the variety they offer, making the restaurant friendly to those who do not eat meat.

“The burgers are the draw, they get a high percentage of the sales,” Guarino said. “But sushi broadens the concept of the restaurant, especially for people who are not meat eaters, to enjoy Five Napkin Burger.”

When it comes to a restaurant that has a predominantly American menu, Giandelone said getting people to order the sushi depends on preparation.

“There’s going to be an initial hesitation [from customers] to order sushi from a burger restaurant,” he said. “It depends on the execution, whether they can show that they can do burgers and sushi well.”

The variety already offered may make it difficult for people to think of interesting contest submissions, but the amount of creations someone can submit is unlimited.

“We really hope for creative, fun ideas,” Guarino said. “The fun part is we don’t know what’s going to come back to us with the submissions.”

Hopefuls can submit burger creations to 5napkinburger.com/BostonContest.