More than 420,000 burgers, 296,000 portions of fries and 42,000 hot dogs – that’s what cult US burger chain Five Guys has served at its first Melbourne location since opening in August 2022, according to Phil Keelan, the head of operations for Australia.

“Our site on Southbank opened with one of the highest-grossing trade weeks in the history of international Five Guys,” he tells Good Food.

That store, near Queens Bridge, has been such a hit that Five Guys will open a second location, at QV Melbourne, on October 14.

The former NAB bank on Lonsdale Street, just down from the Swanston Street intersection, has been kitted out in Five Guys’ signature red-and-white livery. It spans 262 square metres, with seating for 68 people.

Keelan says there are more stores to come. “We have negotiated another two Melbourne sites and are always looking for more. We believe the City of Melbourne can definitely house two to three more sites in the coming years before we start looking to suburban markets to continue to grow in Victoria.”

The Five Guys schtick is that it doesn’t use freezers, while its beef patties are hand-pressed – and its fries, hand-cut – in store daily. But what sets it apart for customers is that they can have it tailor-made.

For a set price, you can add any (or all) of 15 of the toppings – among them raw or grilled onions, HP sauce and fresh jalapeno slices – for no extra charge, allowing for 250,000 variations.

Five Guys was established in 1986, before starting to set up franchises in 2003. The master franchisee of Five Guys in Australia is Blue Coral Concepts, which also has Ribs & Burgers, and Italian Street Kitchen through its offshoot entity Seagrass Hospitality.

Five Guys QV Melbourne opens at 10.30am on Monday, October 14. From then, it will be open daily 11am-10pm.

QV Melbourne, 228 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, fiveguys.com.au