Five Guys Burgers and Fries coming to Springfield

The first area location of Lorton, Va.-based fast-casual hamburger and sandwich franchise Five Guys Burgers and Fries is slated to open in Springfield this spring.

Five Guys franchisee Jeff Offutt, who operates two locations in Columbia, signed a lease in early November with Curtis Jared of Jared Enterprises to occupy 3,000 square feet at 2711 N. Kansas Expressway within the former Town and Country Cinema at the Town and Country Shopping Center.

"Springfield's a great market. The Midwest is a very deep burger-oriented area. Burgers do very well," Offutt said.

Offutt declined to disclose specific terms of the lease but said it is a long-term lease at reasonable market rates.

Operating under the franchise name Mid-Mo Burgers LLC, Offutt, who owns Five Guys franchise rights to Greene and Jasper counties among other areas in the state, said he is planning to launch another Five Guys in Springfield at a Battlefield Mall area location within 60 days of opening the North Kansas Expressway eatery. He also is looking to purchase a plot of land in Joplin within 30 days, where he would build a small strip center with a Five Guys franchise.

Offutt said Five Guys franchise costs are roughly $55,000 per location, comprising $35,000 in franchise fees and $20,000 in development rights.

Offutt, who has not yet named a manager for the Town and Country restaurant, said his Columbia Five Guys locations each employ about 20 to 25 people.

The Missouri Council of the Blind Thrift Store also operates at the old theater location. The thrift store, which opened earlier this month, was brokered by Ross Murray, vice president of R.B. Murray Co., who said the store operates within roughly 18,000 square feet.

Offutt, who lives in Columbia, also is a franchisee for 43 Subway restaurants in the state, with area locations in Branson, Hollister, Forsyth and Lake of the Ozarks.[[In-content Ad]]