Five Guys Park Slope Goes Thinner

The thin patties at one of my favorite burger chains just got thinner, at least at my local Five Guys location. For those watching the action behind the counter as the burgers are being griddled, most are horrified that the standard practice is to 'smash' the burgers into thin patties. What most do not realize is that 1) this was the standard practice for all short-order burgers made before there were such things as patty formers and 2) that Five Guys has a secret. The griddle cook at every Five Guys employs a sort of channeled bacon weight that only allows the press to go so far before its edges touch the griddle (see Adam Kuban's photo above). The result is a patty that does not get the life pressed out of it. Seems as though the cooks at the new Park Slope Five Guys have been doing some serious pressing because the channels on their 'smasher' are bent out of shape rendering the design useless. I tried to explain this to the cook on duty and naturally she looked at me like I was a crazy person. I actually like the thinner, looser patties so don't tell anyone that their burger press is busted...