National Burger Chains That Boston Has Welcomed Because Boston Loves Burgers

As Burger Week 2015 Burger Chain Power Hour continues, here are a few chains that have made their way to Boston from other parts of the country.

BurgerFi
Local locations exist near the BU campus and in West Roxbury, and BurgerFi has 65 others around the country. Started in Delray Beach, Florida in 2011, the chain was borne from its founders' dissatisfaction with typical fast food fare. The BurgerFi website says it applies a "level of better" to everything it makes, which includes burgers, hot dogs, side dishes, and custards.

[Photo: FACEBOOK]

Five Guys Burgers & Fries
This growing burger chain was started by Washington, D.C.-area brothers in 1986 and started franchising in 2003. Boston proper has two locations, and Five Guys has more than 1,000 other branches, including in Medford, Chelsea, Newton, Waltham, Saugus, and other Massachusetts 'burbs; plus 46 other states. The simple menu features hamburgers, cheeseburgers, little hamburgers and little cheeseburgers; hot dogs, sandwiches, and fries.

[Photo: FACEBOOK]

Shake Shack
A Dedham location and a Back Bay outpost of this growing chain have already opened this year, joining Chestnut Hill and Harvard Square Shake Shacks that opened in 2013. The massively popular international chain actually began as a hot dog cart within Madison Square Park in New York. Each of its franchises features unique specials, like the NewBERRY concrete (a dense, frozen custard with mix-ins), with strawberry jam, cheesecake blondie chunks, and cinnamon sugar, at the new Back Bay eatery.

[Photo: RACHEL LEAH BLUMENTHAL FOR EATER BOSTON]

Sonic
While no Boston proper Sonics currently exist, the company recently announced it has 36 more Massachusetts locations planned over the next five years. The Oklahoma City-based chain traces its roots back to 1953, but it rebranded as Sonic in 1959 to reflect its "service at the speed of sound." There are now more than 3,500 Sonics in 44 states, including four Massachusetts branches: Lawrence, Peabody, Stoughton, and Wilmington.

[Photo: FACEBOOK]