MENOMINEE, Mich. (WJMN) – Our Restaurant of the Week series highlighting some favorite local restaurants in the U.P. takes us to Menominee this week, where we received multiple suggestions to feature Fried Guys.
Fried Guys is a self-described family owned and operated restaurant specializing in burgers, fries & Chicago staples like deep dish pizza, hot dogs, and Italian beef.
The restaurant is owned by Josh Driscoll in partnership with his sons Vincent, Kai, Nolan, Evan, and Cole. Driscoll says he is from Madison, Wisconsin, and moved to the U.P. a little over a decade ago.
Driscoll purchased the location in Menominee a few years ago. In that time, Driscoll says he leased the building and at one point explored selling the property.
Eventually, Driscoll says he and his sons had the idea to remodel and open a restaurant themselves. After some time, Fried Guys officially opened for business in August of 2022.
Signature Dish
Driscoll says they are best known for their signature burgers and loaded fries. They offer a variety of burgers with unique toppings like the ‘We Be Jammin’ made with pork belly, bourbon, bacon jam, and jalapeno cream cheese. Another is the ‘Pineapple Express’, which Driscoll says comes topped with a grilled pineapple ring, smoked string cheese, pineapple cream cheese, pineapple barbecue sauce, pineapple jam, and smoked ham.
“It’s quite the pineapple infusion, but it goes great because it’s sweet and salty and it’s just amazing,” Driscoll said. “And we have several of those.”
Take a look at some of the burgers and fries on offer:
Which items deserve more attention?
Driscoll says something that should get more attention is Fried Guys’ ‘Taste of Chicago’ menu. The menu offers signature Vienna Beef products from the Windy City, including Chicago-style hot dogs and Italian beef sandwiches. They also offer Grecian Delight gyros cooked in-house and authentic Chicago deep dish pizza.
“If you go to Chicago for the staples, the gyros, the Chicago dogs, the Polish, the Maxwell, the Italian beef, you’re more than likely going to have one of the products we have here exactly like it is there,” Driscoll said.
Additional information
In addition to some of the fancier items, Fried Guys also features a ‘$5 menu’, which offers five different combinations of meals that include a sandwich, fries, and drink.
You can find a full menu here
You can stop in to try their food for yourself at 1704 13th St in Menominee. The restaurant is open each week Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Where should we stop next week? Email news@upmatters.com and put Restaurant of the Week in the subject line.
