Big Boy was thinking big when the company opened @burger, their first foray into the “fast casual” gourmet burger business, in McKinley Towne Centre last summer. They didn’t even last a year–@burger closed its doors for good in June.

It was a quiet end for what was supposed to be the flagship restaurant of a new national chain. There was no big announcement, just a sign on the door saying they were closed. “We didn’t expect as much of a loss when students left for the summer,” admits David Crawford, Big Boy Restaurants vice-president of marketing. At the same time, “Five Guys [Burgers and Fries] opened down the street. All those factors combined just made us realign and get back to the Big Boy Business.”

Might Big Boy give fast casual another shot sometime in the future? “Oh, no, not me,” Crawford laughs.