A Five Guys Burgers & Fries franchise owner says he plans to open an outlet of the Lorton, Va.-based chain here in late summer with the first of several restaurants that he expects to have in the Spokane area.

The franchisee, William Sheffield, of Brunswick, Ga., says he plans to open the first Five Guys restaurant here in September in the Lincoln Heights neighborhood on Spokane's South Hill, and hopes to open about four more Spokane area restaurants as quickly as market conditions allow.

"If sales go gangbusters, we might try to open a second restaurant there about the first of the year and expand out from there," Sheffield says. "We know that Spokane, Yakima, and the Tri-Cities will support several of them."

Sheffield, who owns a second home in Big Fork, Mont., says he owns the Five Guys franchise rights for all of Montana and most of Eastern Washington. He opened two outlets in Kalispell and Missoula, Mont., last year, and sales there are exceeding projections, he says.

"I hope to have about 15 restaurants," Sheffield says.

The South Hill restaurant will hire about 30 full- and part-time employees and will be located in 3,100 square feet of leased space formerly occupied by a Pizza Hut restaurant at 2525 E. 29th, he says. Future restaurants likely would hire a similar number of employees, he says.

Sheffield describes Five Guys as a retro hamburger restaurant.

"Hamburgers will be made the old-fashioned way with no automated equipment, timers, freezers, or microwave ovens," he says.

The simplified menu includes four variations of hamburgers in two sizes, three types of hot dogs, veggie and grilled-cheese sandwiches, and fries, Sheffield says.

All burgers will be made from fresh American beef and served on proprietary buns, and fries will be cut on-site from fresh potatoes, he says.

Sheffield's daughter, Heather Carls, will supervise the operations throughout the franchise regions, he says.

Jerry Murrell founded Five Guys in 1986 in Virginia and started selling franchises in 2003. The name refers to Murrell's five sons. The chain has more than 550 restaurants in 35 states and expects to add 200 more this year, Five Guys' Web site says.

Chad Carper, of Spokane-based Kiemle & Hagood Co., handled the South Hill lease.