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Dining in Dufferin: F.N Good Burgers brings increasingly popular ‘smash burgers’ to Orangeville

January 11, 2024   ·   0 Comments

By Gail Powell

When Scott Davis told his 91-year-old mother his new food truck would be named F. N. Good Burgers – she was not impressed.

“I told her “F. N.” was short for “fresh and natural,” joked the Orangeville-based entrepreneur. “My mom quipped back, ‘I may have been born at night, Scott – but I wasn’t born last night.’”

Despite the food truck’s salty handle, Davis’s mom and the rest of his family are good supporters of his foodie business goals, as his parents were once themselves restauranteurs in the mid-1970s.

“My parents were co-owners of a popular BBQ chicken restaurant outside of Shelburne when I was a little kid,” he said. 

“I loved that place and always wanted to be in the restaurant business. My career path eventually took me in another direction but being a restaurant owner remained in my mind.”

In 2014, while working at a community festival, Davis was intrigued by a food vendor who made Tornado Potatoes – partially sliced deep-fried potatoes on a stick. 

“It was a simple process and product that seemed like a popular carnival food – based on the long line of customers,” noted Davis. 

“I researched the product and necessary equipment to make the deep-fried treat and in August 2015 I launched Scotty’s Spiral Spuds at my first food festival – the Alliston Potato Festival.”

Due to the flexibility of Davis’s work shifts as a frontline worker he was able to continue Scotty’s Spiral Spuds as a side hustle on weekends. Then in 2020 he retired from his day job to then pursue his full-time food business dreams. 

“During the pandemic, one of my daughters was living in Toronto and would talk about different foods she would see downtown including “smash burgers,” recalled Davis. 

Smash burgers are made by compressing the hamburger meat into the grill with a spatula to quick sear the outside of the patty first to subsequently keep in all the burger flavour and juice while the patty continues to cook. 

Davis then launched the F.N. Good Burgers food truck brand in July 2022.

“When the pandemic postponed all food festivals for a few years I ended up retooling the business focus away from just the spiral potatoes,” said Davis. 

“Eventually I left the food festival circuit, to expand my menu offerings to include smash burgers, fresh-cut fries, all-beef hot dogs and grilled cheese sandwiches.”

Davis continues to refine his food processes to ensure he’s able to maintain the level of food quality and service that his customers have come to expect. 

“We do offer gluten-free buns for our burgers, but we also want to expand our menu to include vegan and plant-based options too.”

Today, the F. N. Good Burgers food truck is parked beside The Kar Bath coin wash at 14 Townline – but not for long – as Davis has bigger goals in mind.

“We’re currently working towards opening our first bricks and mortar location somewhere in Orangeville – once we find an appropriate location,” he explained. 

“After that we’ll make plans to franchise our F. N. Good Burgers brand from there.”

For more information on hours, catering and their new customer loyalty program, check out www.fngoodburgers.com.

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