Esli Rêgo loves beef but doesn’t consider herself a burger person. So when her friend couldn’t stop raving about a newly opened burger place in Antioch, she had to see what all the fuss was about.
“I may not be a burger lover, but Jeff’s burgers are crafted with such care and quality that they make my carnivore heart sing! It’s like each patty is a celebration of flavor, and you can tell it’s not just any ordinary burger — it’s the real deal,” said Rêgo, who drove from Pinole to eat there with her daughter.
She’s talking about Jeff Wright’s new eatery called Chef Jeff’s Smash Burger, which he opened last September (instagram.com/chefjeffssmashburger). If you recall, it all started last March when the Brentwood resident found his bank account dwindling due to leaving his 13-year job as a regional sales manager to care full-time for his mom, aunt and daughter (see a related video online at bit.ly/jeffwrightsmashburgers).
He had a garage sale and in addition started flipping and selling his version of smash burgers with sauce, sizzling fries and onion rings. The burgers became an overnight sensation, and word spread fast on social media — including to staff with the city of Brentwood, who shut him down and kept doing so each time he tried again to sell his patties, including at a well-established Brentwood deli called Dino’s Sandwich Shop.
“Dino’s was kind enough to offer us a spot out back, where we could cook the burgers at night,” said Wright. “The first night, we sold 200 burgers in an hour-and-a-half. It was incredible! There was a line out the door. But the next day, the city showed up saying we couldn’t cook with hot oil 20 feet from the building. I asked why the doughnut guy at the Brentwood Farmers’ Market could cook with hot oil, but I never got a response.”
Researching every angle possible, Wright found an 800-square foot space at 740 W. Second St. in Antioch’s Rivertown district where he set up shop, and just four months later … he’s smashing it with sales and customer satisfaction. From zero employees to nine, he’s selling about 1,000 burgers a week now.
“And this is in the slow time!” he said. “The first day we opened, we sold 500 burgers and there was a line around the corner. We’ve been so fortunate that people love the food.”
The aforementioned Rêgo ordered the shop’s Single Smashed Burger topped with jalapeños, pepper jack and mushrooms.
“First off, the burgers are gigantic! As a carnivore, I can appreciate a hefty, real beef patty that’s bursting with flavor,” she said. “Each bite is an explosion of taste, and you can tell everything is incredibly fresh — from the toppings to the ingredients.
“Plus the atmosphere is so nice, with everyone greeting each other like long-lost pals. You can tell that Jeff is passionate about what he does, and it shows in every juicy bite. Their friendly service makes you feel right at home.”
One of Wright’s biggest fans to date is his daughter, Maika, 13.
“She’s so proud of the business,” he said. “She tells everyone at school about how her dad is the owner of Chef Jeff’s. The other day she told me, ‘Dad, I feel famous!’ ”
Growth seems to in Wright’s future, and he said his team is considering opportunities to expand the business to new locations and selling their own sauces in stores. He also donates meals to the homeless.
“Next, we have a commercial that will launch in March that will show on local news stations,” he said. “And we’re now selling our merch. We have sweatshirts and shirts!”
In his garage, he sold burger meals (includes fries and a drink) for $15. His prices have had to go up a bit since then.
“Our burgers are truly gourmet burgers,” he said. “We are making gourmet burgers fast food-style. Everything is cut fresh. The burgers are hand-rolled daily. We make fresh sauce and seasoning on a daily basis and cut fresh produce. We cut no corners and make the freshest and best food we can.”
Not just a place to enjoy a good burger, Wright said one customer told him how she reconnected with three of her high school friends based on Facebook posts about his shop. He recalled another customer, a man who sat at the table listening to the mostly Christian music Wright’s shop plays on its large, flat-screen TV.
“I could see tears streaming down his face,” said Wright. “I walked out and asked him if he was OK, and he told me that his sister had just passed away. We were able to have a conversation, and I encouraged him and prayed with him. I saw him at church that Sunday!”
Enjoying success at only four months, Wright credits divine intervention.
“That day in my garage when I prayed, I heard Him very clearly saying, ‘Jeff, I’m going to let you do this, but don’t look back because you’ll think about the things you had and lost and you’ll live in regret,’ ” said Wright. “He told me not to chase a dream because I would run too fast and I wouldn’t live in the moment and I would forget about Him.
“This whole process has been about trust and believing that the God in heaven could actually be intimately involved in my life and care for me and my family. I leaned on Him, I put my hope and all my trust in Him. He tells me that it’s not over and that there’s more to come.”
Reach Charleen Earley, a freelance writer and journalism professor at Diablo Valley college, at charleenbearley@gmail.com or 925-383-3072.