Pick-Quick is reopening from its winter hiatus today. Hand-cut fries, anyone?

The annual February reopening of the Fife Pick-Quick Drive-In is kind of like our own Pierce County version of Groundhog Day. The staff cranks up the grill, heats up the fryer and gets those hand-cut fries ready to dunk after a two-month winter hiatus the restaurant takes every year.

There’s no shadow ceremony or a little woodland creature burrowing back into a hole, but considering Pick-Quick is an al fresco restaurant, you’ll be willing spring weather to arrive quickly as you order while standing in the freezing rain (it’s a rite of passage, people. Suck it up). 

For newcomers to the area, the 71-year-old restaurant is the must-visit burger spot on a long list of great burger joints that also includes Frisko Freeze, Shake Shake Shake, Out and About, Lefty’s Burger Shack, Red Mill Burgers, Frugals, Gourmet Burger Shop, Burger Broiler and a couple of other burger joints that always made it onto my best cheeseburger lists over the years. 

Since its founding in 1949, the Pick-Quick formula has been the same: Roadside-style burgers made with fresh beef and fries cut fresh on site. It’s all served up in a spotless park-like setting. The picnic tables are somewhat shielded from the wind and rain thanks to the oversized trees on the property. But you’ll want to bring a parka this week. 

So get yourself down there and get a burger and fries. Did I mention the 24 flavors of shakes and malts?

As always, bring cash. This burger stand is old-fashioned in every sense of that phrase. It’s cash only, folks. 

Speaking of delicious, high-calorie eating, did you hear that Go Philly in Lakewood is finally opening? Read all about it here.

FIFE PICK-QUICK DRIVE-IN

4306 Pacific Hwy E., Fife.

253-922-5599; pick-quick.com

Note: There are also locations in Auburn and Seattle. Fife is the original location and the only one that closes for the winter hiatus.