Food Network chef Bobby Flay opened Bobby’s Burger Palace yesterday, located on the street-level of The Varsity. The eatery features an array of signature burgers.

The Route 1 corridor officially added star power to its dining scene yesterday as celebrity chef and best-selling author Bobby Flay opened the doors of his eatery on the street-level floor of the Varsity apartment complex.

With seven venues across the East Coast — one of which is near three university campuses — Flay said his business is no stranger to the student demographic. This familiarity, along with a menu boasting various burger combinations, has set the stage for success in the area, according to Flay.

“In Philadelphia we had a great relationship with the students,” Flay said. “The generation of college students today is very demanding in the best way when it comes to food.”

Flay said he hopes the restaurant’s name-brand popularity will draw a crowd in a city that has seen many businesses open and shutter within the last several years.

“Hopefully the name recognition gets people to try us,” Flay said. “The rest is up to us, in terms of supplying people with a very terrific menu.”

The new restaurant will join the likes of Five Guys, which sits downtown, in selling burgers, most of which cost about $7.75.

Flay said his extensive menu of signature burgers seeks to capture the tastes of many American cultures and differs from Five Guys’ “limited menu” of burgers. Some city-inspired burgers include the Miami Burger — consisting of ham, Swiss cheese, pickles, mustard and mayonnaise — and the L.A. burger, topped with avocado relish, watercress, cheddar cheese and tomatoes.

“Every burger tells its own little story,” Flay said, adding he doesn’t see the nearby Five Guys as competition, but rather that “there’s room for everybody.”

Five Guys officials could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Bobby’s Burger Palace will offer 10 signature burgers, with the option to “crunchify” — topping the burger with potato chips — at no additional cost. Flay said the added crunch brings a unique aspect to his burgers, setting them apart from other burger joint options.

“The two most important things to me are flavor and texture,” Flay said.

In addition to selling burgers, salads, French fries and onion rings, the eatery is seeking a liquor license from the Prince George’s County Board of License Commissioners that Flay said he expects to receive in about a week.

The drink menu will consist of beer, wine and margaritas. Additionally, the burger joint plans to serve 10 different flavors of milkshakes, as well as “spiked milkshakes,” such as the Vanilla Caramel Bourbon, Pineapple Coconut Rum and Mocha Kahlua Vodka shake.

“I think this will be very popular with the University of Maryland student body,” Flay said. “As long as they have ID.”

City officials could not be reached for comment this week.

Several students said they were starstruck at the prospect of the Food Network TV personality bringing his eatery to the city.

“I know for me and my friends, we’re all obsessed with the Food Network,” said freshman communication major Amanda Hanowitz. “It brings us a little bit of Food Network.”

Some students said Flay’s foray into the city eatery scene offers quality dining and a convenient location. Junior economics major Brad Weinstein, a New Jersey resident, said he frequented Flay’s Eatontown, N.J., location, despite the long trip.

“It takes like 40 minutes to get there, but we always made the trip,” Weinstein said. “Now there’s one 10 minutes away from my house.”

bach@umdbk.com