Shacking Up In the NYC

Shake Shack

691 8th Avenue

New York, NY 10036

When I told my friend Mark that I was headed to New York, he told me I must try Shake Shack, or he would punch me in the face. Okay, maybe he was not that harsh, but he really wanted me to try it. So right before a Rangers hockey game we headed over to give Shake Shack a try.

Shake Shack has twelve locations, seven in the New York area, one in Connecticut, one in DC, one in Miami, and even two in the Middle East. Big expansion for a restaurant that has only been around since 2004. Let's see if they are expanding because of the food.

Here is a quick overview of the food we got. The menu of Shake Shack is pretty standard fast food fare. They feature burgers, hot dogs, and frozen custard. You order at the counter and then you wait to have your number called. We got here at about 5:30, and the good sized restaurant was filled up. We claimed our seats and then our food arrived.

We'll start with the New York Dog. The hot dog was high quality, and I really liked that it was split and grilled. It had a very good snap to it. The potato bun was good, but I should have gotten a dog with some condiments on it. This hot dog could stand alone, but it would have been made better with some toppings on it.

The Double Cheeseburger was next on our agenda. Good flavor on this one and everything about this burger indicated that it was made with fresh ingredients. The bun on this juicy burger really held up. Good burger.

The Fries here are made with Yukon Gold potatoes. They kind of reminded me of the old Carl's Jr. fries. These came out nice and hot and very crisp. Every single one was crispy, a major accomplishment.

For dessert I went with their Chocolate Frozen Custard. I am new to frozen custard, which is soft serve mixed with ice cream. The result is a dense frozen product. The custard had a grittiness to it. Not so gritty that it was bad, but the texture was a little off for me. Next time I would go for one of their Concretes, which is their frozen custard mixed with toppings and mix-ins.

Shake Shack was all it was cracked up to be.  I should have studied the menu more before I got here, but I was hungry and in a hurry to get to the hockey game. The items that I did have were pretty basic, but very good. I would equate this place to Five Guys, and I love Five Guys Burger and Fries.

Out of five bus stops, (because bus stops can sometimes be referred to as shacks), five being best to zero being worst, Shake Shack gets 3 strong bus stops.

For more information on Shake Shack, click here: http://www.shakeshack.com/