Review – Shake Shack

This is another one of those institutions praised by all and featured on TV. As the TV hinted, the lines are ridiculous. There are a few locations in NYC, but we decided to try the Times Square location. In hindsight, maybe picking the most crowded tourist location in the city wasn’t a smart choice, but oh well, we survived.

This joint is known for its burgers and shakes. We were absolutely famished so we definitely decided on their burgers and skipped the shakes, mostly because of cost but also because I make milkshakes at home frequently.

I ordered the Shackburger (490 calories which I just looked up) which is a cheeseburger topped with lettuce, onions, tomatoes and pickles. It actually just comes with two of those toppings so you have to ask for the other extras. My hubby ordered the same thing as a double-decker (two patties & cheese). We both ordered fries (same calorie count as my burger) and he got an Arnold Palmer as well. I stuck with my usual water. Doesn’t seem like a lot of food but the bill still came out to $20 something bucks.

The line to order was long, waiting for a table and/or seat to become available was longer and then waiting for our food took the longest. As soon as our beeper indicated our order was ready, my husband dashed for the pickup while I secured our seats.

The burgers were a good size and looked delicious. Turned out they were pretty good too. The meat was juicy and tender, cooked medium which was just right. The toppings were the usual suspects and then the whole thing had a dollop of special sauce thrown on it (most likely mayo and ketchup). At that moment, everything hit the spot. I think, a cardboard cutout of a burger would have hit the spot. Overall though, the burger lacked seasoning. It wasn’t salty enough which was too bad because the meat was cooked perfectly. The fries were big, salty and filling since my burger did not curb my hunger.

My husband agreed that the burger was good but also said the bit of extra salt would have made a difference. We are also biased in our burger judging since we compared it to the In-N-Out burger from California. So far, haven’t found one that beat that but the Shake Shack burger was pretty close. I’d definitely recommend it, however make sure you don’t go there when you are starving. The line will drive you nuts.