| rev:text
| - It's difficult to gauge a burger place on the west coast of the USA once you've had competitor burgers like In N Out or Gordon Ramsay "Burgr". Shake Shack's origins are in New York City, but its principles have carried over dutifully to the west coast, and through those principles, the food really shines on its own.
I came here a few days ago to pick up a to-go order, consisting of:
Shroom Burger
SmokeShack
Shack-Cago Dog
Fries
While there, I noticed they had beers on tap and dog treats. Since I don't have a dog and I was driving, I can't comment on either, but I will say that I saw other customers with dogs eating dog treats and other customers drinking the good stuff!
Anyway, when I got home, the food was still hot (I have one of those hot / cold bags that you see food delivery drivers often use). I dug in, and here were the results:
- Fries are crispy on the outside, soft in the middle. Similar to ordering fries "well done" from In N Out.
- Shack-Cago Dog is really unique, it's got a clusterfuck of vegetables including peppers and cucumber and tomato to pair with the hotdog itself.
- The SmokeShack is a unique pairing of chopped up spicy peppers and bacon. Quite a flavorful punch!
- The Shroom Burger is vegetarian, and the "burger patty" is packed full of flavor. What I liked about this in particular is that it doesn't try to pretend it's a meat patty, it really just tastes like a damn good garden burger! Props to Shake Shack for authenticity points!
Here's where things get a little interesting, I looked at my bill and saw it was $23+. I didn't even order any drinks. So I can understand how other Yelpers have pointed out how the prices here seem a bit steep for burgers, especially considering the burgers themselves are about the same size as an In N Out burger, but stylistically carries themes from SmashBurger in terms of flavor and food presentation.
I could sort of see this from a different POV: Maybe you're paying for the experience? The customer goes to the counter to order their food. The kitchen behind the counter is open face, small, and is on a roll with production non-stop during the busiest of hours (when is Shake Shack not busy?) There's booze and ice cream on tap, and treats for the dogs. The ambiance is modern with dim lighting and trendy background music.
Does this really justify the high price point that other Yelpers are pointing out?
What ultimately saves this place in my opinion is the uniqueness of said experience. I don't know too many burger places out there that are this "fast-casual" AND serve alcohol. You might be able to name a few, but not on the national brand that Shake Shack is quickly becoming.
And to think that once upon a time, Shake Shack was just a shack that sold burgers.
So, I'm left to give you this takeaway, readers: Shake Shack is certainly a unique experience, it's fun, the burgers are good albeit pricey, so I give them four stars there alone, not to mention the options for dogs allowing man's best friend to feel included in your dining experience. There's booze and ice cream available on tap. You should still go to at least say you've been to a Shake Shack, and you can make your own takeaway judgment, but for me, Shake Shack is a seldom experience, not a frequent habit (I've been three times in a year if that gives you a point of reference). But to say "I'm just going to In N Out" would be equally unfair, since neither joint is trying to be like another.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)