I know this post will probably start a few fist fights. So here goes...
I've been hearing about Shake Shack for some time now. It's hard not to when you have friends living in New York City. Shake Shack announcements are twittered constantly as though it's boast-worthy to beat long lines and eat there for several consecutive days. Every single time a foodie friend bites into a burger, they announce their happiness to many others. You're lead to believe that Shake Shack's Americana menu delivers the best burgers in the world. And they're not. They're definitely, really yummy but in my humble opinion, not worth waiting more than thirty minutes for. And from what I can tell, most patrons wait over an hour to place their order, nevermind to sit down and eat.
The way I described eating the famous Shack Burger to my friends was that, "It's really tasty. The meat's one step better than our fast food fave, In-N-Out, but they're not so good that I'd eat here more than once a month." In all fairness, it would've been hard for any food item to live up to such hype. It is not the burger equivalent of Blue Ribbon's bone marrow. The burger is juicy. Cooked near perfectly. The condiments are fresh. And bonus points for the toasted bun. Seeing that it's a burger I won't even comment on grease and messiness, however, size-wise, it's small. Most friends mentioned having to order three between a couple and eating one and half burgers each to really satisfy the appetite. Taste-wise it's nothing extraordinary.
For an amateur gourmand, the Shake Shack bun-meat patty-combos are an easy go-to for something dependable and affordable. I'm happy I had the experience, however, next time I'm in town, I'm going to go for one of the Chicago Dogs instead, mmm mmm!
