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Shake Shack


Fat Guy

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i wanted to try it, but i wouldn't even wait that long to get into a 3 star restaurant.

i have to wait a month sometimes to have dinner at 3 star restaurant. 2 months occasionally for a 4-star.

i guess you don't know how to get a reservation?

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i went around 6:30 today.

christ

who the hell waits on that line

i wanted to try it, but i wouldn't even wait that long to get into a 3 star restaurant.

How long a wait time was it?

at least 45 min-1 hour.

i guess you don't know when to go. :laugh:

you really have to pick a slow time with this place. otherwise you can spend the better part of the day waiting.

Edited by tommy (log)
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who waits? the same people who consistently vote for Union Square Cafe as their favorite restaurant, the ones who are overtaken my Danny Meyers smile-you know the ones that drink the Kool-aid

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I was in the area last week around 12:30pm and saw a ridiculous, Sunday-morning Magnolia-type line. Looked like all local office workers and mostly women, who I think will get their fix and then things will die down, because when I've gone last year when it started getting cold out, it was not a bad wait... I guess I just answered my own question, didn't I...

pork I hear what you're saying but I enjoy Tabla and 11 madison very much and i think it's great what he does during restaurant week. As for the shack, i guess it's a good thing that they're not changing their formula despite the popularity?

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who waits? the same people who consistently vote for Union Square Cafe as their favorite restaurant, the ones who are overtaken my Danny Meyers smile-you know the ones that drink the Kool-aid

i get the impression that a large percentage of the people who eat at Shake Shack couldn't name 3 Danny Meyer restaurants, much less actually go to them. or vote for them.

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Timing is of the essence when one pays a visit to Shake Shack. Go at 12:30 on a work day, and you're in for a wait. It's a very popular spot, and they're just not equipped to deal with that kind of volume. Go after 2:30 or on a weekend, and it's a very different story.

This is not all that unusual, frankly. A lot of places -- especially in the "cheap eats" category -- have some significant time-of-day dependencies. Some places you want to go when they're crowded (e.g., Grimaldi's at the beginning of lunch when the oven is hottest) and some when they're not (e.g., Shake Shack or White Manna at lunch time).

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That piece is shameful. What was Eater thinking?

I actually would like to address the issue of whether the shake shack gives you the runs, and I will attempt to do it as delicately as possible.

I do sometimes find myself urgently looking for a restroom about 40 minutes after eating at the shack. Luckily there's an NYSC nearby so it's not a huge issue. And here's the important part: given that it's a kind of a "one and done" experience I am confident that it has nothing to do with food poisoning or bacteria.

I have two theories on this. First, the burgers can sometimes be a little greasy. I have commonly heard that if you're not used to greasy food, it can encourage motility.

Also, I know most people arrive at the shack hungry. No point in waiting in that line if you're not ready to eat. So if you drop a big ole' burger and a big honkin' shake on that empty stomach, you're flirting with upset. Particularly if you're just a little lactose intolerant, as most adult humans are. With nothing else in your stomach to temper it, all that dairy can just run amock.

I personally wouldn't go to shake shack on a date or right before a movie, but the line would make either of those impractical, anyway.

On an unrelated topic, is it just me or does the line go a lot more slowly now that they take credit cards? I was there Sunday and the line to pay was excruciatingly slow. There was almost no wait for the food. Clear where the bottleneck was.

A

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Apparently people have thought long and hard on how to deal with the line... You can post your cell phone snapped picture to The Shakewatchers cam. and let everyone know how long the line is.

Cute -- but it needs a lot more people for this to work.

John Deragon

foodblog 1 / 2

--

I feel sorry for people that don't drink. When they wake up in the morning, that's as good as they're going to feel all day -- Dean Martin

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Hey at least they didn't setup the line real time webcam yet.

OK they're not THAT good! Maybe expectations are low because it's coming from a shack in a park. They're great but this is really getting out of hand.

John Deragon

foodblog 1 / 2

--

I feel sorry for people that don't drink. When they wake up in the morning, that's as good as they're going to feel all day -- Dean Martin

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i wanted to try it, but i wouldn't even wait that long to get into a 3 star restaurant.

i have to wait a month sometimes to have dinner at 3 star restaurant. 2 months occasionally for a 4-star.

i guess you don't know how to get a reservation?

i've been trying to make heads or tails of this comment. no luck, after several hours.

most 3 star restaurants (NYT rating, as opposed to randomly made-up rating) that i have experience with accept reservations either 1 month to the date, or 4 weeks to the day, or something along those lines (the policy varies by restaurant, so it's always smart to call in advance to find out the details). some 3/4 star restaurants, as you might imagine, are very popular and hard to get into. so, i oftentimes call 1 month in advance. sometimes 2, depending on the restaurant. for example, i believe i called 2 months in advance for the French Laundry (although i could be mistaken on that...sometimes they all run into each other in my mind).

so, yeah, i oftentimes wait 1 or 2 months for a meal at any given restaurant.

i hope that answered your question.

as far as the Shake Shack, as soon as i see the line is much beyond that first menu, i call an audible and figure about a plan B. knowing that the wait to order is directly proportional to the wait to get the food, which is all somewhat related to the availability of seats, i just can't stand the pressure. in fact, given the option, i'd gladly call 1 month in advance for a table and service at the Shake Shack. good stuff. usually worth a modest wait.

i do recall one time last summer when i had Shake Shack on the brain all day, i went down to have a quick burger (before meeting friends at Molly's for another burger), and there was no line...but they were closed for a private event. with my tail between my legs, i circled the park several times, and ended up at the McDonald's across the street for a quick double burger. not nearly as good.

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I then took the subway home, maybe a half hour to forty-minute ride.  There were no, um, problems to upset me during that journey.

Maybe I'm overly suggestible, but this quietude did not last through the night.

I was going to post event-by-even updates in real time, but decided to spare you all.

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I was there yesterday at 6:00. Double Shack Burger with fries. No problems whatsoever. Burger was delicious, with an amazing crust of Maillardized goodness. Crinkle fries were probably the best I've ever had there.

I frankly think the "digestive upset" issue is kind of silly. Certain foods affect different people in different ways. If one doesn't eat much food like this, I can see how the occasional trip to Shake Shack might cause some problems. One reason the burgers are so good is that they've got to be running around 20% fat. That's a lot of fat in one sandwich for many NYers. I don't tend to eat particularly fatty foods on a normal day, but I do eat something fatty maybe once every seven to ten days. Maybe that's often enough to keep my system acclimated. On the other hand, there's something about Sichuan peppercorns that gives me unique and characteristic problems every time I eat at Grand Sichuan. Doesn't stop me from eating there, though.

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I have to ask--Were there no good burgers in NYC before the Shake Shack? Seriously, I can't believe the frenzy surrounding this place.

I've heard people say that they're really good burgers, but are they really that amazing? Or is NYC just not much of a burger town.

Todd A. Price aka "TAPrice"

Homepage and writings; A Frolic of My Own (personal blog)

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I have to ask--Were there no good burgers in NYC before the Shake Shack? Seriously, I can't believe the frenzy surrounding this place.

I've heard people say that they're really good burgers, but are they really that amazing? Or is NYC just not much of a burger town.

They are very, very good Todd, but yes, there are plenty of good burgers in the city. Shake Shack's "sister" burger, the Blue Smoke Burger, is just as good albeit in a sit-down, jazz club setting.

I think the big draw of Shake Shack is being able to eat outside in the nice weather, in the middle of Madison Square Park. There really isn't anywhere else in the city that you can have a great burger lunch in an Al Fresco atmosphere like that.

Jason Perlow, Co-Founder eGullet Society for Culinary Arts & Letters

Foodies who Review South Florida (Facebook) | offthebroiler.com - Food Blog (archived) | View my food photos on Instagram

Twittter: @jperlow | Mastodon @jperlow@journa.host

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I have to ask--Were there no good burgers in NYC before the Shake Shack? Seriously, I can't believe the frenzy surrounding this place.

I've heard people say that they're really good burgers, but are they really that amazing? Or is NYC just not much of a burger town.

Building on what Jason says above, I think the frenzy is more about the advent of spring and the nice weather than just about the burgers. I used to work in Eleven Madison Avenue, and it was always a huge deal to be able to go outside again when the weather turned...and that was back when we had only the hot dog cart!

There are plenty of places to get a good burger in Manhattan, and many of those (Blue Smoke, Old Town) are in the same neighborhood. But spending your lunch hour in Madison Square Park when it's just become nice out (even if most of that hour is spent in line) beats those hands down.

"We had dry martinis; great wing-shaped glasses of perfumed fire, tangy as the early morning air." - Elaine Dundy, The Dud Avocado

Queenie Takes Manhattan

eG Foodblogs: 2006 - 2007

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