CHIReview
Shake Shack
Included In
It was only a matter time before we chimed in on all the ruckus and hullabaloo surrounding Shake Shack. Danny Meyer has scaled his restaurant concept more aggressively than Mark Cuban looks to grow any Shark Tank contestant's product, and when you're opening new locations on the reg, there's always the question of sustaining quality. Taking into account Shake Shack's recent IPO, we've been carefully weighing whether to BUY! BUY! BUY! or SELL! SELL! SELL!
Well the verdict is in, and we are doubling down on buying a whole lot of Shake Shack's cheeseburgers. The thin 100% Angus burger with crispy edges is as good as they come, and the buttered bun that acts as a loading dock is great too. The only question is: do you order a single, which can be a little underwhelming, or a double, which might push you over the edge? These are good problems to have though, so we aren't complaining.
Aside from the burgers, we aren't sold on the rest of the food. Crinkle cut fries are good even though we don't think great, and the hot dogs don't do it for us. Shake Shack has a ways to go to catch up with some of the great Chicago hot dog staples in town.
Shake Shack deserves credit for making the Chicago location uniquely its own. Rather than feeling like a "New York" chain, Shake Shack Chicago has made the effort to partner up with places like Publican Quality Meats, Bang Bang Pie Shop, and Glazed & Infused to bring some local cred.
The Ohio and Rush location will forever be a bit of a tourist destination, but Shake Shack's burgers live up to the hype. It should always be in the burger discussion when you want a casual and delicious bite.