Defending the Shack
I have to reblog this to stand up for the Shack. To compare Shake Shack to the cupcakes at Magnolia is heresy. Magnolia cupcakes are not good. The Shack has the best burger in the city. The line may be bad at times, but to insult the value and taste of this delicious burger on that basis is unjustified and outrageous!
I’ll put it this way, whenever I come back to NY, I look forward to seeing the Shackburger more than most of my friends.
Right before I left New York last time, I waited in line for one last Shack Burger for an hour and a half while my blood sugar level sank so low I was ready to bite someone’s head off. During that time I certainly had occasion to think about whether the payoff was worth the wait, and, let me tell you, I’m with Aziz here: Shake Shack really is that good.
One thing that makes a Shack Burger great is the bun. Buns are to hamburgers as ice is to cocktails: most people treat them as incidental afterthoughts, not realizing that they often make the difference between an outstanding burger and a common one. Shake Shack’s potato buns are perfect: soft, not too thick, lightly toasted, contributing flavor without overwhelming the taste of the beef by giving you a dry mouthful of bread. This sounds like a simple thing, but it’s amazing how often restaurants get it wrong.
The second thing that makes Shake Shack’s burgers great is their custom beef blend, which is fatty enough to allow even their thin patties to come out exceptionally juicy. Combine that with a perfect amount of salt and pepper seasoning, and you end up with one of the most flavorful burgers I’ve ever tasted.
There are many hardships in New York life that make me question whether it’s all worth it, but the Shake Shack line isn’t one of them.
