Shake Shack (Boca Raton, Miami, Coral Gables)
***** Shake Shack, 1400 Glades Road, Boca Raton, Florida 33431, (561) 923-0847.
Before Jeff Eats gets started here…let me state without equivocation- I’m not a shill for “gourmet” fast-food burger chain Shake Shack. Unfortunately, I don’t “have” a piece of this deal.
With that out of the way, let me reprint the two articles that Jeff Eats has already run on this up and coming chain.
***August 1, 2010
Shake Shack… “order at/pickup at counter”…burgers, fries, hot dogs, custard, shakes.
There are 5 Shake Shacks in New York City…1-in Saratoga, New York…1-in Miami, Florida.
This is “fast food” at its best.
Check www.shakeshacknyc.com for menu/prices/locations/pictures.
The next time you are down in South Beach, this joint is an absolute-must-try…Just so you know, Shake Shack has a cult-like-following…so don’t be surprised by some heavy duty crowds and lines.
Shake Shack is open Sunday-Thursday 11:30am-midnight, Friday-Saturday 11:30am-1am.
***August 12, 2012
Back on August 1, 2010 Jeff Eats told you about Shake Shack which had just opened in South Beach..
In that “review”–I told you guys that Shake Shack a fast-food burger joint was “fast food at its best.”
Regular Jeff Eats readers know, that there is no doubt in my mind- that the fast-food burger “business” is totally oversaturated with players—that one day, in the very near future-this gigantic game of musical chairs is gonna end very badly for most of them. There is also no question in my mind, that when all is said and done, Shake Shack will be one of the few players left standing.
————–
This evening, Jeff Eats, Mrs. Jeff Eats, and another couple “attended” a “Friends & Family Practice” at the newest Shake Shack which is scheduled to open in Boca Raton at 11am this coming Monday–April 22, 2013. We were there roughly from 6:45 pm to 8pm and I would guess that something like 150 got to try Shake Shacks’ stuff… being a party of four, we made sure to order all types of “items”— double cheeseburger, french fries, cheese french fries, grilled hot dog, chocolate custard cone, coffee shake, chocolate toffee “concrete” (think Dairy Queen’s Blizzard and you’ll be on the right page), grilled chicken dog,
Let Jeff Eats make this as simple and as clear as possible…Shake Shacks’ food is delicious. That said, to give you guys a fair shake (pun intended)-the only item that needs improving are the french fries…Shake Shack uses a “frozen” product which is good but it’s definitely not on the same level as the “fresh” cut fries that competitors like Five Guys and BurgerFi turn-out.
As I mentioned 3 seconds ago, this “practice” session was held in the new Boca Raton store. Talk about a great location—Shake Shack’s free standing building (which has both indoor and outdoor covered patio seating) is located right across the road from FAU’s campus and is in walking distance of Boca Raton High School, a half-dozen hotels, Boca Town Center and loads of office buildings. At this stage of the conversation check www.shakeshack.com for menu/prices/locations and loads of photos that will give you some idea as to what this really cool joint looks like.
Normally on his sojourns, Jeff Eats doesn’t sit/stand around talking to a joint’s management…that said, the “Friends & Family Practice” presented an opportunity to chat with Zachary Koff (VP of Operations), Greg Waters (Manager, Marketing & Communications), Josh (Boca’s Assistant General Manager), Dustin (Boca’s General Manager) and Peggy (Director of Training)…suffice it to say, those conversations made it quite obvious why Shake Shack is such a well-run business. No crapping around here, these folks know the fast food business inside and out and seem to have one single goal–that being to present the guest with an outstanding dining experience. Secure in the fact that I’m not a Shake Shack shill—Jeff Eats is telling you that my fast food operations background with Hardees, Discovery Zone and Johnny Rocket’s—kinda gives me a real good point of reference on how things are suppose to work…and Shake Shack comes as close to operational perfection as I’ve seen on the fast food level.
Let me end this thing by saying…
If you like burgers/hot dogs/fries/shakes and haven’t been to a Shake Shack (which currently has… 9 New York, 2 Connecticut, 3 Florida, 2 Washington DC, 1 Massachusetts, 1 Pennsylvania locations) you now have 3 South Florida locations to try and— find out if Jeff Eats knows what he’s talking about or is just a blabbering idiot.
***One final note, to Shake Shacks’ management do Jeff Eats a huge-gigantic favor and add a chicken burger to the menu…so he can get Mrs. Jeff Eats off his ass. Thanks,
Jeff,
Eat in Shake Shack down in South Beach and its as good as you say.
I’m very familar with Boca location. Great spot.
They could have better fries. They use a frozen crinkle cut. They should have fresh cut fries.
Jeff,
Burgers and ff are good.
Personally I think their custard and shakes are a stronger part of their menu.
My wife and I split our time between Manhattan and Boca Raton.
When SS first opened in Manhattan the lines were out the door and the food was tremendous. Now there are a number of locations and my taste buds think that the food quality has gone downhill. The lines are no more but that could be because there are more locations.
We use to love this place but now we just like it.
Their shakes and custard are excellent. Their burgers and fries are fair at best. Five Guys has better burger and ff.
Jeff,
Boca location is going to be a huge winner.
This joint has for some reason developed a foodie cult.
I enjoy Shake Shack.
Know in very well from NYC.
The shakes and custard are actually better than the burgers and fries.
You are right the fries could be improved.
Jeff,
I am very familiar with SS and In N Out. As you probably know both have cult like followings.
On In N out, to this very day I cant figure out why people go nuts for this chain. the food really isn’t very good. On SS their burgers, hot dogs, shakes and custard offerings are really good. their French fries are lousy.
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First time today. Boca store is great looking.
Good burger and hot dog.
French fries, I’ve had better.
Best fast food burger in the area.
The shakes are amazing.
Was there yesterday for lunch. Boca store jammed.
Ive eaten in s beach store.
burgers and shakes are really good. as others mention the ff are fair if that.
anyone have an idea why this chain doesn’t get a better fry. it would seem to me that doing that would be a no brainer.
Ate in new boca location last night.
Good food.
Line out the door at 8:30 pm.
What a gold mine.
Waited 15 min to order and 10 more minutes for the burger – it came out warm, not hot – was mediocre. Bun was good, shake was good, Fries were diner style frozen. One and done for me – not impressed.
Jeff
New Boca store
25 minute wait to get in
Burger and shake good
Ff need heavy duty wok
Just left new Boca store. Crowded inside and outside with about 20 people on line to order.
Cheeseburger good not great.
Terrible crinckle fries.
Good chocolate shake.
Took the kids to SS today
Boca was packed. All three kids loved their shakes.
They thought their burgers and fries were ok but agreed that the nearby 5 Guys were better.
Line out the Boca doors this afternoon.
They got a gold mine but the food sucks.
Fries and burgers are garbage.
Go figure.
You must be kidding!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tried new Boca store yesterday.
Burger is a small nothing.
The fries are a frozen potato like you buy in Publix.
The shake is a small nothing.
The cost is like $14.
Somebody must be serving the Kool Aid here.
Waited in line.
Food is average at best.
Won’t be back.
Jeff
The food is terrible.
Overpriced.
Jeff Eats:
can’t really figure out what all the big excitement is about.
The fries are HORRENDOUS.
The burgers just passable.
The shakes are good.
Won’t be running back so fast.
Ate there last Friday night with my sister. Got to Boca store at 6:45 pm and there were 25 people on line waiting to order. It costs us $21 for two regular sodas,, 1 ff and 2 shack shack burgers. The ff are terrible as were the burgers.
This place stinks.
Makes no sense.
Long lines waiting to order crappy burgers and frozen French fries.
not sure what all the lines in boca are about. second rate overpriced food.
Sun Sentinel gave it 3 1/2 stars today.
No way is boca store that.
Jeff, this guy in the sun sentinel is absolutely amazing. notice his wording on the ff. he never says that they aren’t fresh cut. he just dances around the issue. i disagree with you and him that the food is good, but you at least said that the ff weren’t top notch and complained that there was no chicken sandwich. the other guy just bends over for them. guess the sun sentinel needs the adv dollars so they have to very careful who they write negative stuff on.
Tons of hype on this one.
Boca is jammed. Food is just fair.
Exactly. Food not too good. All hype.
Best things are their shakes.
The rest of the food is just ok.
Aidan is the best food critic in South Florida
Barry,
Just had a chance to read your comments.
Not sure on his being the best, but he is definitely the cutest.
Thanks for reading…
Who are Adian and Barry?
No idea why people love this place. The food is lousy.
First time at a Shake Shack. Loved the cheeseburger and ff in Boca.
I live in Miami.
Last night I I had Shake Shack at Kennedy Airport in NY and the burger, ff and chocolate shake were delicious.
Very disappointing, at least the Boca location is. Overpriced and overcrowded for undersized portions and underwhelming food. I think they call it Shake Shack because they try to shake you down for as much money as possible while they spend as little as possible on their food and atmosphere
jeff
ny stores now have fresh cut ff. i was told by one of the mgrs that ff are now being rolled out to the rest of the chain. good call by you on the ff needing improvement way back when.
tried their new fresh ff today and they were delicious.
Ate in Boca today. Burger good. Ff fair. Chocolate shake good.
Had lunch there today – burger slightly above average but its presentation in a small paper bag detracted. Fries were good, being crisp and crunchy on the outside and not hard on the inside. Soda seemed a weak version of diet-coke, so disappointed as did the underwhelming chocolate custard frozen dessert
From: Shelly
Subject: An Observation
Message Body:
Every once in a while, I go into the Boca 5 Guys for a grilled hot dog. The place is usually packed at lunchtime.
Earlier this week I went in at around 1:15 PM Its usually crowded at that time.. There were maybe 5 customers including myself. In the next 20 minutes maybe 2 left and 2 others came in. It was like a ghost store. No vibe, no energy. I don’t know if Shake Shack is killing them, but something sure is. I don’t see how long they can maintain that store based on what i saw.
—
This mail is sent via contact form on Jeff Eats http://jeffeats.com
Nothing special.
Burgers and ff and shakes aren’t very good.
Just a big hype.
Jeff,
They keep opening new stores and their stock is $75 a share, but I still can’t figure out why people go there. The food is just passable.
Love their burgers, fries and shakes.
Of all the fast food burger joints around, this is my favorite. Their burgers are the best.