Shake Shack

Met a weirdly arrogant cashier.
No respect to customer.
So unprofessional.
Several people wrote similar reviews about this place.
The workers at the nearby Tasty Burger are also cold, but at least not arrogant.

My favorite of the fast-​casual burger options in Harvard Square. All the burger varieties are good (I go with the Shroom Burger or the Shack Burger) as is the Chick’n Shack fried chicken sandwich.
I respect Shake Shack. Danny Meyer’s goal from the start has been to perfect the simple burger (unlike say Boston Burger Company, which attempts to dress up an at-​best mediocre burger with fancy toppings). The bun is a Martin’s Potato Roll, topped with lettuce, tomato and shack sauce (mayo, ketchup, mustard, diced pickles, spices).
Now the burger, which is the most important part. Shake Shack perfected the smash-​burger concept, even using a paint scrapper to maximize the post-​smash scrape off the griddle. The smashing enhances the surface area to sear, which gives the best flavor/​texture combo for cheap burger patties.

Stopped by for a shake after touring Harvard. Crowds were a little bit bigger due to family weekend and graduation. Waited about 15 minutes to order and another 30 minutes to get our shakes. Shake were just average shakes and slightly overpriced. Recommend trying this place when not super crowded.

The employee working the register started taking my order and then just walked away in the middle of my order. Was a little strange and rude but not the most unusual thing for a fast food place. The real reason for this review was how long it took for me to get my order of one shack burger, one chick’n shack and one order of fries.
Waited just over 30 minutes for a to go order of two sandwiches and one fry. I asked about my order and was walked away from without any kind of answer. When I finally got my order, the sandwiches looked like they had been sat on and were falling apart.
Used to go to this Shake Shack a lot because I love Harvard Square and it was quick and easy. Now I’ll go across the street to Tasty Burger or elsewhere. I would give one star but they seemed to be somewhat understaffed but 30 minutes for two falling apart sandwiches is ridiculous.
This was during a Friday lunch rush too, on May 27, 2016, just before writing this review.

way overrated burger place. The burgers are tasteless and bland, there was nothing exciting about Shake Shack that stood out to me, I know it’s supposed to be the east coast version of In-​And-​Out (sort of), they didn’t do a very good job of fitting that

Came back once their grills were up and running.
I would say 4 stars. Delicious food. I got the smoke shack which was perfectly cooked and juicy. I also love that their fries have actual potato in them. (The tasty burger nearby has such thin, tasteless fries) –1 star for the long wait, but definitely worth it.
+1 star back for the great customer service provided by management, and the lady at the register this time was quite pleasant.

Smoooke stack burger and crinkle cut fries yummyyy. The food is good! The burger is greasy-​af but so tasty especially after a workout. The bun just glistens. The smoke stack burger comes with hot peppers and bacon that make it so good. The fries were well cooked with a crispy exterior and amazing after I doused them in salt.
My beef with this place is that it feels DIRTY. The greasiness from the food passed onto everything – the tables, chairs, tap handles, handrails, etc. – had this layer of grime that wasn’t cleaned off. The bathrooms were filthy and without toilet paper in all the stalls.

To be clear, I’m a huge fan of Shake Shack in general. The single Shackburgers are the perfect size for me, and the caramelization on the patties is so satisfying. The potato rolls are always fresh and fluffy, almost like a bao. And even though they remind me of the dining hall, I can’t resist the krinkle fries every now and then.
However, my most recent trip to this location left me disappointed. They seemed pretty understaffed for a Saturday night, and it showed in the quality of the food.
There was so much Shack sauce on my burger that I could squeeze out over 2 tablespoons while still leaving a decent amount on the burger.
Also, I tried a caramel pretzel concrete (flavor of the week), but it just tasted like vanilla custard. There were a few crunchy bits, but I couldn’t tell if they were ice crystals or pretzels.
Again, huge fan of Shake Shack, but the management of this location seems to have slipped. This trip had me thinking that maybe I will defect to Tasty Burger across the street.

I’ve seen many people who prefer Shake Shack over Tasty Burger but if there is a line at Shake Shack, don’t expect to get your burger for at least 30 minutes. If that seems unappealing to you, go to Tasty Burger where the line is almost always short. Other than that, it’s a Shake Shake. Pretty good burgers, slightly expensive for the quality.

I was excited to try Shake Shack but I didn’t love it that much. The place is always packed and there is plenty of seats which is awesome but the burger and shake was just okay. I ordered the Fair Shake (coffee) and Shack burger. I am not a huge shake fan but to me the coffee shake was just plain weird. My friends ordered the vanilla shake and they said it was so much better compared to the coffee one. I’m not sure what it is that makes it taste odd but it’s just odd. Maybe it was just me, I don’t know…
The shack burger was pretty good but the smokeburger which has applewood smoked bacon tasted better (ordered it from the newbury street location) The burger itself is pretty good but it is small. It doesn’t leave me satisfied like Five Guys does and for that, I’d prefer Five Guys over Shake Shack. Shake shack would be perfect if you want a lighter and smaller burger.

I’ve been trying to go to a Shake Shack on every US trip for quite a few years now, but could never quite stomach the huge queues that amass in these halls.
Finally I found a nice quiet joint in Cambridge and got the chance to see what all the fuss was about.
That said, my impression was tainted by the hype.
The crinkle cut fries are God’s gift to earth and if I could eat nothing else for the rest of my life, I’d be happy. Dead at 35 from heart disease, but happy.
I didn’t go for the burger, which might have been a mistake. I’ve had a few too many burgers on this trip and wanted something different, so I went for the chicken dog instead. It was bland and dry, and I’ve had better for a dollar upstate.
I also didn’t have a shake (sorry), but I’m not into milkshakes so I don’t think that would have added to the meal.
The main downside is the price– it was about 11 dollars for the dog, fries and small drink, and despite the amazing fries, it just wasn’t worth it at all.
This place is lovely and clean though, with friendly staff and a nice seating area upstairs to look out over the square.

Very busy and crowded because I decided it would be a good idea to come here on a weekend night when school was starting for the fall semester. Yay! It was fun watching people play foozball completely incorrectly in a way that ruins the table and makes it dangerous for everyone in the vicinity.
Shake Shack has beer, burgers and fries. Can’t go wrong. The burger tasted like gourmet Wendy’s to me, which is not an insult because Wendy’s is one of the only fast food burgers I can eat. The fries were tasty. I was kind of hungry after a burger and fries, which is rare for me because I have a tiny tummy. You might want to order two. Not sure if they do double patties here.
The atmosphere is still better than Tasty Burger (despite the foozball debacle) and also yummier.

So I heard this place due to people talked so much about it. Bottom line, In-​N-​Out without veggies, and fries are not worth write Twitter about.
Maybe people talk about this place because they are over priced? Double beacon cheese burger for almost 10 bucks??? Fries and drinks are no small changes either.
Felt like I needed to work extra 10 years for money over spend at this sh17… I mean shack.

I’ve been here twice since they opened. I was in Harvard square with friends and I had a coupon from an event I went to so came here to use it.
The cashier had no idea what that coupon was and no idea how to ring it up. Needless to stay I was in line for awhile and felt extremely uncomfortable and bad that others had to wait to order.
It’s Harvard Sq so it was very busy as well.
The order took awhile before it was ready. It was very hard trying to find a seat there. We got lucky while we waited and someone left. I ordered the shack burger and also a concert with lobster tail pastry. I’ve had this before and new it was delicious. I made it a double! So I could share. Yum! The burger wasn’t so great. It was a little too greasy. The lettuce and tomato was fresh though.
We also ordered cheese fries and that was also very good too. They didn’t pour the cheese into the fries while was good, otherwise it’d be very soggy.
Overall not a bad experience but wasn’t very positive either. I’d come back again if I was in the area and in mood for the lobster concrete.

I’ve never eaten such a unique dessert before. You’ve got to try these pastry custard ice cream. They’re practically ice cream with some custard and croissant bits. It’s not something you can make at home so it’s really worth it. It is a bit pricier but worth it.
Try the lobster tail one, you can’t go wrong with that rich vanilla strawberry velvet cake flavor.
Comfortable seats too, good place to hang out for a bit.

Had to try the «East Coast» version of In-​N-​Out having just moved to Boston from California. First off, these 2 shouldn’t be compared. Both are great in their own right and are definitely NOT the same.
With that being said, I ordered the portobello mushroom burger (recent vegetarian and was SO glad to see an option I could eat). The «burger» was actually really good — it had substance to it and didn’t leave me starving like most vegetarian burgers do. My favorite thing about Shake Shack though (besides their shakes) are their crinkle fries.
It might not be In-​N-​Out, but Shake Shack will do for the next 2 years while I’m living in Boston.

This is my first time to a Shake Shack because they don’t have any on the west coast. I decided to check it out because of all the Wall Street hype about this growth stock.
I can totally see why Wall Street loves this place, huge profits! I can’t see why this place gets so much repeat business. The burger had good flavor, but don’t go here if you’re really hungry, or you don’t appreciate being ripped off. The value for what you get just isn’t there. Got the smoke shack burger which is the size of a McDonald’s cheeseburger (small size for a kid), a diet coke and a chocolate shake. $ 15!?! Crazy!

Oh the Shake Shack vs. In-​n-​Out debate. Or vs. Tasty Burger debate. Or vs. Portillo’s debate.
Come on folks, are we really using that much collective brain power to process what’s essentially equivalent-​tasting overpriced fast food burgers with cute branding? This Shake Shack is fine, a tad overpriced given the neighborhood unless you take advantage of the student discount (which is on hold when they offer other specials). Free wifi and the upstairs is a good place to study. The food is more or less so-​so depending on the line cook of the minute, and personally, I’d skip eating 3 of these burgers for a really good gourmet burger for my money instead. Still, it’s a decent spot to grub if you’re in the neighborhood.
My own 2 cents on the debates between all the fast food burger joints above:
Burgers– Shake Shack (more options)
One regular fast food burger with all the trimmings– Portillo’s
Fast food chain burger in Harvard Square– Tasty Burger
Cost– In-​n-​Out
Burger packaging design– Tasty Burger
Fries– In-​n-​Out (fresh potato), Portillo’s (crinkle cut)
Shake– Portillo’s (chocolate cake shake for the win!)
Service– Portillo’s
Branding — Shake Shack
p. s. My IQ has dropped a few more points due to all the energy I’ve expended thinking about fast food burgers. I’m ok with that though.

Shake shack easily has one of the best fast food burgers around. The patties are greasy goodness, and very tender. The shack sauce is a good rendition on the big mac sauce. The regular shack burger had nice fresh lettuce and tomato and I did the double patties because 2 is always better than one. The patties are small so I recommend getting 2 for a meal, 1 for a snack. The fries are good enough to have, but won’t keep you coming back. They have cups and a water tap available on the first and second floor, and they serve beer, the best of both worlds.
Word to the wise, seating can be tough to find during normal eating hours.

It seems like you can not shake a stick lately and not hit a new burger joint — Thankfully our «stick» took us here. Besides the seating which can be a nightmare, there is not much I do not like about this place. The burgers are consistently well done to our specific needs and the fries are the way we like them (crisp outside, not to crisp inside). The shakes also are well done but that should be a given. One time my son tried the salted caramel hot chocolate. It was awesome — creamy, salty and just enough chocolate. I was very surprised.
When you can get a seat upstairs, it is quiet nice — A fire place, a tv, or just overlooking the park.