Tommy W.
Yelp
So, three years after my initial review of Shake Shack I decided on a whim to stop by their Old Town location to give them another try. Unfortunately, they only seem to have gotten worse.
I ordered a Bacon Guacamole burger with a fries and a bottle of water. The total came to just over $16. For that kind of money you would expect a pretty decent meal. Unfortunately, that is not the case at Shake Shack.
Every unoccupied table was filthy. The one I sat had some kind of "goo" (ketchup or shake?) and left over crap on one end. I sat on the less dirty end. The floor was absolutely filthy with fries, vegetable waste and other refuse. Clearly cleanliness isn't a major priority here. Although an employee came by about 10 minutes after I sat down and wiped the table, they made no effort to sweep or mop the floor.
I'm not sure how / why it takes nearly 20 minutes to prepare a burger and fries. Between that and the dirty table / floor I almost walked out before my meal even arrived. When it did, the fries were cold, slightly greasy and had that junior high school cafeteria "freezer burn" taste. Not surprising, I guess, since all the fries are pre-made and sit under a heat light until served. The burger itself tasted okay but was lukewarm. It had clearly sat for some time after being made.
Except for the bottled water ($2.85) the portion sizes were super small. The burgers are the size of those you would get at McDonald's or Wendy's. The crinkly fries ($3.45) are the size of a small order. For $16 I expected a LOT more on the portion size. You can easily get something more filling at Whataburger or In-And-Out for $6-7 less.
All in all, it was a nasty dining experience and I won't return.