The Shack's Classy Holiday Decorations

I'm really liking the way our new Shack is brightening up Austin Street. Classy, understated, yet cheerful. The lights caught my eye from blocks away. Nice job!

Forest Hills Burger Wars Reviewed!

My fellow blogger in crime, Jon Parker, over at eateryROW: foresthills has taken it upon himself to test out three of our Austin Street burger joints by downing a cheeseburger at each one:

PREMIUM BURGER WARS!!! BAREBURGER vs. SHAKE SHACK vs. TWIST & SMASH'D

The result is quite amusing. My biggest complaint with Twist has always been the size of their burgers. Way too pricey to still leave hungry! I wrote that on Day One, and I don't think they ever changed.... oh well.

I love the Shack and Bareburger equally - in my view they are just too different to compare....

Shake Shack Dinner Rush

Looks like the one-block choice on my poll was correct, at least as of around 6:20 p.m. on this heat-wave opening day... Thanks to John for sending in the photo!

Shake Shack Preview

I attended the "Friends & Family Day" at our new Shake Shack today. I already want to go again and have another burger. The Shack opens to the general public tomorrow at 11 a.m.

Here are some photos...

Shack Senses Tingling

Love this post from the Shake Shack Facebook Page today!

Shack senses tingling? We're making like Spider-Man and heading to Forest Hills for our newest Shack opening this Thursday: http://bit.ly/shack-forest-hills Fantastic illustration by Joe Eisma.

Shake Shack Poll

Forest Hills Shake Shack Opening Thursday, May 26th

From their website:

Head for the hills! We’re spinning three frozen custard concretes just for Forest Hills: Queens Bee (vanilla custard, marshmallow sauce, Liddabit Sweets honeycomb candy and strawberry purée), Hill of Beans (vanilla custard, Stumptown coffee beans, salted caramel sauce, chocolate truffle cookie dough and chocolate sprinkles) and the Austin Street Treat (chocolate custard, peanut butter sauce, sugar cone cookie and banana). We’re sweet on Queens!

Opening Thursday, May 26th!

Forest Hills Shake Shack Menu

Looks like our new Shack will have all the popular favorites we all know and love when it opens next week!  (Thanks to Joe for sending me the pic!)

Inside the Shake Shack

A reader sent in these pics. I've peeked inside myself and the space looks really nice, with a really cool upstairs seating area and what looks like seating that runs along the right side downstairs as well.

Things Are Startin' to Shake in the Hills

A truly historic day for Forest Hills! (maybe a bit overdramatic, or maybe not if you are a Shack-lover like I am.) Anyway, thanks to Amanda for tweeting me the first photo of the sign being put up, and yours truly snapped the second one later today.

Enjoy your newly christened Shake Shack neighbors!

Shack Update

What was this...

Is now, this...

Workin' on the Shack

Work has suddenly sped up on the Shake Shack on Austin St., scheduled to open sometime in April...

Confirmed! Shake Shack Coming to Forest Hills!

In what just might be the most important news for Forest Hills since the Stadium started up concerts again, Shake Shack confirmed this morning that they will be opening in the former Strawberry store location on Austin Street: Shack HQ Confirms: Queens Is Getting Another Standalone Shake Shack

Just some early thoughts as the news that this is really happening sinks in:
1) This will be awesome for the Austin St. shopping district of Forest Hills. It will bring in tons of new shoppers to the neighborhood. The lines that usually stretch outside a Shake Shack (if they materialize, and judging by the lines we already get inside our Chipotle, I'd be shocked if they didn't) will be mostly younger potential shoppers for all of the other retailers surrounding our new Shack. If these retailers are smart, they will take advantage of these crowds somehow. In fact, I hope the Shake Shack invigorates Austin Street all the way down to Ascan, an area that can especially use a boost.
2) It will also bring in tons of younger shoppers to the neighborhood, and as a result, could very well change the dynamic of the shopping we have along Austin Street, possibly attracting retailers aimed at younger shoppers.
3)  Personally, I am surprised—surprised that Shake Shack has skipped over supposedly "hipper" Queens neighborhoods like Astoria and Long Island City to open up their first stand-alone location here in Forest Hills.
But then, when I think about it more deeply, I can see why:

•  More younger people are moving into Forest Hills
•  There are already a ton of the younger folk here
•  Also, pretty much every demographic seems to love Shake Shack, and we have just about every demographic living here
•  Austin Street is an extremely attractive shopping district with just the upscale feel Shake Shack loves (though it's been struggling a bit in some regards as of late—this will put a stop to that struggling)
•  Austin Street is easily accessible by both car and public transit, so expect people to come to Shake Shack from all around Forest Hills
•  The Strawberry location itself is ideal for a Shake Shack. It is a two-story building with more than enough space to eat in, along with huge windows, and sits at the head of a side street, making it extremely visible to shoppers not only on Austin Street, but those coming down 71st Avenue.

I'll have more to say about this exciting development in the days and weeks to come. The only downside I see for our neighborhood is that Shake Shack has now forced me to put off my plans to become a vegetarian. I know they have a mushroom burger, and I've tried it, quite good actually. But I'm sure that those who are fans of The Shack like I am can understand why my vegan plans are now on hold.

Below is my chart of who Shake Shack will compete with and who it won't, since there's been a lot of discussion about this over on the Blog's Facebook Page. All burger places in the year 2015 are not same, anything but. We've moved way beyond the days of McDonald's versus Burger King. You may be surprised by my take on this, but you have to take into consideration the different types of consumers each burger place is trying to appeal to. Bareburger, for example, is really a health-food restaurant that just so happens to make burgers. My conclusion: they will not be competing with Shake Shack which is anything but that.

The new Shake Shake will compete with in Forest Hills:

• Twist & Smash'd (When I had their burgers, I thought to myself they reminded me of Shake Shack.)
• Cheeburger Cheeburger (Both chains are going for the consumer who wants to have a filling, delicious burger and isn't watching calories)

Doesn't compete with:

• McDonald's (today, our McD's of old is anything but the premium fast food burger outlet that Shake Shack is.)
• Bareburger (A health food restaurant with tons of different proteins and salads, along with some tasty indulgent foods. But "healthy" is the word here at Bareburger. A low-fat Bison Burger is nothing like a Shake Shack burger. Bareburger has a particular niche for those who want a healthier option and I predict they will be minimally-impacted by the new Shack. I myself will still mostly go to Bareburger since I am careful about what I eat, and when I'm in the mood for a real treat, will visit The Shack.)
• Pubs that sell burgers (Most people don't seek out their local pubs for a burger. They go to the pub and then say, "Hmmm, I'm in the mood for a burger with my beer." Burgers are an afterthought at pubs.)

Shake Shack Update

Well, I have a follower on Twitter—with an actual name—who tells me she has heard first-hand from workers at the site of the former Strawberry on Austin Street that it is being turned into a Shake Shack. This is the strongest evidence I have so far about the rumors actually being true. I trust this long-time follower on Twitter and believe the only way this information can be wrong is if the worker didn't know what he was talking about, which would be odd indeed.

And, then there's this bizarre post today on the Queens Gazette website:
Shake Shack Coming To Forest Hills!
Jeez, if you have the information, just tell us. You're a newspaper, or, something... I don't actually know what the Queens Gazette is come to think of it.

Anyway, it looks like the proverbial cat has gotten out of the bag and the number of sources holding onto this ridiculous secret are starting to have trouble holding onto it and it is seeping out to the public. Why this is such a secret and being so closely guarded is truly one of the most bizarre things I have ever seen. What's the big freakin' deal? Just let us know already. This has been going on since at least June, with the first comments on this blog about the Shake Shack in the Strawberry location appearing back then.

In any case, I am starting to imagine a Shake Shack on Austin Street and delightful vittles like lip-smacking juicy burgers, awesome fries and indulgent shakes and desserts! Woe to my waist-line!

What's Up With Strawberry?

Just what is going into the two-story former Strawberry location on Austin Street in Forest Hills? There have been some very odd murmerings about this location over the past couple of weeks, hinting that something big is coming in. And now, this morning, one reader says she heard from someone that it will become a Shake Shack. In any case, excitement is building and rumors are flying. Should be interesting to see who the "major retailer" said to be coming into this space will actually be.

Shake Shack to Open at Queens Center Mall

They're getting closer! Yes, Shake Shack will be opening at the Queens Center Mall. Not optimal, but I'll take it! Joy! They've already had locations in Queens, but at irritatingly beyond-Queens focused spots, like Kennedy Airport and Citi Field. This one's just for us, kinda. Whatevs. It's awesome.

Blog is closed while I go git myself some of these... back soon...

Thx for trying! RT @seriouseatsny: These are @ShakeShack's new fries and they are damned good http://t.co/PTXh67qvjp pic.twitter.com/tkv38Wi126

— SHAKE SHACK (@shakeshack) August 6, 2013