Shake Shack

Cuisine - American Burger Joint

Location - 24, Market Building, The Piazza, Covent Garden, London WC2E 8RD

Cost - £££££

Star Main Course - Shack Meister

Star Dessert - Concrete Jungle

My Rating - 4.0

Usually I would do everything in my power to avoid ending up in a fast food restaurant (especially if I find myself in a place like Covent Garden). I would also do everything I could to avaid any reference to "gourmet" fast food, as it is mostly a fancy way of dressing up a "mcdonalds" experience. However, Shack Shack is by no means at the same low level as Maccy D (no offence kids). It is quite the reverse of any fast food restauant I have ever visited.

The food is planned, prepared and served at such a high standard that you can't do anything less than shake your tail and dive face first into the absolute beauty that is the shack experience. They make their own beer, which is also used as a marinade in some of the burgers (say no more), and many of the sauces were specially created to give the burgers a "secret" taste. Many of the ingredients are shipped all the way from America, and the quality of the cooking is way above average. You can really tell that they have thrown all of their love and affection into this little place.

The staff are clearly trained at an American standard of service - they are incredibly accomodating, always smiling and very enthusiastic (maybe not "Tom Cruise bouncing on Opera's sofa" enthusiastic, but they are plenty happy). I felt extremely welcome when I was there, and I ended up talking to the manager (Mikey) for the longest time.

What I ordered:

What I ordered:

Shack Meister

Shack Burger

Cheese Fries

Shack Meister Ale

Peanut Butter Smoothie

Vanilla Smoothie

Easter Concrete

Concrete Jungle

Although the food is quite simply amazing, the prices are also quite high, and their portions are quite small. You would definitely be shaking the coins out of your purse if you wanted to visit this shack on a regular basis, and I would not reccomend it to anyone who has managed to build up an appetite across the day. Having said that, I would probably class the Shack Meister as one of the best burgers I have ever eaten... (puts on an old man voice) "And I have eaten A LOT of burgers in my time". It is probably the perfect place to go if you want to gather some energy before you set out for a massive shopping spree, or if you just want to sample one of London's best burger joints.

It is almost worth visiting the shack for their desserts and shakes alone. Known as "concretes", their dense frozen custard ice creams have gained a monster reputation as some of the best desserts in London. Again, they are quite expensive, but they are probably better than if god were to decend from heaven and hand you a million dollars... well... you get the point.

It can be difficult for some people (namely me) to accept the fact that some fast food joints actualy care as much about their food as the people of Shake Shack do. It is literally mind blowing how much love their staff have for their work, and for the food that they serve. I don't think I have ever heard a waiter in a fast food shop describe their food as "really exciting", but I don't blame them. I would 100% reccomend this place to EVERYONE (except if you are really really hungry) - and I really mean that. I bet even the queen wishes she could have a little bit of a cheeky nibble while no one was looking.

#restaurantreview