Shake Shack is your premium fast food chain that serves burgers (meat and plant-based), fries, and…read moreof course, milkshakes. I've visited other Shake Shacks before, but this was my first time visiting their Kirkland location.
The Kirkland location is pretty big and has a good amount of indoor seating and outdoor patio seating. It's located across from QFC and the kiddie fountains, and so you can enjoy your burger while watching your kids (or dogs) play in the water in the summer.
My family ordered:
- VEGGIE SHACK ($9.99 for a single patty, $12.99 for a double patty) - Veggie burger packed with mushrooms, sweet potatoes, carrots, farro, and quinoa, and topped with American cheese, crispy onions, pickles and ShackSauce. This is not your typical Impossible burger or black bean burger, although it has more the texture of the latter. The patty exterior is crispy and the interior is soft and mushy, which complements the crunchy pickles well. It's a little on the sweeter side because of the sweet potato and carrots, but overall a satisfying veggie burger. If it weren't for the fries and shake, I'd probably get a double patty as one patty wasn't satiating enough for lunch.
- 'SHROOM BURGER ($9.99) - Crisp-fried portobello mushroom filled with melted muenster and cheddar cheeses, topped with lettuce, tomato, and ShackSauce on a toasted potato bun. This was another unique vegetarian burger as I've never had a mushroom substituted for a patty before, much less, a fried mushroom stuffed with cheese. If you like mozzarella sticks, this is the burger for you!
- CHEESEBURGER ($7.99 for a single patty, $10.99 for a double patty, $13.99 for a triple patty) - A made-to-order quarter pound per patty of 100% Angus beef with American cheese, and your choice of toppings on a toasted potato bun. We were a little disappointed by this burger as it doesn't come with topping by default and so it was a pretty plain burger. Apparently you have to ask for the toppings when ordering at the register (which we didn't know) or order via kiosk or online.
- FRIES ($4) - enough talk about the burgers, these crinkle cut fries might have been the BEST FRIES we've ever had. They were burning hot right out of the fryer, super crispy on the outside, and soft on the inside. They had just the right amount of salt and had a good body to them to, where even the longest strands didn't break. We loved these so much, that we ended up ordering an extra basket after we finished off the first.
- VANILLA SHAKE ($6) - House-made vanilla frozen custard with real vanilla. I prefer my shakes on the thicker side, but this didn't quite meet the mark as it was more liquidy than I would've liked (perhaps because it's custard-based). While it supposedly contains real vanilla, there aren't any vanilla bean flecks and so it most likely just uses vanilla extract. It was cold and refreshing, but can't say I'd go out of my way for it.
- COFFEE SHAKE ($6) - Dark roast coffee hand-spun with our house-made vanilla frozen custard. The coffee taste was kind of flat and tasted more like a Frappuccino. The lid also wasn't screwed on properly (or had extra liquid that got stuck underneath the lid) and so it spilled everywhere.
Service was great and we got our food within 10 minutes after ordering. They bring the food to your table and you bus yourself. The outdoor tables were relatively clean.
Overall: 4/5 for food, 4/5 for service, 4/5 for atmosphere