Listen up, burger fans — you’ll want to pay attention to this one: The venerable New York institution Shake Shack is celebrating its tenth birthday summer, and believe you me, it is going to be one delicious party. The Shack’s Culinary Director, Mark Rosati, has called in the big guns for the occasion; with the help of celebrity chefs Daniel Boulud, David Chang of Momofuku, Bizarre Foods host Andrew Zimmern, Daniel Humm of Eleven Madison Park, and April Bloomfield of The Spotted Pig, the gourmet burger joint will be serving up limited edition creations, one per day, between June 9 and 13. You guys. These burgers are going to be epic. Seriously, I just spent a good 15 minutes drooling over their pictures and descriptions. Care to join me?
Now, I know many don’t think Shake Shack lives up to the hype; I, however, am not one of those people. My absolute favorite burger in the history of the universe is Shake Shack’s ‘Shroom Burger, even though I am definitely not a vegetarian. Stuffing a Portobello with cheese and frying it ‘til it’s all crispy on the outside and melty on the inside is one of the best ideas anyone has ever had. Ever.
It’s possible, though, that one of celeb chef creations might boot my beloved ‘Shroom Burger out of its top slot on my list of Amazing Things I Want to Shove in My Face at All Times. On Monday, June 9, we can look forward to Daniel Boulud’s “The Piggie Shack," BBQ pulled pork, jalepeno mayo, Boston lettuce, and mustard-vinegar slaw.
Tuesday, June 10 brings David Chang’s Momofuku Shrimp Stack, a Shack beef-blend cheeseburger topped with a smoked and griddled shrimp patty, Momofuku Hozon Sauce, Bibb lettuce, pickled onion, and salted cucumbers.
Andrew Zimmern’s AZ Cabarito Butter Burger hits on Wednesday, June 11. It's a goat burger with herb butter topped with roasted tomato, charred onion, and sweet pickle.
Thursday, June 12 gives us Daniel Humm’s Humm Burger, a Shack beef-blend gruyere cheeseburger topped with applewood smoked bacon, celery relish, Bibb lettuce, truffle mayo, and shaved fresh black truffle.
And on Friday, June 13, meet April Bloomfield’s Breslin Burger, a Breslin beef-blend burger topped with applewood smoked bacon and Tickler English cheddar cheese sauce.
“Yum” does not even begin to cover it.
In addition to the celebrity chef burgers, the week-long celebration is going to be chock full of special events; the big day, however, is June 12th, the actual anniversary of the day the Madison Square Park location first opened its counters. As such, that particular location will be hosting the main festivities, with live music from artists like Catey Shaw, The Tall Pines, and Miniature Tigers; a special hot dog cart will be serving complimentary “pay what you’d like” Shack-cago Dogs with all proceeds benefiting the park; a gigantic concrete ping pong table will be set up for Shackers to use throughout the day; and Dominique Ansel, Mr. Cronut himself, will be dishing out slices of a Shack-inspired cake during the early evenings — for free. As long as the cake lasts, that is. Oh, and don’t forget to wash down your burger, hot dog, and cake with a special edition brew from the Brooklyn Brewery, SHACK X IPA.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to plan my trip into the city. Thanks, Shake Shack, you magnificent bastard, you.
Images: Shake Shack; Shake Shack/Instagram
