Overrated?

There are certain restaurants that you hear about over and over again, whether it be on TV or instagram or tourist brochures. You have to wonder, are they worth it? *cue buzzfeed intro* After a while, I begin to wonder if these places are actually good or if they are the kind of place you go to just to take some pictures, buy a t-shirt, and brag to your friends about, like some sort of foodie accomplishment badge. Well, my curiosity and love of these well-marketed TV shows were enough to win me over. Today let's see if one infamous dessert spot is actually worth the long lines, high prices, and all the praise.

First up, Shake Shack.

I have heard so much about this East coast based burger chain, stories about waiting in line for hours just to taste some blended ice cream. I love milkshakes as much as the next person, but I doubt I would wait much longer than an hour for any milkshake. Luckily, there's not much of a wait at one of these restaurants outside of New York City. That being said, I have not tried the original Shake Shack, but a quality chain should be the same at any one of them, right? My first experience was in D.C. about a year ago. I tried a burger, some fries, a black and white shake, and a few tastes of what my friends ordered. In terms of fast food, it was really good, definitely better quality than, say, McDonald's (but can it really be called fast food if you have to wait half an hour in line?) Was it good? Yes. Was it the best shake I've ever had? Far from it. Plus, if you're in D.C. you need to go to Good Stuff Eatery (still the best shake I've ever had). But, hey, I prefer a thick shake, and this didn't cut it. With good ice cream, I could have made it myself...
Black and White Shake
Taste: 3/5
Texture: 2/5
Impressiveness/Wow Factor: 1.5/5
Blueberry Corn Shake
Taste: 2.75/5 tasty, but a little sweet
Texture: 2/5
Impressiveness/Wow Factor: 3.5/5 I mean, corn in a drink!

Fast forward to about three weeks ago on a warm fall night in Philadelphia. It was my fall break and being unable to fly home, I was living it up in the city. Meaning, I spent four days eating out and watching 30 Rock before Netflix took it down. It was about 10:00 p.m. and I wanted food, a light dinner after a day of dim sum. Naturally I thought of Shake Shack. It's fast, easy, cheap, and super close to campus; basically it checks off everything a lazy college student thinks of. Plus it's the kind of place I can post about on snapchat to make my friends think I'm having a super amazing time trying all the places they've only heard about on FoodNetwork. Basically I'm using food to compensate for a lack of social interaction...Anyways, I walked over to Shake Shack and took a look at the menu, and noticed that they had a number of Philadelphia themed desserts. Feeling touristy and loving puns, I ordered the "liberty shell" concrete. Vanilla ice cream, lemon ricotta, and cannoli shells
from a local bakery--what could wrong? Absolutely nothing, it was delicious. But I paid about $6 for one scoop of ice cream. With that kind of price for what I got, it's the kinda thing I would only splurge on if I wanted ice cream and didn't want to walk to center city. Tasty, but not the *best.*

In the end, it was good, but I've had better from other places for a similar price, or less.

Probably out eating ice cream,
Christina

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