Shake Shack makes ‘next level’ recipe change – but not all customers will taste the difference

SHAKE Shack is testing a new recipe change that will take its food to the “next level,” according to a supplier.

Only customers at select locations will taste the difference in the popular crinkle-cut fries and burgers.

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Shake Shack is frying its food in a new healthy cooking oil as part of a pilot test in New York City.

Restaurants in Hudson Yards and Battery Park City have switched from soybean oil to oil from Zero Acre Farms – a healthy, sustainable alternative made from sugar cane plants.

The fast food restaurant uses oil to fry the following menu items:

• Crinkle-cut fries
• “Mushroom burger.”
• Hut stack
• Vegetable Hut
• chicken coop
• Chicken bites
• New limited-time hot menu items

Zero Acre Farms claimed in a press release that its oil will take these “hungry, fried favorites” from Shake Shack to the next level.

“We’re excited to further improve the taste of your fries, chicken and other menu items through cleaner frying in Zero Acre oil,” said CEO Jeff Nobbs.

For Shake Shack, the transition is about being sustainable and reducing the company’s environmental footprint.

“We continually look for new ways to reduce our environmental footprint, including partnerships with companies like Zero Acre that are developing sustainable food solutions,” said Jeffrey Amoscato, senior vice president of supply chain and menu innovation at Shake Shack.

Zero Acre oil uses 99 percent less water than olive oil and 87 percent less land than canola oil.

The oil has a neutral taste and is rich in healthy monounsaturated fats.

SOME LIKE IT HOT

But a new oil isn’t the only menu change Shake Shack has made recently.

The chain recently introduced The Hot Menu – a limited selection of spicy options including:

• Spicy fries
• Spicy cheese fries
• Spicy Shackmeister burger
• Hot chicken sandwich

The hot chicken sandwich is similar to one recently introduced at Chick-fil-A.

The Shake Shack version consists of a chicken breast seasoned with a spicy pepper mixture and a topping of cucumber and cherry pepper slaw.

Meanwhile, Shake Shack rivals McDonald’s and Wendy’s are both offering deep discounts for National Cheeseburger Day.

Wendy’s has dropped the price of its popular Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger to just a penny – but there’s a catch.

And for one day only, McDonald’s is giving away double cheeseburgers for just $0.50 each.