The wait is almost over. The ShackBurger is on its way.
Shake Shack, the burger-and-custard purveyor that took Manhattan by storm 10 years ago, has landed in Baltimore.
Shake Shack will open Monday at 400 E. Pratt in the former Examiner newspaper building that is now home to the digital marketing agency R2integrated.
A contemporary take on the old "roadside" burger stand, Shake Shack's original kiosk location opened in 2004 in New York City's Madison Square Park. Mixing nostalgia with modern attitudes about responsible sourcing, Shake Shack quickly attracted a cult following and has since added locations in nine states and D.C., as well as additional locations in New York and international outposts in London, Moscow, Dubai and more.
A typical Shake Shack opening attracts large, avid crowds.
"I never cease to be amazed by the level of excitement we get at our openings," said Shake Shack CEO Randy Garutti. "But we never take it for granted. Shake Shack started as a hot-dog cart to support an art project in Madison Square Park. We never dreamed it would turn into a permanent location in the park. And it was almost five years before we opened a second store."
The eco-friendly interior design at Shake Shack's Baltimore home features walls clad in reclaimed antique barn wood, booths from lumber certified by the Forest Stewardship Council and tabletops made from reclaimed bowling alley lanes hand-crafted in Brooklyn, N.Y.
It will serve ShackMeister Ale, which is brewed exclusively for Shake Shack by Brooklyn Brewery, and offer house red and white wine from California's Frog's Leap Winery.
The restaurant, which will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., will occupy part of a recently completed 22,000 square-foot retail addition to the building.
"Most people in the region think of Pratt Street as a tourist area, but there are 122,000 employees and 41,000 residents within a mile radius of the Shake Shack," said Mike Evitts of the Downtown Partnership, the agency responsible for managing the Pratt Street Pratt Street Renewal Plan, an initiative to create a more pedestrian-friendly environment on Pratt Street.
Shake Shack had already announced it would be part of the Emporiyum food festival this spring.
For more information, call 443-973-3630 or go to shakeshack.com.