Shake Shack veggie burger launches nationwide

Shake Shack, home of some of the trendiest fast-casual burgers, shakes, and custards around, has rolled out nationwide veggie burgers, and vegan shakes and custards. Although there's already a ‘Shroom Shack, made from a crispy, fried Portabella mushroom filled with cheese, the newest veggie option is made from a ground vegetable patty. On the sweet side, a nondairy chocolate shake and nondairy custard, are made with an AI-generated alternative called NoMilk.

The new Veggie Burger ($8.79, double stack $11.59) took more than five years to perfect. Different from many plant-based fast-casual offerings, the patty does not try to imitate the characteristics of meat; it takes inspiration from the veggie burgers of the past. Made with carrots, mushrooms, quinoa, farro, and sweet potatoes, it actually tastes like vegetables. You can see the chopped veggies in the burger mix. Topped with cheese, fried onions, pickles and Shack sauce, it’s a solid new addition to a menu that caters more toward carnivores. Vegans beware; although the patty is vegan, the whole sandwich — with the addition of cheese, like the ‘Shroom Shack — isn’t vegan.

To create the new desserts, Shake Shack tapped a Chilean company, The Not Company, that uses an AI-platform known as “Guiseppe” to create plant-based alternatives to animal-based products. NoMilk, which tastes and blends like cow’s milk, is the base of both creamy, cocoa-rich desserts. The Non-Dairy Chocolate Shake ($6.89) drinks a little thicker, creamier and sweeter than your typical chocolate milkshake, while the Non-Dairy Chocolate Frozen Custard ($5.09), tastes exactly the same as the shake in flavor but has a more frozen, ice cream-like consistency.

By Marie Elena Martinez

marieelena.martinez@newsday.com@mariesworlds

A global freelancer who has checked her suitcase to raise her young daughter on her native Long Island, Marie Elena will always make time for good mezcal, even better tacos and killer conversation. Preferably, in a corner bar seat. She can be found on Instagram at @mariesworldeats.