"shake shack" news and stories

The lines were huge at Friday Night's Blue Moon Burger Bash (part of the annual NYC Wine & Food Festival), held in DUMBO's Tobacco Warehouse, but none as long as the one twisting around and bunching up in front of Bobby Flay's Burger Palace. Flay himself manned the table, passing out hundreds of Santa Fe burgers and hamming it up for the crowds. The hand shaking, photo ops and his Santa Fe burger (topped with poblano chiles, queso and blue-corn tortilla chips) added up to a winning combination for fans -- Flay took home the People's Choice award.

Shake Shack was this year's winner (no big surprise there). Sure, their burgers are incredible, but can we give a shout-out to the shakes and those crinkle fries? The stars of every Burger Bash are the burgers, of course, but sometimes the supporting cast deserves attention too.

Check out our favorite sides of the evening.

New York's golden child, Shake Shack is growing slowly (seven locations in three cities). Washington D.C.'s favorite Five Guys is growing not so slowly (620 locations in 48 states). And the ubiquitous Burger King (12,000 locations worldwide) is attempting to innovate with the Whopper Bar. But which comes out on top?

We caught up with FOX Business Network Reporter Chris Cotter following his Burger Battle tour of New York City.

Round 1 Shake Shack:
The Argument: Founder Danny Meyer says they're about, "community, great ingredient sourcing, and warm hospitality." Shake Shack purchases wind offsets for 100% of consumed energy, composts restaurant waste and sources their meat from vegetarian-fed, non-antibiotic Black Angus cows.
On Five Guys: The Shack is moving into Guys' D.C. territory, but not before the Guys came NYC. "We love when they came to our backyard and I don't think that Washingtonians are going to stop eating Five Guys just because Shake Shack comes."
On Burger King: "I don't think that we're taking on giants." Meyer says he's committed to building burger shacks "where people come together to be with people. Not...where people drive through quickly to eat cheap calories."
Cotter says: "Meyer isn't focused on the big guys. He's looking at quality with details like proprietary wine and beer."

More after the jump ...

Shake Shack -- the popular string of burger and frozen custard stands that launched in New York City's Madison Square Garden in 2004 -- is shaking it up with a new Times Square outpost and a new hot dog in honor of the Miami Heat's acquisition of NBA star LeBron James.

Miami's Shake Shack is offering the Le-BRAT James, a grilled bratwurst "bringing the Heat with Tabasco simmered onions," Eater reported.

The Le-BRAT was originally a one-day menu item in New York and was a culinary attempt to woo LeBron James to choose the New York Knicks. The Shake Shack Facebook page describes the hot dog as having the "taste of victory!" Oh well. It still looks delicious.

Meanwhile, Shake Shack is expanding in New York City with the opening of its first Times Square restaurant -- the Theater District Shake Shack, which is located at 8th Ave. and 44th St.

If Dubai's indoor ski slopes, man-made islands, and luxe hotels weren't enough of a draw, Magnolia Bakery's coveted buttercream-frosted cupcakes are now on the city's list of attractions. The New York's famed West Village bakery is opening up its fourth location -- and first overseas -- in the United Arab Emirates city, and it's just the first of a wave of iconic Manhattan favorites headed to the Middle East. Tasti D-Lite, the go-to indulgence for calorie-counting ice cream lovers, has plans to open a Dubai location in 2010, and Danny Meyer's Shake Shack, famous for its lightly charred burgers and endless lines, is headed to Kuwait City, Kuwait, later this year.

It's easy to understand why the Middle East -- and Dubai in particular -- makes sense. Until recently, the region was booming, and locals and tourists alike have been opening their wallets for American theme restaurants like Planet Hollywood and Johnny Rockets in Dubai for years. But why now, when the crumbling economy has made a significant dent in the city's dizzying expansion?

• Wedding guests in Pittsburgh are filling their plates with homemade, old-fashioned cookies baked by the mothers, aunts, grandmothers and in-laws.
• It's not Christmas in southeastern Alabama without the cake ladies stacking up a 15-layer chocolate cake.
• Danny Meyer, of Union Square Hospitality Group fame, is creating the "anti-chain chain" as he rolls out four new Shake Shacks in 2010.
• In Dresden, Germany, residents bake stollen, a richly sweet bread of dried fruit, ginger and almonds, to celebrate the holiday season.