By Lori Fredrich Senior Food Writer, Dining Editor Published Sep 09, 2021 at 11:02 AM

Has it been a while since you’ve been to Shake Shack, 220 E. Buffalo St., in the Third Ward?

If it has, there are a couple of new items you might want to try, including the Hot Honey Bites they introduced this summer. The light crispy chicken bites dusted with hot honey seasoning and served with habanero mayo are pretty darn tasty (I preferred them to the Hot Honey Chicken Sandwich). And I wouldn’t complain if you brought me an order of the Hot Honey Fries (the addictive hot honey seasoning clings to the edges of the crispy krinkle cut fries).

Hot Honey Chicken Bites, Hot Honey Fries, Hot Honey Chicken Sandwich at Shake ShackX

But, you definitely want to get there to try out one of their new limited edition shakes.

Both are the product of a collaboration between Shake Shake and Milk Bar, the famed New York City franchise headed up by Chef Christina Tosi which recently broadened its reach with nationwide shipping through their online Milk Bar Store.

“Everything she does really fits with our brand,” notes Ari Dominitz, senior general manager at Shake Shack, underscoring the quality of the ingredients and attention to detail at the famed bakery. “And as they are rolling out their brand more nationally it made sense to partner with them on something like this.”

Available through Nov. 1, the new shakes include the Chocolate Birthday Cake Shake and Cornflake Chocolate Drizzle Shake, both of which are available for $5.99 each.

The Chocolate Birthday Cake Shake takes the famously crisp, sweet rainbow colored Milk Bar B'Day Crumbs and Milk Bar B'Day Frosting and incorporates them into chocolate cake frozen custard. The shake is topped off with whipped cream and rainbow sprinkles.

First impression: It’s got a great chocolate punch, with amazing texture from the crisp Milk Bar B’Day Crumbs. The rainbow sprinkles and whipped cream make it feel like a celebratory treat.

Milk Bar collaborative shakes at Shack ShackX

Meanwhile, the Cornflake Chocolate Drizzle Shake features Milk Bar Cornflake Crunch blended with malted vanilla frozen custard. It’s finished off with a generous portion of Milk Bar chocolate fudge drizzle and topped with mini marshmallows.

First impression: This shake is malty and pleasantly fudgy with lots of sweet crunchy bits that stay crisp for a really long time (they were still crisp at the end of my lunch hour). Even better, the (tiny) soft mini marshmallows actually fit through a biodegradable Shake Shack straw, so they don’t just end up wasted in the bottom of the shake. 

Free shakes every Friday

Every Friday in September, Shake Shack is also giving away free shakes to lucky fans in honor of their birthdays. For your chance to win, head to Shake Shack’s Instagram Stories (@shakeshack), where they’ll be using the B’Day Randomizer feature to select random calendar dates. If your birthday is selected, all you’ve got to do is be one of the first 50 followers to slide into Shake Shack’s DMs, and they’ll send you a discount code that you can use for a free shake through the Shack app.

 

Lori Fredrich Senior Food Writer, Dining Editor

As a passionate champion of the local dining scene, Lori has reimagined the restaurant critic's role into that of a trusted dining concierge, guiding food lovers to delightful culinary discoveries and memorable experiences.

Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with every dish. Lori is the author of two books: the "Wisconsin Field to Fork" cookbook and "Milwaukee Food". Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club. In 2024, Lori was honored with a "Top 20 Women in Hospitality to Watch" award by the Wisconsin Restaurant Association.

When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or planning for TV and radio spots, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.