Well, food-obsessing SoCalers: Are your arms getting a bit sore from holding up the "Welcome to LA" banner for all of the famous East Coast fast food, fast casual, and boutique eatery chains that have landed on our fair shores over the last few years?
Sorry for the sore shoulders, but best hold up the banner a little longer. We know, you welcomed Five Guys when the beloved burgermaker made its way here from Virginia, and you gave a warm hello to the cupcakes of Manhattan's Magnolia Bakery, and you threw yourself at Dunkin' Donuts, that born-in-Massachusetts classic, too.
Keep those hugging arms limber, because they'll be hugging a Shake Shack very soon. Right here in Los Angeles. No foolin', we're serious, completely, because look at this: The famous, obsessed-over, paean-garnering New York City burgers-and-more joint has our very own city up at the top of its Facebook page, as its very next stop.
Thank goodness we weren't biting into a Shake Shack burger when we first saw that. It's exciting, all righty.
Exciting because the started-small, got-huger NYC favorite is quite legendary among foodies and non-foodies and people who just adore old-school hot dog carts. Because Shake Shack was a hot dog cart, back in 2004, in Madison Square Park, but soon grew and grew and gained gushers aplenty who fell head-over-buns in love with tummy-fillers like The SmokeShack -- think piquant cherry pepper kick atop a burger -- and The ShackMeister -- think crispy shallots crisping up your patty.
Date of arrival? The year 2016. Place of arrival? The city of West Hollywood. Do you need to hold up the welcome banner for several more months? Well, no, of course not, unless you want to hold it up for that long.
Do your thing.
U.S. & World
In the meantime, you can venture for Vegas for some Shake Shack-style snackery. That's the closest outpost to us, for the time being. It opened in Decemb-- oh, you've been there already? Like everyone from SoCal who goes to Sin City? Shake Shack is now a buzzed-about Strip draw?
Goodness. Better keep holding up that welcome banner a little longer, burger buffs. This is going to be big.
And dreamers? When are you buying that first hot dog cart? You never know if your idea'll go full Shake Shack on a grateful public. It could happen.
