Following is a transcript of the video.
Harry Kersh: From calorie count to portion sizes, we wanted to find out all the differences between Shake Shack in the UK and the US. This is "Food Wars."
Harry: In the UK, burgers come in two sizes, single and double.
Joe Avella: And in the US, our Shake Shack burgers also come in single or double.
Harry: We're gonna weigh the Double ShackBurger to find out if it's actually the same size in the UK as it is in the US.
Joe: Oh, man. Ours weighs a lot less. Significantly less. What's up with that, Shake Shack?
Harry: In the UK, we can only get fries in one size, and this is it.
Joe: In the US, we also have only one size of fries. Let's see how much thleh bleh! What I meant to say was, let's see how much they weigh!
Harry: So, our portion of fries came to around 188 grams.
Joe: What? Did he say 188? Ours is, like, a little over 100. Like, when I say 105, I might be generous. It's a lot less. So far, the fries and the burger have been significantly smaller than the UK. I thought we were the ones with the big portions.
Harry: Drinks from a UK Shake Shack come in two sizes, regular and large.
Joe: The US, we also have only two fountain-drink sizes, regular and large.
Harry: We're gonna measure them to find out how much is actually in these. So, a regular drink from a UK Shake Shack has about 400 milliliters in it.
Joe: Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, woop. Oh, I should've done the big one first. Little over 16 ounces.
Harry: [laughs] It fits. That's good. It has gone slightly over the scales. I'm gonna, in my infinite wisdom, assume that's around 600 milliliters. Give or take a few.
Joe: So that's 16. Jump to the little guy. Huh. 6 1/2. 16 plus 6 is 24? Right? 22? Heh. We'll give it a half, so 22 1/2 fluid ounces for the large.
Harry: Milkshakes in the UK only come in one size. We're not sure what it is, so, again, we're gonna measure it.
Joe: In the US, our shakes also come in one size. I mean, this thing might be to-the-line 16 ounces. Uh-oh, got some bad news, Conner. Looks like it's a little under 16 ounces. Mm.
Harry: Importantly, in the UK you can also get beer from Shake Shack. This normally comes in a serving of one pint. However, unfortunately, due to the reduced menu from the pandemic, we couldn't get one today.
Joe: The Shake Shacks in the US are still serving beer. So, the ones we got to go were cans. Got the 12 ounce and the 16 ounce. I'm gonna assume, since it's the same size cup, that this is a pint.
Harry: Fun pint fact for you. Our pints in the UK are actually bigger than your pints in the US. We use imperial measurements, and our pints are around 19 ounces, whereas yours are 16.
Joe: If all pints were magically half the size, I'm just drinking twice as much. I've never stopped to think how many fluid ounces is in a beer. It's like, get me outta here!
Harry: What about hot dogs? Well, a hot dog from a UK Shake Shack is 6 1/2 inches long.
Joe: [sighs] What in the heck is this? They cut the hot dog in half? Cursed image. Am I getting punk'd here? First Five Guys, and now Shake Shack? I get it, I'm fighting a losing battle. Against normal hot dogs. Yeah, I mean, Five Guys reached out to me. Haven't heard back from them, though, at the recording of this. Shake Shack, you're on the list now too. You're on the list now too. I wanna know what's going on with these hot dogs. I did not bring the tape measurer, but the good people at Apple have an app that measures stuff for us. This shoot, of course, is sponsored by Apple. All right. So, I'm going to measure this hot dog. This is actually working! 6 1/2 inches. Thank you, Apple.
Harry: And it weighs 126 grams. Joe: It looks like it's, like, exactly on 125.
Harry: And last but by no means least, Shake Shack in the UK and the US are both known for being quite dog-friendly. And as such, you can get dog treats. These are red velvet dog treats, and they come in packs of five.
Joe: They were saying theirs are red velvet. I don't know what ours are supposed to be. Oh, it's got the Shake Shack logo on it. You see that? Ooh, I don't like how they smell. [crunching] Oddly a little bit like a Communion wafer.
Harry: I'm not getting red velvet. Now we're gonna get the expert opinion on dog treats. Hey, Mabel.
Megan Ingham: Yeah, there's chips on the floor.
Harry: Wait. This is Mabel the dog, and she's gonna taste-test the treats for us. Go on, Mabel.
Mabel: Yum.
Megan: Mabel, stay! [laughing]
Harry: This is Mabel the dog, and we're gonna get her thoughts on the dog treats from Shake Shack. What'd you think, Mabel?
Mabel: Wow.
Harry: Not bad?
Mabel: Not bad.
Harry: Do you taste red velvet?
Mabel: No. Harry: I don't know if she tastes the red velvet, but she seems to be enjoying it, so, good job, guys.
Joe: Bring me the dogs. [Joe whistling] Hey, Paul! What do you think?
Both dogs: Treat!
Joe: You want a big one? How is it, how is it, how is it?
Luda: Needs salt.
Joe: I mean, you see that, you see what I was talking about before about, like, they're like, almost like those matzo crackers you get, those really, like, tasteless ones that your mom gets because she doesn't want you eating all that salt or whatever? I don't know if these would be my top favorite go-to dog treats, but in a pinch, yeah. So, what've you been up to during quarantine?
Harry: Unfortunately, Shake Shack in the UK doesn't disclose any of its nutritional information.
Joe: However, we can get nutritional information in the US. So let's start with the calories in a standard meal. If you get the Double ShackBurger and the fries and a chocolate shake, you're looking at 2,010 calories, which is just a little bit over your entire daily recommended allowance. So just eat this every day once. What if you're in the mood for something even unhealthier? Well, this right here is the Double SmokeShack burger, and it's the most calorific standard burger at Shake Shack. Clocks in at 870 calories. Just the burger.
Harry: This is also the menu item with the highest fat content. In the US, one of these contains 57 grams of fat, which is 73% of your daily allowance.
Joe: It's also the saltiest thing on the menu. A Double SmokeShack contains a huge 3,030 milligrams of sodium. That's over 130% of your daily allowance.
Harry: Shake Shack is also unique in its approach to regional specialties, with pretty much every location having an exclusive burger or custard. However, some of these are way less healthy than others.
Joe: For example, the least healthy burger found on any Shake Shack menu is a Lockhart Link burger. This is exclusive only to Austin, Texas, so listen up, all you relocating tech bros and Joe Rogan. This is a burger with jalapeño cheese, ShakeSauce, pickles, and a sausage link from Kreuz Market in, you guessed it, Lockhart.
Harry: If you get one of these as a triple, it contains over half of your daily calories, more than 100% of your daily fat, and almost double your daily sodium.
Joe: But the most calorific item found on any Shake Shack menu actually isn't a burger. It's something called the Double Down fries. They're found only in Vegas. Double Down? Got it? OK. And they contain 1,910 calories. Those fries alone are 95% of your daily allowance. I mean, give me a break. You're in Vegas. Like you care at all, right? Give me the fries, I just lost my fortune.
Harry: Unfortunately, Shake Shack in the UK also doesn't disclose its ingredients. Bit shady. What's going on there, guys? Give us some info to work with.
Joe: And that's also the case here in the US. We've reached out to them to see if they'd make an exception, but they could not help us out.
Harry: What we can get is a list of allergens, and it has a couple of fun things to note. For example, there is a significant risk of there being traces of seafood in our banoffee concrete, and they're also sulfites in our chicken bites and in the ShackSauce.
Joe: We may or may not also have shellfish in our 'Shroom burger, ShackBurger, Shack Stack, and SmokeShack. So, there's no potential seafood in the UK equivalents of these burgers, so I have no idea why there might be shellfish in ours here in the US. I couldn't even guess why. But in better news, all our Shake Shacks, US beef, it's freshly ground 100% Angus beef that's free from hormones and antibiotics. And the buns are non-GMO.
Harry: Here is everything you can only find on the menu at a UK Shake Shack.
Joe: Here are all the US-exclusive Shake Shack items you cannot get in the UK.
Harry: Let's start with the burgers. Here we have the ShackMeister burger. Now, this is a double version. It comes with beef patties, cheese, ShackSauce, and then some crispy ale-marinated shallots. Yes, we pronounce it "shall-OTS." That's the correct way to pronounce it. You guys are wrong. For a limited time in the UK we can also get a spicy version of the chicken sandwich, which is the hot chicken sandwich. This comes in hot, or extra hot if you're feeling bold. We would usually be able to get some more exclusive hot-dog options, including a Shack-cago dog, which I think you might be able to get as, like, a secret menu item in the US, and also a ShackMeister sausage, which is kind of like a hot dog, but with a Cumberland-style sausage, which is something that's kind of popular here in the UK. But, unfortunately, due to the reduced pandemic menu, we weren't able to get these.
Joe: Harry, you know my feelings about the hot dogs, you know my feelings about hot dogs in general, and I will say, as someone who was born and raised in "Shack-cago," I would love to try the Shack-cago hot dog at the UK Shake Shack. So, when I come to visit, that'll be our first stop.
Harry: Now, on top of the limited-edition hot chicken burger, we can also currently get some hot chicken bites, as well as some spicy fries.
Joe: So, the only two sandwiches that we were able to get our hands on that are exclusive to the US and not in the UK are the grilled cheese and the Korean chicken sandwich. OK, first things first, this grilled cheese. Look at this thing! Did you, is it, do you sit on this, too? This is ridiculous! I wouldn't pay a dollar for this. It looks like they took two buns, put cheese in it, and then, I don't know, ran over it with a steamroller or something. Why is this so thin? What does look actually ♪ bomb ♪ is this, the Korean chicken sandwich. Yo. Yes! Yes to this. Oh, my goodness. With the kimchi. I'm telling you, I'm telling you. You want that. Also a thing the Shake Shack in the US has that you can't get in the UK are the breakfast sandwiches. We're shooting this, like, at 4 p.m., so surprise to no one, the breakfast sandwiches were not available. But, usually, if you get there I'm assuming before 10:30 or 11, you can get a bacon, egg, and cheese; sausage, egg, and cheese; and just an egg and cheese. Check 'em out. I have no idea if they taste good or not. Also a thing you can get in the US is cheesy bacon fries. But this has been sitting for more than a minute. Oh, my God, I think it's gonna come out like a disk! [laughs] Oh, God! I wanna make this perfectly clear: This is not an indictment of Shake Shack quality. This has been sitting for, what, at least two hours? I mean, it's bacon and cheese on fries. Even at that consistency, it's still pretty good. I mentioned this before, but there's, like, all these different regional things throughout the country, so I don't know if this whole Korean sandwich and Korean chicken bites is just in this area. But I think I'm about to lose my mind. Yo, you want this. Oh, yes! Yes to these. Yes to these!
Harry: Now, much like the way US Shake Shacks have exclusive burgers and custards, some of the UK branches also have exclusive options themselves. The one we went to had a dessert option called the Union Shack, which is a really terrible pun on the Union Jack, which is our flag. Now, it's effectively just a chocolate custard with some chocolate from British chocolatiers. However, unfortunately, due to the pandemic, reduced menu, couldn't get that either. And, of course, it wouldn't be a Shake Shack episode unless we talked about the shakes. Now, the UK-wide exclusive flavors include coffee and caramel, and then the branch we visited also had a cinnamon toast shake, which I'm really intrigued by. Mixy, mixy. It's not bad. Very sweet, and quite cinnamony, as you would expect.
Joe: It's so many different menu items across regions it'd be impossible for us to cover all the things at every specific Shake Shack in the US alone, so given the ones that we had that we went to, the three exclusive shakes we have are brownie batter hot cocoa, vanilla black sugar, cookies and cream. Once again, end of the day, end of the shoot. Gonna put me into a coma after this. Yeah, that's pretty good. Like, it has a little bit of, like, an extra chocolatyness to it. It's not too sweet. The caramel flavor is there, but it isn't, like, chemically tasting. That's the one to beat. Cookies and cream, baby. ♪ Cookies and cream ♪ Woop. There we go. I can't decide if that one's better. That's so good.
Joe: Hey, you are not gonna believe the hot dog. You wanna hear the dumbest thing ever? They're splitting them in half now!
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