Shake Shack Has Nugs Now And Here's What We Really Think About 'Em

You're gonna need some water.

If you haven't heard already, Shake Shack started testing chicken nuggets last week.

Kristyn Clark / Shake Shack

The six-piece serving costs $4.39, while the 10-piece costs $6.39. And FYI, the former has 300 calories, while the latter serving registers at 500 calories. They're served with the choice of a BBQ or honey mustard sauce.

And as lovers of dippable chicken bites, we knew we had to check 'em out and see for ourselves if they're actually worth the money.

TBS

We headed to the Shake Shack Innovation Kitchen, a new experimental outpost of the burger chain that tests menu items that have yet to roll out to other locations. Currently, it's the only place selling the Chick'n Bites.

Michelle No

At the Innovation Kitchen located in NYC's west village, everyone orders their food via automated touchscreen kiosks. You select what you want (which right now ranges from Chick'n Bites to black sesame shakes to their usual menu items), pay with a card, and enter your name and phone number to finish.

The Chick'n Bites are slated to be tested at other Shake Shack locations around NYC later this month, and nationwide starting next month. Shake Shack couldn't confirm the exact dates for either timeline though, since both depend on how testing goes.

I ordered a 10-piece serving of their Chick'n Bites, but obvi had to try both of their dipping sauces. 🙃

Michelle No / BuzzFeed

My overall impression? They were perfectly crispy and juicy, but way too salty. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Michelle No / BuzzFeed

One of my all-time favorite foods is Nashville hot chicken, so I loved that these tasted like mini pops of fried chicken. They were piping hot, succulent, and audibly crunchy. The best part was that the white meat actually looked like... MEAT. Lol. The downside to these lil' guys was that they were salty AF and I felt parched after just two nugs. The honey mustard sauce was nice and spicy, but I'd recommend the BBQ, which does a better job of balancing out the aforementioned saltiness.

I gave some to my coworker Vaughn for a second opinion. He also thought they were crispy, tender on the inside, and a bit salty (but actually didn't mind it).

Vaughn Vreeland / BuzzFeed

Vaughn's review: These lil nugs were unassuming but packed a punch. Upon first glance, I'd assume they were any ole cube of fried meat. But when I bit into it, I was hit with a wave of flavor. A flave, if you will. They had a crispy exterior with a tender interior, just like me. They were quite salty but had the right amount of spice. Also like me.

The barbecue sauce was great to counteract the saltiness of the nugget, however I found the honey mustard to be a little too acidic for my taste. I'd honestly choose these over other fast food nuggets. If they were to concoct their answer to Chick-fil-A's namesake sauce, they would have all my money by now.

TL;DR: Shake Shack's Chick'n Bites are crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside, but may taste overly seasoned. And if you're gonna test 'em, definitely opt for the BBQ sauce over the honey mustard.

Bravo