Smashburger

Great burger place — and the chicken sandwiches aren’t bad either. Friendly, prompt and accurate service, clean tables, good choices.

It’s good for a chain. I still prefer pub burgers but my wife wanted to go there. I had a good burger with jalapeños on it. I would go again but it’s not my first choice.

Smashburger is one of my fav fast food burger joints bc the meat is crispy on the outside but juicy on the inside. I was thrilled when they decided to open one up at Clark Commons. The lines are fast the majority of the time and the staff is friendly. I got the classic smash, smash fries and the husband got the avocado club burger. Both were delicious and flavorful. The Smashburger is nicely seasoned with rosemary, olive oil and garlic. They are thin and crispy. This is not for everyone but I personally love them. My husband prefers a thicker fry. Solid choice for lunch or dinner in a hurry.

Three stars only because Jason was HOT ! And not to mention courteous lol. No seriously the food was mediocre. How do you mess up a strawberry shake? Seriously a simple strawberry shake. It was super nasty, the staff was friendly although my food was horrible. Fries were cold. My food was not hot at all. But I’m willing to give another try maybe in a few months. Don’t let me be discouraging to anyone wanting to go there. I got the avocado bacon chicken club and spicy buffalo fries. Those are great menu items when they are hot.

Got a truffle mushroom swiss burger with a black bean patty, avocado ranch black bean burger, sweet potato smashfries, and a Butterfinger shake. Wish that the food was as creative as the names. The mushroom burger was disappointing as the mushrooms were uncooked and amounted to less than two baby bellas. Truffle oil was apparent but not enough. The avocado ranch burger was simple and the burger itself was fine. Fries were soggy with olive oil, we found that most just tasted like oil. Shake was good, but small. Would rather take our business down to 25 Burgers next time.

Yummy veggie burger. Wish they didn’t take the whole «smash» thing so seriously, my burger was pulverized to a crumbly thin mess. But it was tasty and the fried pickles were awesome.

Exactly three stars for a place that does a decent impression of Five Guys but with more topping options.
The burger, smashed on the grill to expand its surface area, was cooked to a nice, non-​confrontational medium well. The sides were all done ably. The service was pleasant enough.
Smashburger is the kind of place to stop by when you’re hungry but don’t want to think too much. And it does that job just fine.

This is a good burger and fries place. When dining in, the food is really fresh and hot.
I can’t give it five stars because the parking at Clark Commons is another place with a number of inattentive, distracted drivers which is partially due to the lot’s layout and entrance/​exit points.

Better/​faster than the Menlo location.
Burgers are not as greasy as 5 Guys. You can choose one off the menu or Build Your Own. Also offer sweet potato fries & Smash fries (not bad, but the seasoning is not my preference). Also yummy shakes!

Not impressed. Very pricey. Food tasted good but I’d prefer 5 Guys definitely. Not much to talk about. My friend had the Avacado Club burger and I had mushroom grilled chicken we shared large fries and 2 drinks which came out to almost $ 30. I also left still a bit hungry, oh well, live and learn.

No thanks, never again. Burger and fries were ok, chocolate shake was blah, staff WOW, girl handed me my shake with an attitude, i didn’t think I ordered the attitude with that. Staff looked a little to sketchy for me. Rather get burger and fries from White Diamond in clark down the street, way better.

Great burgers! Food was excellent… best fries too! Staff is friendly and helpful. Food was served fast too, no long wait. Looking forward to going back.

It’s ok. The staff may make mistakes on orders but they might throw in an order of so-​so fries like they did when they messed up our order. We ordered a crispy chicken sandwich and a smashburger to go. Got home, changed out of work clothes, turned on the TV, and took the food out of the paper bags to discover they had given us two smashburgers — crispy chicken nowhere to be seen. We called the place up and they offered to make a new one IF we came back to pick it up. Now my poor fiancé’s driving back to Clark Commons while the food they did get right sits here getting colder by the minute. Lesson learned: Check your food before you leave! It’s inconvenient but it will save you some aggravation.

Two tubs of dressing when less than half will do.
So tried this place the first time and got a cheeseburger and fries, it was a takeout order. Should of checked the bag because when I got back to work… no fries. Really? It’s your specialty.
Second time ordered a spinach, cucumber and goat cheese salad with grilled chicken to go. Ok, so where’s the salad? Bowl was more than half empty and besides spinach I could barely see or taste the rest of the alleged ingredients. I would have an easier time finding Waldo in the dark, while blindfolded. When I checked the menu I realized just how many things I didn’t taste. Raisins… nope. Onions… oh, look… there’s one. Goat cheese… only one bite’s worth. Thank goodness for the free side order coupon I got from my first visit. The fries on the side did more for me than my entrée.

Great place! Super clean! Staff is extra friendly! I had the Black Bean Burger, it was amazing! Loved every bite of it! The combination of the black bean patty and the avocado with the ranch dressing is just on point. Ordered the sweet potatoe fries and they were incredible!

I’ve always loved Smashburger, but I’ve had to drive all the way to Menlo Park Mall to get it. This new location opened up in Clark, right down the road from my office. It was great! I could have one of my favorite burgers any time I wanted.
The first time I went was shortly after it opened, and I brought my mom along with me. They got both of our orders wrong. Looking at the receipt, it was clear that this mistake in my order was a miscommunication with the person taking my order at the register. The mistake in my mom’s was a screw-​up in the kitchen. We were dining in, so our orders were corrected. Regardless, that was a bit annoying.
A week or two later, I decided to grab a burger for lunch on my break at work. I drove down there (about 5 min) and ordered the same burger I had ordered during my first visit. I drove all the way back to work to find my order was incorrect again. I was on the clock, and therefore unable to drive back and have the order corrected, not that I would have done that anyway. I didn’t have the receipt to check things out, but it was the same person who had taken my order the first time, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the same thing went wrong. I’m not sure how many times and for how long the cashier and I have to clearly establish my order for it to come out of the kitchen correctly.
Also on the second visit, which was around 4PM on a Tuesday afternoon, by the way, there were only around three customers in the store (including me) — to be expected at that hour, of course. A girl came out carrying someone’s order, no one claiming it, and she apparently unaware of who it belonged to. She went around to all three of us asking to see our receipts. Another lady and I both digging around our purses for it, and a man who had thrown it out. After inspecting our receipts she returned to the kitchen. I get it — maybe they can’t just ask what you ordered because people are prone to fib? I don’t know, but it was incredibly inconvenient and her attitude about it was a pain in the butt.
Seriously annoyed and disappointed, I contacted customer service via the «Smashburger Feedback» link on their website, about 20 minutes after returning to work. According to the «thank you» page at the end, somebody would be in contact with me within 48 hours to address my comments/​concerns. 48 hours came and went about 4 times, at which point I contacted customer service AGAIN, including now this in my complaint.
I’d love to give this place the benefit of the doubt, especially considering I’ve always enjoyed their burgers and they’ve only just opened. I’d also love to see them straighten out and give this place another chance, but honestly, I’d rather drive all the way to Menlo Park Mall than deal with this nonsense. Still, after this, I’m not sure I’ll return to any Smashburger location at all.

Freaking amazing. So glad this is in my town now.
Got the classic smash, large patty. The flavor was all there, the bun was heavenly soft, the seasoning perfect. Love how can grab 20 of those skinny fries at once dip them in swath of ketchup and devour it in one bite. Amazing. I don’t usually give 5 stars out, but this is quality for a good price. Couldn’t be happier with the location and service. 5 star burger joint I am going back for the second day in a row.
I noticed some have updated their reviews with inconsistent experiences, so I will let you know if this turns out any different today. I seriously laughed when I read the very first review and they gave it 1 star because of «the noise» and the open-​style ceiling. The manager even came and asked how everything is and they told him they will not be going back? HAHA. Your loss, you go to a burger joint and expect some type of french restaurant décor or something? Sorry no, don’t change my Smashburger. Makes you wonder if it was written by a local competitor.
Will update if I have any sub-​par experiences though since I will be frequenting here.

Smash Burger.
This location of Smash Burger is in the Clark Commons shopping center which is on Raritan Road and Walnut Ave. in Clark, N.J.
There is plenty of parking available for customers in the adjacent lot including handicap spaces.
Hours of operation are: Monday to Friday 10 am to 10 pm and Saturday and Sunday 10 am to 11pm.

The establishment itself is very clean and brand new, but nothing fancy in décor. They offer sit down dining, to-​go orders, and even online ordering for pick up.
The ordering process is at the counter. They have a large menu that hangs over head with various types of hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, french fries, salads and hand spun shakes to choose from. They also offer an option of creating your own burger or chicken sandwich by picking your own toppings, bun, and sauces. Everything is priced individually except for the kids meals. They come as combos with a fry and small soft drink.
Fountain soft drinks are offered as well as refrigerated bottled soda, water, juices and iced tea diet and non-​diet.
I ordered the «Classic Big Smash» which comes with smash sauce, lettuce, tomato, American cheese, onions and pickles on a meat patty on an egg bun. Price is $ 6.39. I found the patty kind of dry on the outside and a little under cooked on the inside. The lettuce was fresh and the tomato was juicy. The cheese was melted right into the patty which added some flavor along with the Smash sauce. I feel I have had better and it deserved a two star rating.
I also ordered the regular sized French fries. I found them very thin like straw and flavorless. They were not crispy. Price is $ 1.99. I was not impressed, definitely a one star rating.
I did like the «Avocado Club Smash». That burger was flavorful. It comes with lettuce, tomato, avocado, apple wood smoked bacon and mayo on a multi — grain bun. Price is $ 6.69. The burger was moist and cooked just right. I felt that the combination of toppings plus the bun gave the burger a really nice flavor. I would rate this at three stars.
I had the sweet potato «Smash Fries» tossed with rosemary, olive oil and garlic seasoning. Price is $ 2.49. They were a thicker cut of fry, which had a crisp consistency and you could taste the sweet potato and rosemary blend. I would give these fries three stars.
Would I come back again? Yes! If I was in the mood for fast food and in the area, I would give other options on their menu a try.

UPDATE: I went this week and I was less impressed. My burger was good, but it was average for Smashburger whereas last week was fantastic. They also got my fries wrong as well as my friends. We ordered large Smash fries but got plain. We got them exchanged, but in both cases they seemed to be giving out less fries than I’v had in the past at other locations. Like I said, it’s still good, but this location was average this time rather than the standout they were last time.
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FIRST REVIEW: Couldn’t be happier. I’ve been to a couple other Smashburgers and this one was the best tasting I’ve had yet. Everything tasted fantastic. It was honestly one of the best burgers I’ve ever had.
It can get a little crowded since it’s brand new, but I still got my food quickly.
I’m really happy this place opened up.

UPDATE: Ordered a Spicy Baja Smashburger and regular fries this time around. It was much better overall than the previous experience. Everything was fresh and tasty. Fries were crispy and not over-​salted. My order was ready shortly after it was ordered at the register.
Previous experience–
Online ordering experience: I used Smashburger’s online ordering service to arrange a pickup within 20 minutes of ordering. I ordered a truffle mushroom swiss chicken sandwich with smash fries and a PB&J shake. I’ve never tried Smashburger before.
Ordering and pickup: The online ordering process went well, the interface is nothing great. Upon reaching the location at the requested pick up time, patrons are corralled on the line to the registers. Once I got the register, I was told I could wait over by the waitstaff area to pickup my order. It would’ve been nice to know this before wasting time on the line.
The pickup area is right next to the area waitstaff picks up food from the kitchen. There’s no barrier between the customers and the waitstaff there, and I think this adds to the confusion since customers, including myself, were constantly walking up to the waitstaff and asking about orders, and adding to the disorganization at the pick up area. My shake was ready right away, but the rest of the order took a bit more time to complete, about 10 more minutes than I’d anticipated, including the time I wasted waiting for my turn at the register. When I was finally presented with my food, the fries that I ordered were missing, and they stated that it wasn’t a part of the ticket that they had. I showed them the email invoice from Smashburger, which included the fries, and they quickly corrected that discrepancy.
Food: They got my order correct, so that’s a plus. Truffle mushroom swiss chicken sandwich — chicken was a bit salty and very, very thin. The toppings, which all have very mild flavors, were overpowered by the saltiness of the chicken breast. The sandwich didn’t provide a good value in my opinion. The smash fries were very salty and very greasy. The saltiness of the fries easily overpowered the rosemary and garlic flavors. The shoestring type fries weren’t very crispy either. Perhaps the olive oil made them soggy. The shake was good, though the peanut butter was more prevalent than the jelly.
Overall: I’d give them 2.5 stars, but Unilocal only allows whole star ratings. I’ll give them the benefit of a doubt since it’s a new location. The food was OK, the service was good, if a bit disorganized, particularly with regard to things like signage. I would also add a barrier between where customers wait to pick up take-​out orders and the waitstaff area.