Island Burgers & Shakes

The burgers were good but this place is so small. Staff was not friendly at all. If you’re going for a fairly early dinner, this place is dead. We would have enjoyed somewhere with a more fun atmosphere. We did like the slider trio special. Interesting, unique burgers.

I ordered the Patty Melt, and it was underwhelming. There wasn’t enough flavor and the onions were more sweated than caramelized. However, my friend had ordered something else, and she LOVED the sauce on her burger. Perhaps that’s the key here– order a burger with some sort of sauce on it.
The prices are decent for the area, and the wait staff was very nice– especially when I asked the waiter for my burger to be cooked more.
The fries were delicious, but the order is large and you can easily share it between two hungry people.

AMAZING!!! Loved it, cant wait to go back and try some more things off the menu!

My favorite burger in NYC, among 20 other places…
Best smile from the staff… Especially Emma !

I had the «Sam I Am» burger on ciabatta with sweet potato fries. Everything was SO fresh and the flavors of the burger melded so well together, the fried egg was my favorite part! Started the meal With the grilled asparagus & the corn on the cob (served in 4 small cobs to share). Overall, VERY impressed and left feeling full but not gluttonous. Kudos to Yanna (from Bulgaria) for taking such great care of us. Went during the lunch hour & was able to get a seat quickly. Will definitely be back!

Great flavor… worth $ 15/​burger. Pleasant atmosphere and great service.

Great option for the UWS, for a casual place to chill.
Recommend getting a reservation since the place is teeeeeny, but they do have quite a few seats at the bar.
The service was great! Super fast and really nice. We ordered a variety, Tijuana burger, South of the Border burger, and the Big Ass Fijitas.
The Fajitas were infact, a big ass portion. I tried the chicken, and it was cooked perfectly, lots of things to dress it up with, and DEFINITELY something you should share.
My south of the border burger was fantastic, the best part being the burger itself. Honestly, all the stuff around it just took away from it, I think you’re best off building your own burger and putting it what you want, because its the burger that is probably one of the best in town.
All together, we ordered a bottle of wine + burgers and left paying about $ 30/​each, which, let’s be real, is a little ridiculous for a burger, but I get it.

I used to love this place. The burgers were amazing. The black and white shake was really well done and sometimes I’d just walk by and take some fries to go.
My last visit was anything but (few weeks before writing this review). Everything just looked… worn out. I ordered corn on the cob (a new addition to the menu) and some onion rings before the burgers. The waitress told me she didn’t give us plates and napkins since we «didn’t need them because the burgers come in a plate». My partner gave me a «don’t do it» look before I would say anything. Corn on the cob was terrible and tasted old. The onion rings were okayish but the dipping sauces never came with them. The burgers were still good. Presentation dropped a lot. I don’t know what going on around here but I hope it gets better. Till then, I’m going elsewhere. Service makes or breaks it for me. In this case, regretfully it was the latter.

As far as burgers go, Island burgers gets a stamp of approval. You’re not going to get anything spectacular but they are happy to personalize your burger for you, have an ample choice of toppings, and give a plentiful amount of fries.
Warning that Island can sometimes feel understaffed so you may wind up waiting a while for your check as you awkwardly make eye contact with your dining neighbors who are still waiting to order.

Really wanted this place to be good as we were both very hungry. Patties were fresh but bland and under seasoned. Fries were really not good enough, at least twice fried, like a bucket of the pieces collected from the bottom of the frier. So poor, I can’t even be sure if they were fresh or previously frozen.
Service was neglectful. Will never return. Burgers and shakes can be done much better at this price point. Recommend caution.

I much prefer Island Burgers & Shakes over Shake Shack. There’s a homeyness that you get here and the vibe is so casual that I feel so relaxed.
We opted to order two burgers and they’re HUGE!!! I couldn’t even fit it into my mouth but both were super tender, juicy (we love medium rare). The bun could barely hold the monstrosity together. It wasn’t buttery juicy like Shake Shack (which I don’t like).
Their fries were ok — I really wish they allowed ½’rs where you could have half regular half sweet potato fries.

Great Burger but sooooo expensive. Around $ 16 per Burger and it comes… be prepared… with NOTHING! So add french fries and a soda and you’ll get out of there broke. It you want to take with girlfriend or boyfriend you better save the money and rather spend it in Per Se!
The burgers are amazing but not worth it. B&B in soho has the best burgers for ~$ 16 and it comes with the most amazing sweet potato fries.

Great local burger place on the UWS — wish I’d tried it sooner! It’s a small place, so not a ton of seating and you’ll likely get a little cozy with your neighbor. Although we didn’t bring any, we noticed children at a few of the tables — it seemed to be a family friendly atmosphere. The vibe was calm relaxing, and pleasant. Friendly and prompt service.
The menu was visually appealing and well organized. They have a great variety of burgers, but I didn’t notice an option for alternative burgers like turkey or vegetarian which would have been nice. We had the Roma and Mike’s Pool Hall — both were delicious and cooked to the perfect temperature per our requests. We also shared the cheese fries, which were fantastic — I’d come back just for those! Definitely plan to visit again and try some other options from their diverse menu.

Great burgers and chicken sandwich ,
Probably the best meal that I had the whole time I had in NY .
As you know NY is expensive and the waiters think that they are doing you a favor and usually the food is terrible. But this place was surprisingly good !
Good food and decent service!
I think that they have live music on the weekends, so go!!!

I came here with a couple friends last night and I must say the burger was fantastic. Cooked to perfection and really juicy. I had mine with avocado which was ripe and fresh.
Fries were pretty good.
I’ll come back here any time.

My wife and I decided to look for a new restaurant to try. Apparently this place has been here for a few years but we just noticed it. We flipped a coin to pick between island burgers and the Mexican place next door. Obviously island burgers won and thank god it did.
First off they have a house made saison that was pretty good. My wife had crème soda. I ordered the guacamole and chips for an appetizer… Man they have some great GUACAMOLE! It had some serious bite to it and the chips came out SALTED (unlike most restaurants these days) which is how they should be.
I ordered the Will’s burger. It has bacon, cheddar cheese, sour cream, sautéed onions, and scallions on sourdough bread. It was absolutely amazing! The meat was cooked perfectly and all the ingredients were fresh.
My wife ordered the Pepe’s churascos (which is chicken). It had bacon jack cheese guacamole and sautéed onions and regular burger bun. The star of this was the blackened chicken. They don’t just cut a piece of chicken and put it on top of the burger bun, they give you the whole breast. It’s pounded out so it looks like it’s the size of a manhole cover, but it tasted so delicious. Perfectly cooked and a very generous portion.
Oh and I can’t forget about the onion rings. They have the best onion rings I’ve had a New York City! Mainly because they take the time to make their own, but man some good stuff.
All in all Island Burger was a great place to eat. It’s a bit small for a group of people but if it’s just the two of you, you’ll have a great time. Friendly waitstaff, a great menu, and burgers that teter on the edge of gourmet. We will defiantly be going back for some more.

I really like Island Burgers & Shakes. It’s a small cozy spot with friendly service, delicious food, and reasonable prices. I’ve been going to this place for several years and have always been impressed. I am a huge fan of the cheese fries. These things are addicting. Crispy fries smothered in gooey nacho cheese sauce. These things just hit the spot and are a perfect compliment to the burgers or chicken sandwiches. I generally go with the cowboy or tijuana chicken sandwich. Both come with cheese and perfectly cooked crispy bacon. The chicken is grilled to perfection, juicy and flavorful.
Definitely a place to check out if you are craving a tasty sandwich and fries!

Island Burger & Shakes creates a five-​star burger. This is my second time there. I always get a standard cheeseburger, medium. Medium at Island means medium, in the sense that it’s pushing less done (which I like.)
The fries and onion rings are also great. My friend had a strawberry shake, which he said might have been the best shake he’s ever had. I had the black and white, which I was disappointed to see was just vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup. (I prefer a mix of chocolate and vanilla ice cream.)
The only thing that drops it to 4 stars for me is the price. You are approaching $ 20 for a burger and fries, which is on the high end for me. That being said, I always love the burger and will certainly go again. The price just limits me from eating there as often as I would like.

We got their special, which was $ 10 (cash only for this deal, other food takes credit cards) for a cheeseburger, fries and drink (even beer!). It was a great deal for a HUGE portion of food, I tell ya!
I also tried out their black ‘n white milkshake, which wasn’t that great. ‘Eh!

My partner goes to or orders from this place all the time, and I kept wondering, «could it be that good?» Yup!
Her favorite are the «big ass» fajitas. That’s what it says on the menu. «Big ass» fajitas. Even without tasting them I had to like them for making me giggle like a 12 year old and mutter «you wrote ‘ass’ on the menu!» I opted for the Cobb Salad — and it was excellent. Very fresh, delicious dressing — my only feedback was I wish they’d cut up the lettuce and tomatoes so they were bite sized. It was a little challenging to cut up when sitting at the bar, but hey, I rallied and consumed that entire sucker.
There are only two things I wish it could change: first, its name — it’s misleading! Yes, the entire back of the menu is burgers, but these other dishes were really excellent, and there are many other salads offered, too. Second, I wish that, like the Grinch’s heart, it could grow two sizes! It was packed on a Saturday night, which is a credit to their popularity that it was so full. But I wouldn’t go there with more than one or two people.
I’m going to try them again during the week — the lunch special a reviewer mentioned has my name all over it! Enjoy!