Shake Shack Holiday Shakes Review: A Sweet Lineup That Delivers On All Fronts

It's not even Thanksgiving yet, and Shake Shack is already in the giving mood this fall. The chain took aim at McDonald's Big Mac with its own quality take on the double decker burger — The Big Shack — and the results were a giant handful of deliciousness. As we inch closer to Christmas and wintertime, many food and drink chains are focusing their attention, and hopefully ours, on new products to scarf down and sip up this holiday season. Starbucks dropped an awesome exclusive at Target with its new Frozen Peppermint Hot Chocolate. Now, Shake Shack is hoping to ring in the new year (and hear its cash registers ring up a lot of sales) with a trio of holiday shakes.

This year's line-up sees the return of Christmas Cookie Shake, and the debut of the Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake and the Peppermint Bark Chocolate Shake. With our minds all over the place, with Thanksgiving trimmings to trim, and gifts to buy for our friends and loved ones, where do these shakes land on your priority list? The fine folks at Shake Shack invited The Takeout to its Innovation Kitchen to take in all this dairy-ness in one sitting, and with a full belly, and full set of taste testing notes, we're ready to reveal all. So, are Shake Shack's holiday shakes another gift to round out the year, or are they full of jeer? Here we ho-ho-go!

Since at least 2015, Shake Shack has been offering up holiday-themed shakes to spread further joy at the end of the year. As the clock ticks towards 2026, it has three shakes for the taking: the returning Christmas Cookie Shake, as well as introducing the Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake and the Peppermint Bark Chocolate Shake. The Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake has previously made the rounds overseas as far back as 2022, but is now ready for its U.S. debut.

The Christmas Cookie Shake is a sugar cookie frozen custard topped with whipped cream and holiday sprinkles. The Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake is Shake Shack's take on the classic British holiday dessert, hand-spun with vanilla frozen custard and caramelized brown sugar, topped with whipped cream and a drizzle of sticky toffee pudding sauce. The Peppermint Bark Chocolate Shake is chocolate frozen custard hand-spun with mint chocolate fudge in a crackable white chocolate peppermint bark shell, topped with whipped cream and peppermint candy bits.

Due to the success and excitement behind Shake Shack's Dubai Chocolate Shake and its fun cracked shell, the Peppermint Bark Chocolate Shake is a sort of inverse, holiday next gen extension on it. It took many rounds of testing to get it right. Nick Wuest, Senior Manager of Culinary Innovation, Shake Shack told us that it's really putting Shake Shack's nationwide 400+ kitchens to the test, especially when it comes to prep. "They're doing very real, very legitimate pastry chocolatier work in the mornings now, where a year ago, they probably never had any idea that this was coming their way," he said.

Peppermint Bark Chocolate Shake is joining The Christmas Cookie Shake and Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake on the Shake Shack menu this holiday season at participating nationwide locations, starting November 18. The three shakes will be available, while supplies last, for a limited time only. They may remain on menus into 2026, but will budding adieu by January 6.

The shakes are available anytime Shake Shack is open for business. They are available in one size only, and can be ordered in-store at the register, kiosk, or drive-thru where available. Advance orders for dine-in, pick-up, or delivery can be placed through the Shake Shack app or website. The Christmas Cookie Shake and the Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake retail for $6.99, and the Peppermint Bark one for $9.99. Prices may vary by location, and additional fees may apply for delivery orders.

The Christmas Cookie Shake will net a customer 840 calories, 43 grams of total fat, 26 grams of saturated fat, 260 milligrams of cholesterol, 840 milligrams of sodium, 96 grams of total carbohydrates, 94 grams of sugar, and 20 grams of protein. It contains the allergens milk, eggs, and soy.

The Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake contains 930 calories, 44 grams of total fat, 27 grams of saturated fat, 275 milligrams of cholesterol, 710 milligrams of sodium, 105 grams of total carbohydrates, 94 grams of sugar, and 19 grams of protein. It contains the allergens milk, egg, and wheat.

The Peppermint Bark Shake is loaded with 1,320 calories, 75 grams of total fat, 53 grams of saturated fat, 1 ½ grams of trans fat, 275 milligrams of cholesterol, 410 milligrams of sodium, 151 grams of total carbohydrates, 5 grams of fiber, 135 grams of sugar, and 19 grams of protein. It contains the allergens egg, milk, and soy.

Even though the Christmas Cookie Shake has been around since 2015, this is my first experience with it. On top, a whipped mound of cream billows beyond the top of the cup, outfitted with a variety of red and green confetti sprinkle shapes. From the outside of the clear plastic cup, the body of this shake has a pale yellow hue which gives off a soothing vibe. I leaned in for a whiff and it didn't have a discernible enough smell to relay. 

Before delving into the shake itself, I spoonfed a few helpings of said sprinkles. There's nothing particularly special about them, as they are a tad coarse and dry, and when my teeth got a hold of them, it turned into a pasty grist. Let's just call them what they are — lovely seasonal decorations.

I pushed my straw towards the bowels of this shake and took a sip. My first reaction was a gleeful one, and I quickly came to understand why this is a perennial favorite for Shake Shackers. It certainly has the flavor elements of a Christmas sugar cookie with a milky butteriness, and where super-sweetened vanilla is taken to the nth degree. While one might expect actual cookie pieces to be found hanging out within the body of the shake, my straw didn't detect any after endless hearty sips. This shake may be on the saccharine side, but if you're taking on a shake called "Christmas Cookie," you know what you're in for, and you're probably all in. So go all in, right?

The Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake has a similar look to the Christmas Cookie one, with stark white whipped cream and a fortune cookie-like yellow coloring. Instead of sprinkles, this one has a brown drizzle that looks like caramel, but is a special one to reinforce its sticky toffee pudding flavoring. As my nose hovered over the shake and inhaled, I was put-off by its odor. Is a shake supposed to smell like... leather? 

Smell is one thing, taste is another, and so I started with spoonfuls of the syrup, which had settled and become deeply entrenched with the cream. This drippy syrup also started off with an odd introduction. It wasn't anything I was expecting, richly sugary or perhaps a dose of nuttiness. It had a nice and lean flavoring to it, and was unlike most syrups that top shakes and ice creams in the United States.

As sticky toffee pudding isn't a common thing on this side of the pond, the shake itself tasted a bit unusual to me. However, my opinion and respect for this shake grew exponentially with each subsequent sip. The shake is actually made with a piece of date cake inside, and since it's so soft, it doesn't need to be pre-crumbled, and naturally mixes in with the shake base during blending. While I was becoming more accustomed to its wonderfully rich and complex flavor, small bits of date cake were seeping through the straw, adding more fun to this already festive treat. By the time I called it quits, I had a better understanding of what sticky toffee pudding should taste like. Thanks, Shake Shack.

Imagine a candy cane falling from the sky, broken into shards, and soft landing on the comfy bedding of whipped cream. This is the introduction to the Peppermint Bark Chocolate Shake my eyes imagined. I gave a whiff to the shake, and it had some real menthol-like vibes, solidifying its minty bonafides. The top is only the beginning of this shake's amusement, as it's lined with a magic crackable white chocolate peppermint bark shell that lines the innards of the plastic cup. I was scared a squeeze would crack the cup itself, and was relieved that my hands did what was intended, injecting the bark into the shake.

Again, I started my taste test with this shake by noodling around with what was adorning the mountain of whipped cream. This was by far the most adventurous of the three shakes, with those peppermint stick shards not only looking pretty, but also adding a new layer of tactile delight. Peppermint sticks are usually big trouble for the teeth, but here they are already broken down and ready to be munched on for pure enjoyment. I was having such a lovely time working on those top pieces alone that I almost neglected my duties to try the rest of the shake.

Down below lies the peppermint-infused chocolate shake. Occasionally pieces of the broken side bark or the peppermint candy shards get scooped up in a straw pull, but the chocolate shake shined through the most. What's great about this one is how restrained the peppermint taste is. The flavoring is literally all around, but it doesn't come at you in a dull force, ensuring it won't quickly wear out its delectable welcome.

While the Christmas Cookie and Sticky Toffee Pudding shakes had already been available for a week at Shake Shack, the chain is priming the Peppermint Bark Chocolate Shake to be the surprise gift of the trio. It has a heftier price tag by three whole dollars, and a festive top that's trying to steal the cheer thunder from the other two. It is definitely worth a try, especially if chocolate shakes and peppermint flavoring is your dynamic duo, but you could use the same amount of money on that mammoth Big Shack burger.

Personally, my mouth was wrestling between a love of the Christmas Cookie Shake and the Sticky Toffee Pudding one. There's just so much agreeable awesomeness going on here between the two. The Christmas Cookie delivers a familiar holiday flavor, but in a cool, thick form that's sure to set your mood right for the rest of the year. But there was just something so special about that Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake that my heart ultimately warmed up to it the most. As my time in the Innovation Kitchen was coming to an end, I asked Chef Wuest and Innovation Kitchen Coordinator, Nathan Quinto how they were able to translate this British treat to American palates. There were a lot of notes from founder Danny Meyer, and even a trip to England for further investigation. 

All that R&D paid off handsomely, and for further proof of its excellence, it tasted best with Shake Shack's famous crinkle fries dipped into it. This duo made for such an amazing sweet and savory combo that the fries should be compulsory as a side that comes with the Sticky Toffee Pudding Shake. It's truly a taste gift that keeps on giving.