A decent turnout braved the wind Tuesday evening for Shake Shack’s second Cruisin’ + Burgers event, a partnership with Oldies Productions with J.C. Hackett that brought classic cars and classic music to Kimball Junction.
About 20 vehicles and their drivers made the trek to the Junction Commons parking lot, some from homes just behind the outlet mall, others as far as Evanston, Wyoming. It was a free gathering, and car owners could enter their vehicles for the chance to win awards, dash plaques and Shake Shack gift cards.
The idea of hosting a classic car came from the restaurant’s area director, Will Hoard, who grew up attending car shows as a teenager. When he started in the role a few years ago, he started a similar event down in Murray at Fashion Place Mall. That one ran for five years and drew around 150 cars, but new management this year had Hoard looking for a new parking lot.
And with the Park City location freshly opened in January, Junction Commons seemed like a great fit, and management gave the green light.
“I think our food ties into it as well,” said Hoard about Shake Shack’s decision to host a classic car show. “You think back to the old days when there’s a restaurant with the burger, fry and the shake out front — the drive-in. I mean, that’s just what comes to mind, so I think our food just pairs with it.”
Cruisin’ + Burgers is planned to run as a monthly series, the second Tuesday of each month, and May’s event acted as a trial run. This Tuesday went even better, said Hoard.
Even car participants Laurence and Linda Struble weren’t sure what to expect, and they were impressed by the turnout. The couple, Park City residents, had driven over in their 1981 Allard British race car. But actually, it was built more like the late ’50s, early ’60s, Linda said.
“It was brought from Canada into the United States, and it didn’t have an engine, so they didn’t have to pay import tax. When they dropped the engine, a Chrysler 358, in it, then they titled it in 1981. But all the parts are from 1964-55,” she said. “The parts were older than the car’s title.”
The couple got the car from Linda’s dad, a car enthusiast who owned a body shop in Florida, when he passed away.
Linda said she remembered her dad always fixing cars and drag racing, and he would even cut cars in half and weld together a front from one and the back from another to make his own “monster” cars. At the shop, her brother was the mechanic, and she’d help do body work.
They hadn’t gotten around to painting the Allard, though, especially with the cost of that kind of work in Park City these days.
The couple is part of the Park City Car Club, too. They’re happy about any opportunity to get their car on the road, even if the risk of parts going out could mean a big headache. As for Laurance, he’ll do anything for a shake.
Alongside the Strubles’ car were parked a few more oldies, some with vibrant paint jobs, even flames, others with a more worn-in look. But it wasn’t limited to old cars, said Hoard.
“If you (think) your car (is) special, you can go put it in. No one’s judging it,” he said.
Emily Page had driven up from Eagle Mountain with her 2024 Chevy Corvette “Stinger” Stingray. She also helped run the event.
As a car enthusiast, she’d been to plenty of car shows in the region. It’s an opportunity to connect with her community, but the best part is getting to drive her car. When she got her stinger just over a year ago, it had 3 miles on it. Now it has over 8,200 miles.
Hoard said the best part about car shows is how they bring out all age groups, and Tuesday’s crowd certainly proved the point. Kids, teens, families and oldies wandered the lot, packed the Shake Shack booths and cashed in their participation prize: free custard.
“We make that fresh, in-house, every couple of hours, so this is not something we just get shipped to us,” said Hoard. “We actually make it. It’s made with real cane sugar, (so,) no artificial sweeteners.”
They have vanilla, chocolate, or a mix of both available to anyone who swings by.
In addition to the custard “prize,” four cars will be chosen each month by Shake Shack staff to receive special Shake Shack plaques, and there will also be four award giveaways throughout the evening.
The next events are scheduled for 5-8 p.m. on July 14, Aug. 11 and Sept. 8, and Hoard said they may try a trunk-or-treat-themed iteration in October, depending on the weather.
