Shake Shack confirms March opening at CentralWorld

Shake Shack (finally) confirmed opening at CentralWorld in March yesterday via its social media channels. Last May, the American fast-casual burger chain announced its planned arrival in Thailand for the first time, with a logo representing an elephant holding a burger with its trunk.

Now, a black construction fence has been installed in front of CentralWorld, featuring an eye-catching mural by Chiang-Mai-born Thai-Indian artist Navin Rawanchaikul, who is best known for his vintage movie poster aesthetic in paintings, but he worked with various mediums.

Before becoming a burger boom with more than 400 locations worldwide, Shake Shack had humble beginnings as a hot dog cart in New York’s Madison Square Park in 2001. Navin is the perfect choice to do the painting mural of Shake Shack Thailand since he created an image that was pasted on the cart that would later evolve into Shake Shack today. The cart was designed to support his “I Heart Taxi” exhibit, which featured taxi statues on stilts as art installations that people can sit under for shade in Madison Square Park. It was organized with the aim of improving the park. The contemporary Thai artist also presented a large mural titled The Description of the World at the 59th La Biennale di Venezia International Art Exhibition last year in partnership with Swatch and subsequently released a Swatch watch based on the same design.

The Shake Shack Thailand mural at CentralWorld is described as “a journey through the arts and food” and if you look closely you’ll see the faces of Navin, Shake Shack founder Danny Meyer and CEO Randy Garuti. It looks like Shake Shack is planning to be here for the long haul as it announced its ambition to open 15 branches in Thailand by 2032.

As usual for any famous food franchise import, be prepared for a long line to get your hands on a Double ShackBurger or chocolate shake at the opening. More info at fb.com/shakeshackthailand.

*All photos courtesy of Shake Shack Thailand