Wiener and Berkey of L&L Holding Co. arrange 4,774 s/f lease to Shake Shack

Shake Shack will open its second location in the Grand Central district. The burger chain has signed a 15-year lease for 4,774 s/f at 600 Third Ave., the 42-story office tower that occupies the entire westerly blockfront between 39th and 40th Sts. The building is owned by L&L Holding Co., LLC in partnership with Blackrock. The new Shake Shack, which is scheduled to open this fall, is expected to build on the success of its Grand Central Station location, which opened inside the terminal's dining concourse in late 2013. The new Third Ave. store - located in front of the Hampton Jitney bus stop - will occupy the ground floor space and lower level formerly occupied by Qdoba Mexican Grill on the corner of East 40th St. Andrew Goldberg and Matthew Chmielecki of CBRE represented Shake Shack, while Andrew Wiener, director of leasing, together with David Berkey of L&L, represented the building ownership. "Shake Shack is a very exciting tenant for our building and the entire neighborhood," said Wiener. "This location straddles the Midtown office market to the north and a vibrant residential market to the south, making it an ideal location for the brand. There's been pent-up demand for new restaurants and eateries along the Third Ave. retail corridor and this new Shake Shack will be a welcome addition to the area." The deal closely coincides with L&L's planned multi-million renovation of the building's plaza area, which will include state-of-the-art infrastructure improvements, new landscaping and moveable seating for outside dining. Other retail tenants at the distinctive 550,000 s/f office tower include FedEx Kinkos and Equinox's Blink Fitness. Shake Shack is part of Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG), which includes celebrated restaurants, including Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, The Modern, among others. The original Shake Shack opened in Manhattan's Madison Square Park in 2004. Founded in 2000, Manhattan-based L&L Holding Company, LLC is a privately owned real estate investment company with a current portfolio in excess of 5.5 million s/f of office space primarily in Manhattan.