Jack’s Drive-In

My brother and I bought takeout at this hamburger drive in on Saturday, ⁶⁄₁₈. It is located about ten minutes from his house in Troy. For those who like to dine outdoors there are some tables where you can consume your food. There is plenty of parking.
Service was prompt and polite. We ordered burgers ($ 2.00) and a large order of fries to share. The burgers were slider sized and barely bigger than White Castle’s at twice the cost. I preferred the latter after tasting the burger here. The burgers also were topped with an overwhelming amount of onions. The fries were awful. They bore the aftertaste of rancid and overused oil.
I would not return here under any circumstances.

There are positives. There are negatives. You decide which is which.
I think the allure of this place and many of the high star reviews are based on childhood memory. After all, I would give the old Story Town in Lake George 5 stars based on my memories from 1978. I’m sure if I went there now, it would influence my review based on the things that are left over from 1978 that I remember. I think that’s what is happening here.
That’s kind of how I see this place. With that said, though, I have no old memories to base this on, and need to review based on today. So, here I am.
The burger. I have read that this has won best burger in the capital region more than once in one newspaper poll. After eating a few of these, I have to tell you that I do not get it. People giving this dried out bland hockey puck with overcooked onions on it need to look past their childhood. This thing was not good on more than one occasion. The only thing that wasn’t overcooked was the bun it was on. And, if you had taken the time to grill it a bit, it would have helped, I’m sure. As it stood? I cannot give this more than 1, maybe 1.5 stars.
The dogs. They were standard fare. Fresh rolls, mini dogs, meat sauce, onions and mustard. Living in the virtual hot bed of mini dogs, you have competition. And I think the thing that makes any mini dog with the works is the sauce. Once again, the lack of spice/​flavor jumps out at me. The sauce is neutral. It doesn’t push it over the top. It doesn’t push it to the bottom. Standard meat sauce with a complete lack of kick. These where okay, but I can’t give them more than 2 stars most. Just nothing to make them stand out.
The fries. Complete home run. These saved the 3 star review because they are hot, fresh, crisp and delicious shoestrings. I got the small order and ketchup on the side. Gave them a cursory shake of pepper and salt, and went about eating lunch. Kept coming back to these because they were oh so good. I finished these first and made a mental note to go get more. After finishing my meal, I went back and grabbed a large fry to go so i could snack on these crispy hot shoestrings on the way home. Counter guy suggested cheese sauce. I got it on the side, and am eating these with said cheese sauce as we speak. VERY good. Great suggestion.
Anyway, I went here expecting a great burger, and left marvelling and bloated from the fries. I’ll come back again, but it will be for the fries.
Memory be damned.

Love this place. It is defiantly a staple of the community. You know it opens when you can smell all the food when walking into Hannaford a little down the road. They can take like 20 people in line, take all the orders at once and then not actually mess up any of the orders. That’s talent. They are get in, get out place and the real definition of fast food. The price is a little high but other than that it’s amazing.

Visited over the weekend on our way home from a hike — we were starving and left feeling satisfied. I feel like there is a lot of hype surrounding the place, as there is with most seasonal drive ins. Did they live up to the hype? I suppose… I didn’t go in with very high expectations since I have been to other similar places, so I knew was I was in for.
Got two cheeseburgers and split a large order of fries with my sister. The fries were crisp, and the burgers were satisfying. Nothing overly great about them. They’re considered «cheap», but when it takes more than 2 burgers to feel full, and each are over $ 2 a piece, I don’t really consider that cheap.
Sister in law got a raspberry milkshake, which I tasted and thought was tasty. I didn’t see that they offer soft serve ice cream, which would probably make for a nice addition, and attract more business as well.
Overall, I’d return if I were nearby, but definitely wouldn’t go out of my way to visit.

I’ve eaten here many times before and the burgers are REALLY good. They are a little expensive, but the yummy onions on their trademark slider are worth it. They also have shakes and fries that never disappoint.

During the 50’s and early 60’s our family had a summer home on Glass Lake and winter home in Troy. On trips to and from these, a frequent stop would be Jack’s drive-​in. I was just a young lad but remembered the smell and taste all my life. Fast forward to 2006 and we now lived in Bath Township, Ohio. My son, his wife and I took a road trip to NYC and up to Troy and Glass Lake, then over to Niagara Falls. I did say this was a road trip. On the way to the lake, I mentioned that there used to be a hamburger stand on the way called Jack’s and next thing you know, there it was. We stopped and although it was a different building, the smell was just the same. We ordered and ate and then went and reordered. Simply the best. My son still is amazed on my recollection of this place and how great it was/​is. I live in San Tan Valley, AZ now, and I am pestering my son to go on another road trip.

I went there recently for my Summer grease fest and I don’t care what the experts say OMG Jacks still does it

I love this place. Every time I’m up in Hoosick I go here if they’re open.
Been since I was a kid. Use to not be a big fan of onions, but now I always get them.

I’m on team Lauren L. with this one.
Every year when spring rolls around, I had been hearing people talk about Jack’s for burgers. And every year, summer would turn to fall and I never seemed to make it a priority to head out to Wynantskill for these sliders.
It didn’t quite seem like anything really that special. Part of me thought that perhaps you had to grow up with Jack’s as an annual tradition to really enjoy it. So instead, I went other places.
Then I stumbled upon Lauren’s review which said that Jack’s was all about the onions.
She’s right. Holy cow, was she right. The onions I got on my burger weren’t simply grilled. They were deeply caramelized. And maybe I got lucky. Perhaps on some days when they get slammed the grill has the rush the onions and they’re simply greasy and grilled. But that was not my experience.
It turns out my son has a new found love for burgers. But he only likes them when they are very flat. Plus, he will only eat them with ketchup and nothing else. Jack’s totally worked for him too.
We shared an order of fries, which were crispy and totally unimpeachable. Although, I’m not really crazy about ketchup being served on the fries instead of in a cup on the side for dipping. But that’s a small matter.
Call me a light weight, but one onion cheeseburger and a half order of fries was enough food for me. Was I stuffed? No. But I was satisfied. And more importantly, I had saved room for dessert. Which is important on trips out there, because it’s mighty close to a very special seasonal ice cream stand.

Good food. Menu could offer more. Prices are decent. Environment is nice. Servings could be bigger.

Lower your expectations!!!
This place is not fancy, is not healthy, is not particularly clean, the staff is not particularly friendly, and the food is not particularly good.
Why 4 stars then? you ask… Because the sliders are delicious. I eat there maybe once a year (any more and I’d be afraid of constant heart attacks). Go on a cheat day from your diet and do it right! 3 cheeseburgers with the works (Ketchup and fried onions), some cheese fries, and a milkshake. After this drive home, lay on your couch and enjoy the food baby now working its way through your gastrointestinal system over a long nap and a Netflix bender.
To address the bad reviews due to their mini-​dog quality: DON’T GET THE MINI-​DOGS!!! that’s not what Jack’s is for. That’s what Famous Lunch in Troy or Gus’s in Watervliet is for.

It’s almost impossible to drive by Jack’s and not stop for sliders. Their food isn’t exactly healthy or elegant– but if you want some tasty, sloppy food, this is the place to go. It’s quick, delicious, and cheap.

I always enjoy going to jacks. Cheeseburgers, mini hotdogs and cheese fries. Recommended~

2 STARS: I went to Jacks Drive Inn today in Wynantskill for burgers and dogs with high hopes. There are only two words needed to describe the best mini burgs and dogs in the capital region: Famous Lunch. The counter guy at Jack’s acted like we should be humble and thankful to be ordering at such a precious establishment. Here’s the scoop, the buns were stale, meat sauce was bland, the mini burger, not slider, was ehh, and the onions were so mushy it looked like they were regurgitated by a mother bird into a Gerber like consistency. The best thing on the menu was the milkshake quality and variety which is why I gave it 2 stars not 1.
It was a struggle trying to wrap my head around the seemingly endless long line of customers, whom I hope have damaged taste buds, standing anxiously, willing to throw away good money on this sub-​par mediocrity. This place gets a lot of hype, maybe so much that it ruined it for me, but I highly doubt it, all I can say is that it certainly didn’t pan out for this guy.

This place is filthy. They wear gloves and touch money with it then touch your food. Standing there for 5 min the health department would close them if they saw what I saw. That’s disgusting.

Cheap and yummy! My boyfriend and I came here a lot during the warmer months. It’s super affordable and tastes great! I liked their burgers and mini hot dogs. I definitely recommend coming here

Been going here since I was a little kid. Just good burgers and calm atmosphere. Know what you want when you get to the window because the line Waits for no one.

I thought I reviewed Jack’s before, and I was thinking that it’d be weird writing this on the heels of a four or five star review. I’m a fan of greasy spoons; they’re some of my favorite places around. I loved Jack’s, and I was a big fan of their cheese burgers with the works. I’m a die-​hard Famous Lunch enthusiast, but when I heard that Jack’s was doing mini hotdogs, I wanted to try it out at the very least. After visiting, I discovered that they were kind of shit. I couldn’t even finish my order, and I threw the rest out. The burgers seemed to lack any of the seasoning they once had. I think the quality of Jack’s is inversely proportional to their payment options, and the cash-​only days of their prime are long behind us.

OK, I’ve been told that I must experience Jack’s sliders so I was bored and in the area and decided to take the drive out on 66 and go get one of these «famous» sliders.
Firstly, I was always under the impression that a slider was supposed to be smaller such as a White Castle slider which every burger eating person should know White Castle and Bill Ingram created the slider… so enough of the history lesson, let’s get to the review.
I ordered 3 with cheese and some fries and a drink…$ 9.99, what the heck I payed for it, right?
I was handed three smushed down Freihofer’s burger buns (seriously they were smushed down and looked as appetizing as the discarded bin burgers they toss out at McDonald’s.
So in 75 years someone figured the best thing to wrap that slab of grease around was a simple day old store bought roll? Congratulations on the mediocrity…
The fries they served to me smothered in ketchup, not that I asked for it but I guess the over eager burger slingers assumed everyone likes their store bought fries drowning in a pool of ketchup.
The onions on the burger were really just greasy, slimy strings of onion and not really caramelized, just really greasy stringy slimy things to help disguise exactly how cheap these thrown together ingredients really are.
I have had burgers across the country and a burger the size of a McDonald’s patty is NOT a slider. White Castle, Krystal, etc… those are sliders, not just a term you think it should be because it will slide down because of all the unsettling oil and grease these things are saturated in.
Terrible experience after all the hype from people that apparently have no idea what quality ingredients will produce.
BTW, never assume everyone wants to eat their food one way and then carelessly toss your product together and hand it over as if it is somehow an inconvenience. There are other places worth driving to with better prices, service, and food.

I adore this place for what it is — cheap and awesome drive-​in food.
My usual — burger with everything, cheese fries, and a side of their onions for the cheese fries. Plus ketchup on the side please.
Their caramelized onion mix is amazing and really what makes this 5 stars for me. Without that onion mix, I probably would rate Jack’s a 3.