# New York City food offers tied to COVID-19 vaccination (May 2021)

The May 2021 New York City food offer was a promotion issued by Shake Shack with the NYC Mayor's Office. It offered a free burger voucher at city mobile vaccine buses, saying the voucher started "Thursday, May 13" while supplies lasted (Shake Shack).

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  New York City food offers tied to COVID-19 vaccination (May 2021)
  The May 2021 New York City food offer was a promotion issued by Shake Shack with the NYC Mayor's Office. It offered a free burger voucher at city mobile vaccine buses, saying the voucher started "Thursday, May 13" while supplies lasted (Shake Shack).

This page records two food offers announced together in May 2021. It does not carry a photograph of the food, the buses, or the briefing. City-run gift cards and the Key to NYC order are on the New York City incentives page. The state scratch-off is on the New York State page.

## Two offers, two rules

Shake Shack's posted terms, on a page headed "NYC: Get Vaxed, Get Shack," say the company teamed with the NYC Mayor's Office. The terms describe two different deals.

- A free ShackBurger voucher, while supplies lasted, for a vaccination at an NYC mobile vaccine bus. The voucher note says it was good for one complimentary single burger, approximate retail value up to $7.89, one time, and that it expired December 31, 2021. The page dates the start as "Thursday, May 13."

- Free crinkle-cut fries, with the purchase of a burger or chicken sandwich, through 11:00 p.m. Eastern on June 12, 2021, at listed New York City Shake Shack locations. Proof was a vaccine card or an Excelsior Pass, shown to the cashier. The terms cap the fries savings at $3.09, limit the offer to one use, and exclude airports, stadiums, ballparks, the app, the web, and delivery.

The page names participating shops, including Madison Square Park, Hudson Yards, and the Fulton Transit Center. It does not say the City paid for the food. It says the company and the Mayor's Office teamed up.

## The May 13 briefing

CBS News, reporting the Thursday briefing, identified the speaker as Mayor Bill de Blasio and dated the partnership to that day. The report quotes him: "Free fries when you get vaccinated? I got vaccinated. You're saying I could get these delicious fries?" and, holding the burger, "If this is appealing to you, just think of this when you think of vaccinations." CBS also reported that a vaccination at a city mobile clinic drew a voucher for a free burger or sandwich, and that proof of vaccination at a city Shake Shack drew free fries with a burger or sandwich through June 12. Those are the report's words for the same two rules.

The Office of the Mayor is the public issuer named on the company page. The mayor's sentences are quotations from the briefing, not a finding that the offer changed a vaccination rate. This page does not make that finding.

## What the July newsletter does not name

A July 2, 2021 newsletter from the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment says adults vaccinated before May 25 could use "discounts and giveaways from other NYC businesses" by showing a CDC vaccination card. That sentence does not name a restaurant. The May 13 food terms are the record that does. Later city-site rewards, including the "$100 pre-paid debit card," are a separate program and stay on the New York City page.

## Sources

- Shake Shack, "NYC: Get Vaxed, Get Shack," posted terms for a Thursday, May 13 start and a June 12, 2021 fries cutoff. shakeshack.com.

- CBS News, "New York Mayor Bill de Blasio tempts New Yorkers with free fries," May 13, 2021. cbsnews.com.

- NYC Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment newsletter, July 2, 2021, which mentions business discounts without naming a restaurant. nyc.gov.

Canonical: https://americanpropaganda.org/topics/covid-us-messaging/new-york-city-food-offers/