Dear AHT,
I'm in St. Louis. The heartland as you politely call it. (Seriously.) Come to think of it, that in itself is pretty funny because we're apparently one of the fattest cities in one of the fattest states, so apparently our hearts aren't to great. Not to cruise off topic, I've a bone to pick with AHT.
Sure I could chastise you on the lack of local/regional burger joints left off your lists or reviews. It is us after all, in the heartland, who raise the cattle for many of your eastern and western burger delights. Being understanding of your lack of a coronary heartland reporter, however, what I can fairly chastise you for is your omittance of the finest of the regional chain burger spots in the Midwest, the little slice of crispy heaven in every bite: Steak 'n Shake.
Geez,
Bill B.
Saint Louis
Dear Bill,
You're right. We're a bit thin in the middle when it comes to burger coverage for lack of regional burger correspondents from the Midwest, South, and mountain states. We're working on rectifying that. As far as Steak 'n Shake goes, we've mentioned it in passing on several best-of lists from some of our friends in burgerdom (though, true, not in an actual field report).
Mr. Cutlets rated Steak 'n Shake No. 1 on his national burger list in May.
Burger documentarian George Motz also placed it on his list, which raised the hackles of AHT reader Nick Butler: "Steak 'n Shake?? Are you kidding me?"
Though I grew up in the Midwest (aka the heartland), I've never had the pleasure of trying one—the chain didn't have a location in suburban Kansas City when I lived there. Now, however, I see that there are two locations near Ma and Pa Burger's house. I'll put S'nS on my dining agenda (along with awesome barbecue) for my visit home at Christmas.
Steak 'n Shake's burgers are mighty tasty but you'll need at least a double if you want to taste any meat. They've rubbed me wrong from the get go and here's why: My main gripe with them is that it's WAY to expensive for what you get. Their shoestring fries are great but are always cold, probably because their small size doesn't allow for heat retention. And, you never seem to get many no matter what size you order. Plus, you used to have to request each item you wanted on your burger INDIVIDUALLY! You couldn't just say "everything." They actually required you to list every goddamn thing you wanted. How f*cking cheap is that! I'll eat Wendy's over them every time.
culver's butter burger with cheese -- that's my heartland favorite....though i enjoyed my five guys burger on a recent trip to pittsburgh (which is NOT in the mid-west/heartland) thanks to a rec. from adam.
I went to Steak and Shake in Missippi when I was in Memphis earlier this year and it was definately the best fast food burger I got (patty melt) and the shakes were pretty great also. I'm really upset that there are none in the Northeast, but I'm looking for a job down south and hopefully a S&S will be nearby.
dude, steak n shake is to waffle house what papa johns is to waffle house. bill, i dunno if you been to ny before or tried shake shack, but foodies, food critics, food blogers and "serious eaters" generally frown upon chains. if you look at that list, basically they are saying, "it's good. for a chain that is." here, lemme give you an example of what might happen if the go to steak n shake. "OMGz!! holy macaroni! they deep fry *frozen* fries!!! ugh, they are so not as good as hand cut!" or "OMGz!! they don't grind their own ground beef! they get it from a non-sustainable, non-organic supplier! AHHH!!!!" wow, i totally got snappy there. anyway bill, what you should watch out for is when there is no "separate but equal" There's no separate but equal bathrooms or water fountains, but hey.
The Shake Shack does *frozen* fries, too. And they suck. McDonald's does frozen fries, and they're awesome. When hot and fried properly, McD's fries are the gold standard. But yeah, if you're freezing the beef, it's going to make an inferior burger.
My Steak 'n Shake experiences: Always greasy, always slow (30 minutes to an hour to get a burger and fries????), always sucky service, always full of teens screeching and bouncing on the seat behind you, the food is almost always cold, and they never get their shake flavors right, mainly because they never wash out their blenders. That said, I am a sucker for the Frisco Melt. Every. Time. ;)
I have to put my two cents in on this. Growing up in St. Louis, I have definitely had my share of Steak N Shake and they make a pretty good burger. But after traveling around the country and cooking more and more on my own, it wouldn't rank near the top of my list. Although, just like another blogger wrote, the Frisco Melt is pretty great
I live in the midwest right now. I am not partial to chain food, but i would rate Steak and Shake adequate. Culver's, which doesn't freeze its beef and which uses buttered buns, is much much much better and less corporate. The style is somewhat similar, thinnish, crispy meat. For a non-chain version, I would say that burger place in Ann Arbor on Division St., is the place to go. So-called butter burgers (the Culvers type) are a Wisconsin specialty. On that note, I cannot stand chains which dupe customers with the idea of "steak cuts." Chopped steak does not a good burger make. Give me good old chuck any day. So, just on principle I would avoid a business which misleads customers in this way. So... as far as chains go, Steak and Shake is clearly a step up from Wendys/BK/McD. The fries are terrible (awful), I mean the worst. But I certainly approve of the think crispy style. Perhaps a 7.5/10. I would rate Culvers an 8.5. Wendys a 4 or 5. Skyway or Swensons in Akron, and that place in Ann Arbor, a 9 or 9.5.
I am not a Steak N' Shake fan. Their service is slow and very inaccurate. Their fries are tasteless and their burgers are mediocre. Their onion rings are decent, and their cookies n' cream milkshake is pretty good (sometimes--because it seems to be made differently every time I get it). But if I want good fast-food burger and fries, I head to Backyard Burger.
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12 Comments:
Steak 'n Shake's burgers are mighty tasty but you'll need at least a double if you want to taste any meat. They've rubbed me wrong from the get go and here's why: My main gripe with them is that it's WAY to expensive for what you get. Their shoestring fries are great but are always cold, probably because their small size doesn't allow for heat retention. And, you never seem to get many no matter what size you order. Plus, you used to have to request each item you wanted on your burger INDIVIDUALLY! You couldn't just say "everything." They actually required you to list every goddamn thing you wanted. How f*cking cheap is that! I'll eat Wendy's over them every time.
Hamburger burgerboy at 4:33PM on 12/05/06
A bit overrated, a bit overpriced. It's decent but unexceptional. THat being said, some people swear by it.
Hamburger j at 6:21PM on 12/05/06
culver's butter burger with cheese -- that's my heartland favorite....though i enjoyed my five guys burger on a recent trip to pittsburgh (which is NOT in the mid-west/heartland) thanks to a rec. from adam.
Hamburger jamiebeth at 6:28PM on 12/05/06
I went to Steak and Shake in Missippi when I was in Memphis earlier this year and it was definately the best fast food burger I got (patty melt) and the shakes were pretty great also. I'm really upset that there are none in the Northeast, but I'm looking for a job down south and hopefully a S&S will be nearby.
Hamburger Chaza at 9:01AM on 12/06/06
dude, steak n shake is to waffle house what papa johns is to waffle house. bill, i dunno if you been to ny before or tried shake shack, but foodies, food critics, food blogers and "serious eaters" generally frown upon chains. if you look at that list, basically they are saying, "it's good. for a chain that is." here, lemme give you an example of what might happen if the go to steak n shake. "OMGz!! holy macaroni! they deep fry *frozen* fries!!! ugh, they are so not as good as hand cut!" or "OMGz!! they don't grind their own ground beef! they get it from a non-sustainable, non-organic supplier! AHHH!!!!" wow, i totally got snappy there. anyway bill, what you should watch out for is when there is no "separate but equal" There's no separate but equal bathrooms or water fountains, but hey.
Hamburger the pauper at 3:31PM on 12/06/06
The Shake Shack does *frozen* fries, too. And they suck. McDonald's does frozen fries, and they're awesome. When hot and fried properly, McD's fries are the gold standard. But yeah, if you're freezing the beef, it's going to make an inferior burger.
Adam Kuban at 4:21PM on 12/06/06
My Steak 'n Shake experiences: Always greasy, always slow (30 minutes to an hour to get a burger and fries????), always sucky service, always full of teens screeching and bouncing on the seat behind you, the food is almost always cold, and they never get their shake flavors right, mainly because they never wash out their blenders. That said, I am a sucker for the Frisco Melt. Every. Time. ;)
Hamburger Julie at 5:20AM on 12/08/06
I have to put my two cents in on this. Growing up in St. Louis, I have definitely had my share of Steak N Shake and they make a pretty good burger. But after traveling around the country and cooking more and more on my own, it wouldn't rank near the top of my list. Although, just like another blogger wrote, the Frisco Melt is pretty great
Hamburger Zach at 2:34AM on 12/10/06
BEANPOT!
Hamburger tien at 7:54PM on 12/11/06
I live in the midwest right now. I am not partial to chain food, but i would rate Steak and Shake adequate. Culver's, which doesn't freeze its beef and which uses buttered buns, is much much much better and less corporate. The style is somewhat similar, thinnish, crispy meat. For a non-chain version, I would say that burger place in Ann Arbor on Division St., is the place to go. So-called butter burgers (the Culvers type) are a Wisconsin specialty. On that note, I cannot stand chains which dupe customers with the idea of "steak cuts." Chopped steak does not a good burger make. Give me good old chuck any day. So, just on principle I would avoid a business which misleads customers in this way. So... as far as chains go, Steak and Shake is clearly a step up from Wendys/BK/McD. The fries are terrible (awful), I mean the worst. But I certainly approve of the think crispy style. Perhaps a 7.5/10. I would rate Culvers an 8.5. Wendys a 4 or 5. Skyway or Swensons in Akron, and that place in Ann Arbor, a 9 or 9.5.
Hamburger Cornfields at 7:55PM on 12/11/06
or was it bean crock? hmm.
Hamburger tien at 8:02PM on 12/11/06
I am not a Steak N' Shake fan. Their service is slow and very inaccurate. Their fries are tasteless and their burgers are mediocre. Their onion rings are decent, and their cookies n' cream milkshake is pretty good (sometimes--because it seems to be made differently every time I get it). But if I want good fast-food burger and fries, I head to Backyard Burger.
Hamburger .linda. at 3:45PM on 12/26/06