Steak ‘n Shake

Awful. Very dirty and horrible service.
After waiting for approx 15 minutes for our food we noticed that the waitress had taken our food to the table on the other side of the wall from us. She had sat one plate down and another guest had messed with the sandwich trying to figure out if it was his. It was not so his, therefore the waitress takes the food back into the kitchen and walks out almost immediately after walking in. (No way did they remake the sandwich that the other guest had just fingered several times) As she was sitting down our food I questioned her about the sandwich and she swore up and down that it wasn’t the same. We also received the wrong bill. The waitress also told a group of kids just being kids to stop being ignorant or leave the store.

We dined in. Service was good. Our server Linda was very friendly, order was hot and fresh. We will be going back

For 9am on a Tuesday, this has to be the sleepiest restaurant in town. My buddy & I had the entire place to ourselves. An hour later, only one party (of 2) entered the premises. I have to say that it felt a little weird. Our server doubled (tripled?) as the cook and cashier. Of course, she was also bussing. There was one other worker who I saw upon paying but I’m not sure what his role was. For all of that, the service was good, not great. The food was typical for this chain — as expected — nothing to remember good or bad. It was nice that one of us could order breakfast and the other lunch.

Why is that EVERY time I order chicken fingers that I have to pull forward to wait? Whether I order one order or 5 have to pull forward. Whether there’s a car behind me or not I have to pull forward. Why is that? Chicken is a fairly common item that I would think would not take 15 minutes to deep fry. On top of having to wait when they bring the food out to you most times there is no sauce in there and you still have to go inside to get whatever dipping sauce you want for your chicken. I have 4 Kids and I cannot leave them in the car to go back inside to get my sauce. Overall the drive-​thru at this particular Steak and Shake is very poor. The inside of the restaurant is also in bad shape. There are dirty bathrooms & dirt tables and dirty seats. It is unfortunate that my kids love Steak n Shake and to avoid catastrophic meltdowns I am forced to experience this on a weekly basis.

This place is an absolute joke. Wife’s orders an Oreo milkshake with NO whip cream and no cherry. The drive through lady even reads the order back saying NO whip cream no cherry. Then Proceeds to hand her a Oreo milk shake WITH whip cream and cherry. And doesn’t put the clear lid on all the way and it spills in her car. And fast food workers deserve $ 15 dollars an hour… absolute joke!

Awful service! (in drive through) «what can I get for you». No hello, how are you, buzz off, nothing! Ordered my food and a shake, and the lady says «we aren’t doing shakes!» What??? How are you Not doing shakes? No explanation, no I’m sorry. Nothing. I’m not expecting to be treated like royalty but geez.

Have you ever driven by a Steak n’ Shake and found yourself reading its various self-​promoting signs/​banners? For example, I’m thinking of the ones featuring the late film critic Roger Ebert. Ebert, a lifelong Steak n’ Shake fan, was well known as saying that Steak n’ Shake was his first restaurant meal as a child and it’s a place he loved to go until, sadly, he could no longer eat solid foods.
I’ve been contemplating Ebert’s love affair with Steak n’ Shake lately and that thought really crossed my mind as I pulled into the Pendleton Pike Steak n’ Shake for dinner this evening. Lately, I’ve found myself wondering what Ebert would think of Steak n’ Shake since the takeover by Sardar Biglari in 2008 and the numerous changes, some for the good and some questionable, since that time.
Biglari is a 38-​year-​old Iran-​born entrepreneur and the founder/​chairman/​CEO for Biglari Holdings, essentially now the owner of Steak n’ Shake. Steak n’ Shake was founded in 1934 in Normal, Illinois and for those states that have it (500 restaurants in 29 states now) it’s one of those restaurants that has pretty much transcended fast food and become one of those destination fast food joints.
I’ve long been a fan of Steak n’ Shake and I remain one to this day. However, recently I’ve been contemplating that something about the chain feels different. Tonight, it really occurred to me. These days, it seems like Steak n’ Shake no longer transcends fast food — it’s still quality fast food, but dining at Steak n’ Shake used to be synonymous with good service, a pleasant atmosphere and a sort of classic vibe that really just reinforced that experience. Biglari has created the chain’s famous $ 4 menu and other specials, and while it doesn’t seem like he’s messed with the quality what used to be a consistent 4-​star experience for me now typically rests in the 2 – 3 star range.
Tonight? We struggled to get to a two.
I believe I’ve only dined in at this location one other time, though I’ve been known to hit the drive-​thru as I’m a fan of any restaurant that offers $ 1 iced tea. As a chain, Steak n’ Shake does fairly well with accessibility. They typically have at least a handful of accessible spots with curb cuts. This was the case here. They almost always have two sets of double doors, almost always glass, with the second set being heavier. They use carpets on their floors at the entryway that can occasionally block the door.
The ones here in Indy, including this one, typically have a «Please wait to be seated» sign out. This is one of the areas where Steak n’ Shake has really faltered — You could always expect a warm greeting and quick service. Now, it’s not uncommon to wait at that sign for several minutes, though this varies by location. Tonight? I waited several minutes while several employees goofed around. Finally, a party came in behind me but moved over to not block the door. About that time, an employee came over, the young man who would eventually be my server, and started to seat the others despite the fact I’d been there several minutes. Fortunately, a member of the party said «I believe he’s been waiting.» The response was «I thought he was with you.» Um, I was there several minutes before them.
I was escorted to a two-​top in a corner by the wall, modestly uncomfortable but workable. I was handed a menu, but the drink order wasn’t taken. I think either this young man wasn’t a consistent server, but he seemed to be trying to compensate for otherwise poor service. I waited a good 15 – 20 minutes for some semblance of service, but none arrived. Finally, this young man returned and stated «I noticed that none of the servers had come over to serve you, so I’m going to take care of you.» He did take my order and my food was delivered as ordered after a few minutes. I did get an iced tea refill (to go). He wasn’t exactly hospitable, though he at least made an effort. There were other servers working the floor. Business was consistent, but not booming and there’s no reason I should have waited so long.
There was a supervisor/​manager type behind the counter, though he seemed oblivious to the poor service that surrounded him and what felt like an obvious tension between employees.
In other words, this was fast food at a decent price. It didn’t feel like «Steak n’ Shake,» but like any other fast food joint out there. If I wanted bad service, I’d go to McDonald’s.
Biglari? You’ve done some good things with Steak n’ Shake. Heck, you’ve made the chain prosper, admittedly with some controversy and lawsuits along the way, but how about bringing back the Steak n’ Shake of our childhood? We want the «experience» again.

This place has horrible service. As I sat down, the waitress fought over who was going to «have» to serve me. That took 10 minutes. There are four servers on the floor and only four tables occupied, myself included. I came ready to order, and the waitress who took my order seemed annoyed to have to write anything down. She didn’t try to upsell or anything. She brought me my drink then went back to behind the fountain and said «he’s annoying.» They all laughed and her back there dancing. The waitress forgot to bring my chili, and scoffed that I questioned her about it. I now know why people never come here. It’s really sad. At least my food was hot.

I swear I should learn. Every time I go here it takes forever to be served. Horrible service for average food! Go to McDonalds.

Do you love to wait 47 minutes stuck in a drive thru for a burger? If so you must check out this location! The general manager needs to fire the entire staff and rehire! What a joke!

It shouldn’t take 30 minutes for a drive thru order. AND we shouldn’t have our food shoved in our face, followed by the drive thru window immediately closing before we can ask for SPOONS… Which we should have received in the first place.

to busy talking to serve us. After 10 minutes we left. 1030 pm, 3 customers can’t imagine corporate is happy with this place.

If you want your order wrong over 90% of the time you should go here. Horrible wait times and greasy food full of failure. One time they gave me a hot dog with a string of spaghetti on it. I wish I kept the picture so I could post it here. Please support a different restaurant!

This is the worst Steak ‘n’ Shake, and quite possibly the worst fast food restaurant in general, I’ve been to. Granted, it has been the same late night employees both times I’ve gone. They clearly hate their jobs, and need to quit. They are annoyed while taking orders at drive-​thru, and despite my politeness, rude at the window. Sorry for disturbing you while you were sitting on your ass, bro.
The food both times was terrible. It was sloppily put together, and had condiments smeared on the outside of the wrappers/​packaging. Last night there was some kind of burger grease all over the outside of my styrofoam container (all we got were two desserts), and the cinnamon roll was clearly reheated in the styrofoam box, as the roll itself was rubbery and inedible, and the container was warped and melted on the side and bottom. I’ve never seen employees give less of a shit about anything.
I figured first time could’ve just been a fluke, but nope– seems to be standard. Won’t be returning.

I come to this Steak n Shake every now and then, typically before races because it should be quick and easy. Emphasis on should. Service is mediocre at best, unbelievably horrible at worst. Today was one of the worst. Wait staff don’t seem to care about their customers. Waitress today obviously disinterested when taking my order, gave me one coffee refill, then walked by my empty cup at least a couple of times between her conversation with another server. Won’t go back.

It’s your standard Steak ‘n Shake, but why I love this location is because it’s really close to my buddy’s home, which is where I’ve normally crashed when visiting my home state. California doesn’t have Steak ‘n Shakes so it’s always a nostalgic visit for me.
Warm fuzzies aside, the service here has always been prompt and attentive, I’d say faster than average for Steak ‘n Shake. The food is consistent… which is consistently good. The burgers are always well made (though a bit on the pricey side) and the shakes are great. I usually order a chocolate malt with extra malt… trust me, you’ll love it. I’ve had a friend ask for a cup of chili to be brought back to California (FYI — the chili didn’t make the trip). Really, the only thing to avoid are the soups, which are hit-​or-​miss.