Stop #50: Lebanon (#268)

On the Ides of March, Jen and I decided to make a trip to what would be the big 5-0 of Steak 'n Shake stops: Lebanon.


Jen was super-excited, because she had been looking forward to her opportunity to try one specific new menu item: the new 3D Grilled Cheese.


A 3D Grilled Cheese? Heavens! And to think I've been eating my grilled cheeses in just two dimensions, all these years!


I was also pretty excited, but noted that, both in the picture and in the actual sandwich, the name seemed to be a bit deceptive: there is quite clearly meat on this sandwich.


While I do love my meat, to me, a grilled cheese is a sandwich that contains, quite simply, cheese. No added nothin's, no extra fixin's. Cheese between two pieces of bread, buttered on the outside and perfect for grilling.

However, a description of the sandwich revealed that there was also a bit of frisco sauce added in the mix, along with the meat and three different kinds of cheese, so I got over my moment of slight confusion pretty quickly.


The verdict?

It's pretty good. Better than I expected, even. I hadn't known I was a fan of pepperjack cheese until this sandwich. I had known I was a fan of frisco sauce, but this confirmed it. It was delightfully tasty.

Jen also thought it was pretty good. And she made plans for when she would get her next one as we ate these ones.

However, enjoying the 3D Grilled Cheese (co-starring MEAT), french fries and a nutter butter shake was not the only reason I went to Steak 'n Shake that night.

I went because it is March Madness, and with my beloved Dawgs not in NCAA tournament this year, I was forced -- and then delighted -- to participate in another type of bracket competition: the 2012 BurgerBusiness Burger Bracket.

Steak 'n Shake was, of course, in the pack. But who might they be playing? And where could we expect upsets?

Jen and I got down to business.


Being a decent basketball fan who enjoys the official tournament and bracket challenge, I decided to use my knowledge of the "teams," likeliness of upsets, and (as in actual basketball bracket contests) general prejudices against certain locations and mascots to determine winners.

Jen went a more calculated route: the iPhone.

Dear Google, what is Umami? ...

It was actually pretty entertaining to see some of the match-ups. For example, a place called BGR, up against a place called Fuddruckers, whose name just makes me smile. A Burger 21 against Sonic, which didn't make sense to me because isn't Sonic more well-known for hotdogs? A place called Blanc Burgers and Bottles against a place called Meatheads, which I surely wouldn't eat at because who wants the head meat? An Epic Burger against a place called Umami, which I commented to Jen before she even looked it up sounded like an Asian place, which doesn't really jibe with burgers, in my mind.

And, finally, at least in my bracket, a Final Four match-up between Ray's Hell Burger and a place surely inspired by one of my favoritest movies ....

Yes, it is apparently a real place.
Sadly, I think neither Keenan nor Kel work there .....

Yes. Good Burger.

Of course, you had your obvious standards, too, like Cheeseburger in Paradise, Red Robin, McDonald's, Rally's, Johnny Rockets, Five Guys, and, of course Steak 'n Shake.

Of course, in my bracket, we all know who wins.

And for those who want a better look at all the match-ups, my bracket appears unobstructed by my pen below.


For the record, those "regions" are as the BurgerBusiness Burger Bracket set them out: named for some of the biggest names in burger chains in this country. I really have no idea how the seeding was determined, but there you have it.

And there you have it for Stop #50, as with the conclusion of filling out our brackets, so came the conclusion of our visit to Lebanon and our encounters with the 3D Grilled Cheese.

Stop #(Square Root of -1) -- Because Sometimes I Think Illinois is Imaginary (Guest Blogger)

It's that time again: Time for a post from a guest blogger!

This stop's account comes from my good friend and "LJ BFF 4-Eva!", Becca. Becca's been a friend of mine for roughly eight and a half years, and a fan of Steak 'n Shake for what I can only assume to be nine and a half years. We met at Butler, through the marching band (and subsequently Band Greek programs), and Becca was a year older than me. Thus my math -- which is actually more Becca's forte than mine. While I studied writing (Ta-da, a BLOG!), she studied useful things. Which is a fantastic segue into her selected title for her post, which is evidence of those things she understands ....

Stop #(Square Root of -1) -- Because Sometimes I Think Illinois is Imaginary

I adore Steak ‘n Shake.

No, really. I dream of Frisco melts, cheese fries, chili, and the orange dreamsicle shake (side-by-side shake consisting of orange freeze and vanilla).

Why do I dream of these wondrous, delicious foods?

Because I live in Minnesota. And Minnesota does not have a single Steak ‘n Shake ... anywhere.

Something is very wrong with this, and not just because there is no Steak ‘n Shake in sight so therefore it isn’t right. Minnesotans love food! If you need any proof, go Google the Minnesota State Fair and learn about our obsession about food on a stick. (Without spending my entire life doing a ton of research, I can report there were 81 different vendors at the fair last year which had some sort of food on a stick.)

But the cherry on top as to why Minnesota needs a Steak ‘n Shake is provided by the picture below:


That Cherry on a Spoon, my Steak ‘n Shake loving friends, is located in the fair city of Minneapolis which is appropriately located in the great state of Minnesota.

And so, Steak ‘n Shake executives who I KNOW are reading this blog, how can you resist? Think of all the marketing strategies related to shakes you could use with a city that has a giant cherry on a spoon! It’s genius!

Alas, no enterprising franchiser has attempted a Steak ‘n Shake up here in the north, so I have to resort to getting my Frisco melt fix anytime I’m on a road trip near a Steak ‘n Shake.

This brings me to the evening of March 2nd, 2012. I had recently (read: earlier that evening) arrived in the greater Chicago area (read: a suburb) after driving through inclement weather (read: snowstorm in southern Wisconsin) for a weekend of debauchery and wickedness (read: original plan was bar-hopping, but most of us ended up going to see Butler lose a basketball game against Valparaiso instead - we have our priorities). My gracious host and I had just been joined by two endeavoring friends from Indiana (including the owner of this very blog) and a consensus was reached: time for a Steak ‘n Shake run!

As two of the members of this run had been to the Glendale Heights restaurant previously (see this interlude post from July 2011), we decided to go to the restaurant in Downer’s Grove.

If you have been paying attention (which I’m sure you are), you believe we had four members in our merry group. However, you would be wrong. We had five:


He was a small little guy, very quiet, fond of fedoras, and not hungry at all. He just wanted some water in exchange for the fun excursion.


He was, however, very photogenic and not afraid to show it off. He joined in many of our pictures.

Firstly, the “gangsters with fedoras”:


(Interlude: Yes, I am in that picture. I’m on the right with the horrible fashion sense of wearing a black fedora with a brown hooded sweatshirt. You may recognize me from such stops as #2, #3, and #39.) (Also, you’re probably sick of me being that one person from Minnesota who comments on every single one of the blog entries.)

Secondly, the old people:


(Interlude #2: Okay, okay, Rachel and Kathy are really not that old. They’re just older than Marcy and I. Thus, old.)

My dinner was my basic standard, a Frisco melt with fries. I have yet to find anything in Minnesota that even comes close to the composition of a Frisco melt.


During our dinner, we played the Steak ‘n Shake story game. Here is the end result, because you know you want to read it:

Blue crayons and unicorns are captivating.
Most unicorns eat chilidogs.
For chilidogs gave them their magic flying powers.
After swallowing their chilidogs whole, they leapt high into the sky and flew east.
Percival flew with a wombat on the back of a paranoid unicorn.
He was searching for the missing horn.
The horn was found inside a tuba!
“How did that get there?” the bird wondered.
“Peel back the crayon wrapper before sharpening the crayon,” responded the hyena, he he he he!
The hyena leapt for joy at his great discovery.
He leapt so high he touched the moon.
That’s what she said.
Throwing babies is not an option. It was dark and they were big, like angry blowfish.
Unless the babies deserved it.
And in Muck’s world, they always deserve it.
Because they deserved it, everyone else rejoiced.
And there was partying in ALL the land!

And because of our diminutive guest, we gnome-ified ALL the things!


Well, maybe not all the things. Maybe just the sign.

All in all, a great Steak ‘n Shake outing had occurred, and this Minnesotan got her frisco melt.


Until next time, Steak ‘n Shake.

Stop #49: Meijer Drive, Fort Wayne (#315)

Stop #49 ended up being one of my first impromptu stops.


I was in Fort Wayne for the weekend and had plans to hang out with a couple friends from high school. Sadly, one bailed, which threw off plans for the evening a bit, but happily resulted in our group collectively deciding to go to a Steak 'n Shake I hadn't yet it hit.

After we arrived, the server stopped by to take our order. Since this was an unplanned stop, I didn't have my crayon stash with me, and followed up my food order with a request for crayons.

"Not as part of my actual food order, but could I have some crayons?"

The server helpfully responded with, "Sure! But they are non-toxic, so if you did want to eat them, you could."

Oh no.
This can't end well.


My crayons arrived with the shakes. I was super-excited, though I was restricted to only blue and red using crayons, so I busted out my pens as well (just for artwork and signage's sake).


When faced with a red-pill-blue-pill option, I decided to follow in Neo's footsteps and choose the red. Because I wanted to know the truth about the Matrix.


And that's the face of someone who has regrets. Not the regret of selecting the red pill over the blue pill. The regret of eating a crayon. Because that is going directly to my hips.


When my actual food finally arrived, Sean forced me to put the crayon on my plate, as it was now officially a part of my Guac-Burger, fries, and Chocomazing milkshake order.

For the record, I did not eat any more of that crayon. What you see there was left on the plate with a few stray fries and some renegade guac.

Despite the fact that we decided to go to Steak 'n Shake in part because one of our party members bailed for the night, Sean decided to make him present at Steak 'n Shake all the same.


Yup, the Ben you know and love from stops #46 and #47 was the one who bailed.

This'll learn 'im.

It was a pleasant stop, and as we left, I realized I'd want to come back to this Steak 'n Shake, so I can play their crane game, and win ...


... the actual Steak 'n Shake characters! We have both "Goldie" (the fries) and "Shaker" (the milkshake). The only one I don't see is "Sizzle," the hamburger.

And yes, those really are the names of their characters.

Thus ended Stop #49. Thanks much to Sean and Jody (and Paper Ben) for talking me into this impromptu stop!

Stop #48: North Meridian, Carmel (#224)

In late December, I decided to hit up yet another Steak 'n Shake.


In part because it was on my way to paying that pesky speeding ticket I earned on my way to completing Stops #40 and #41. And in part because, progress!

Also in part because I finally wanted to see what a Steak 'n Shake breakfast was like.


It's true! I've now had a Steak 'n Shake breakfast. But we'll get to that in a minute.

Jen joined me for this stop because she was free, and she too wanted breakfast.

Before making the stop, I invested in some new crayons, since Bloomington stole mine.


As you can see, they were exciting. And even more exciting once you opened the box to discover ...


... GelFX crayons AND Metallic crayons! And by Metallic crayons, I don't mean your standard gold, silver, and bronze. I mean those pictured above: Big Dip O' Ruby, Cyber Grape, Sheen Green, and Steel Blue (not in that order).

And how do they look?


... well, not super-different from normal crayons. Especially those GelFX once. Gel effects, my ass. Looks just like a regular blue crayon to me. The Metallic ones really did have a bit of a sparkle to them, so they were okay.

I also noticed that the placemats that weren't advertising the breakfast deals (namely, all-you-can-eat pancakes) were advertising special shakes for the then-upcoming Valentine's Day.

Oh Steak 'n Shake, you do know how to steal a girl's heart!

My husband only wishes I would express such love for him.

Thankfully, breakfast arrived before I could get much more physical with my placemat.


Breakfast, and a lot a lot A LOT of syrup.

So how is a Steak 'n Shake breakfast?

Well, the bacon is tasty.

The eggs are all right.

And the pancakes were delicious. Which surprised me -- I normally don't like pancakes, unless they're the Dadly Dude's blueberry pancakes made at a campground. If I liked pancakes, you'd be reading a blog about visiting all the IHOPs in Indiana, not Steak 'n Shakes.

But these pancakes (I should probably note, they did contain chocolate chips) were delicious. I could have eaten more.

Thanks, Steak 'n Shake, for that now-tempting All-You-Can-Eat pancake breakfast. Need I remind you I'm trying to lose weight?

Following our tasty, tasty breakfast, we asked Ron, a server passing by, to take our picture.


Which Ron did, then followed by professing HIS love for Steak 'n Shake, also. Ron really loves his Steak 'n Shake. If I were to find a true replacement for Brett to finish out this quest, by God, it should be someone with a passion like Ron's.

Unfortunately, I caught neither last name nor number, so my friends and acquaintances will just have to continue to suffer for my sake.

Stop #47: Liberty, Bloomington (#242)

After the College stop in Bloomington, Ben and I moved on to the Liberty location ...


... where we would finally get our milkshakes.


And isn't it glorious? That, of course, is my eggnog milkshake.

Ben, once again, decided to make his own sign as we enjoyed the milkshakes.


Those are, of course, snakes. I don't know why; I have never seen any snakes at Steak 'n Shake. Maybe on a plane, but never in my beloved SnS.

With no snakes, the stop proved to be relatively uneventful. Ben and I were in and out pretty quickly, even if we didn't notice until a little too late that our water glasses obscured our signs as we took the requisite group picture.


Though I did realize, after the fact, that I left behind my stash of coupons. Which means that Bloomington made off with two of my valuable possessions for Steak 'n Shake questing: my crayons, at the College location, and my coupons, at Liberty.

Dear Bloomington,
This means war.
Or, well, small battle. Which I plan to win.
Sincerely, Marcy

Stop #46: College, Bloomington (#222)

As Christmas drew near, I realized I needed to make my way back to Bloomington to knock out the remaining Steak 'n Shakes with my high school buddy, Ben, before he left town. Considering he graduated in December, I found myself really cutting it short with my mid-month visit.

Our first stop was the location on College.

Ben made his own sign ...


... very much influenced by the fact that we were reminiscing a bit about high school while we were out. Because, high school.

While we reminisced, and talked about not-high-school a bit (Ben's upcoming interviews, my new married life), we enjoyed quality Steak 'n' Shake: chicken tenders and fries for me, and for Ben ...

that, plus a Frisco Melt platter. Ben was actually a bit surprised by the salad, as it looked much different from the last time he had had a salad at Steak 'n Shake.

It's true, they've gotten much better since the my obsession with Steak 'n Shake began. My first Steak 'n Shake salad was lettuce, sliced tomatoes, and sliced cucumbers. Then, at one point, it turned to lettuce, diced tomatoes, and diced cucumbers. And now, that rainbow of veggies. Much tastier. Probably also healthier. A-plus, Steak 'n Shake. A-plus.

We held off on the milkshakes at this stop, though, knowing we'd be hitting another Steak 'n Shake within the hour.

On the way out, we noticed a crane machine in desperate need of a player, given how close this stuffed animal was to falling out. We could've used the help of my college buddy, Kobi, who was probably the best crane machine player I've ever met.


Unfortunately, in my excitement over the crane machine, I neglected to notice that I'd left my box of crayons on the table. I didn't notice, in fact, until we got to the next Steak 'n Shake.

And so ended stop #46.