Went there during shake happy hour for just a chocolate shake. I was told I would have to wait 10 minutes, but didn't have a problem with that. Other came in behind me, sat down at the counter and received their food with shakes well before there was any sign of my one shake. Finally after 25 minutes, I politely asked the lady order taker if she could check on my shake. I pointed out that other people were getting their shakes and ask why was mine taking longer. She then rudely snapped at me at said "because they are sitting down and staying!" A few minutes later my shake arrived and she then delivered a few more sarcastic remarks. Another customer witnessed my interaction and walked out with me saying that she saw the whole interaction and wasn't going to wait nor tolerate the attitude. The chocolate shake didn't taste normal either. It had a plastic type of taste to it so I ended throwing most of it out.
(1)
Teepee-liquor N.
This is the dirtiest restaurant I ever been to ... the food is cold and the service is horrible. .. can someone call the health department lol
(1)
Jennifer L.
Meh. Wasn't worth the calories. Hadn't had Steak N Shake in about 10 years. Was close-by, figured we'd try it. Hit the drive through, but then parked in mall parking lot to eat (we had the dog in the car, so couldn't go in). By the time I got my fries, they were already cold. And the buger was just kinda nominal. Nothing special. Overall, will probably never come back. Just wasn't worth the calories. If I'm gonna go hog-wild, I'd rather McD's fries or something else :)
(2)
Serena M.
Our server is always super nice. Glenda is her name. I'm here now, my sister and I both ordered some milkshakes. Happy Hour 2-4! Great deal! However, they take forever.. Which ruins the experience. The food always comes out first. It's annoying. But then again, there is only a couple servers on per shift. Ugh. Anyhow, enjoy!
(2)
Tony M.
Food is usually good here! The service is slow usually every time I come here. I usually have to ask for my refill of drink. I order different sandwiches every time I come here tasting great! If you are in a hurry to eat, don't come here. Lots of people come here to dine in which they do not have a lot of tables to handle everyone. I see a long line for the drive thru cause the cooks have to cook your order fresh as you wait. It's quicker to come inside to order to go!!! There is not enough servers usually here too! I come for the food at a great price, not the service!!!
(4)
Z B.
After a long day at Six Flags, this is the place I usually go to. I love Steak and Shake. I noticed there was one near Six Flags. I usually go to the one in Frankfort, but I wanted to try this one. Expect a line for a table after Six Flags. The service was just okay. The staff are friendly, and they always have a smile on their fades. The only thing is that my family and me didn't get our drinks (which were mostly shakes) until after we got the food. It's drinks, THEN the food. Does it really take that long to make shakes? The food and the shakes are definitely worth the wait. I got the new Garlic Double Steakburger. I'm a big fan of it because it's really good! There's a lot of flavor in the garlic. The patty tastes different which I like! The shakes are great! The ice cream in the shake is very tasty! All in all, this is a pretty good Steak and Shake. I will come back.
(3)
Aj C.
I'm rating this 4/5 just because ever since I moved to California, there's barely any Steak n Shake there. It's plagued with the ubiquitous presence of In-N-Out. I believe the price is very affordable and I find it tasty. I love getting my usual which is the jalapeno crunch burger. I usually get it with extra jalapenos. I just tried the sriracha version which had sriracha on it and it was amazing! If you love spicy food, you should definitely try that. The fries are flavorful as well as long as you put their special seasoning on it. What I also love about Steak n Shake is that it's 24/7 so you can come here whenever you're feeling it. The wait times to be seated is usually not bad when I go here. When it's really busy it can get as bad as 20-30 minutes. Kudos to the staff that sticks through for a couple months because it seems like their employees here are never permanent.
(4)
Doug R.
Took almost 10 minutes to be seated. There were unoccupied tables but nobody was cleaning off the mess on them. Once we were seated, the service was quick and the waitress was attentive. It took another few minutes for someone to come to the cash register so we could pay. I'll give 3 starts instead of two bc even though they seemed to be severely understaffed, our waitress was quick and the food was as good as always.
(3)
Joel R.
Without a doubt the worst location i have visited. Restroom is dirty. Service (or lack of) is horrible. Went one time for a shake and waited 30 minutes. The second time i went, the server never checked on me after i got my food. I had to go to the register to get my bill so i could leave. For those late nights when i am hungry and nothing is open, i will just go to bed hungry.
(1)
Hoss M.
Right next to Gurnee Mills is not easy. The staff here is courteous and pleasant. Food was great. Nicole was one of the best servers I have had at any restaurant. Kids had a good time and so did mom and I.
(5)
Vesna M.
I stopped by with my kids to have lunch there yesterday. As soon as you walk in the place looks so dirty. The chairs were full of dust, once you sat, the table was sticky and not cleaned properly. I ordered a cup of coffee and when the waitress brought it to me, half of the coffee was spilled into the bottom of the cup and the cup had stains on it. It was disgusting. Once the waitress brought our food out, the fries were cold, and the bottom of the plates were also sticky and we lost our appetite. This place should be more clean. I will never ever never eat here again. Such a dirty place.
(1)
Kori Y.
Hard to resist the shakes here. Need a quick lunch stop, and this was convenient. Food was good, although predictable as well as the service.
(3)
Jerrold A.
Terrible service had our party waiting almost an hour after our waiter took our order. The waiter not only give us the wrong check but also didn't give us utensils. Sadly the only thing he got us right away was our waters. I have been to many steak n shakes and by far this location is the worst. Our waiter was sitting down with another table chatting with other people after we ask for silverware. We ended up asking another waiter to grab the utensils.
(1)
Jessica G.
This Place has the worst servers I have ever experienced out of steak n shake. I repeated my order 3 time because my waitress wasn't listening, my boyfriend ordered the same exact thing and didn't get it, I also repeated my sister's order and everything came out wrong. DO NOT GO HERE IF YOU WANT ANY SERVICE!!!!
(1)
Carole L.
This place has gone downhill fast! Restaurant is filthy dirty. Today while waiting more than 5 minutes to be seated, (plenty of tables open but all dirty) we watched an employee wipe a table with a wet napkin, no spray cleaner! Not surprised! Needless to say we left!
(1)
Stuart G.
Bad service, slow, and gets orders wrong. Don't go here. Made friend cry and almost die.
(1)
Anthony U.
I visit this Steak 'n Shake a few times a year usually after a trip to Gurnee Mills or a day at Great America. For the most part I find everything here to be perfect except for the crabby older (50+) women who do most of the table waiting service. My last two trips have provided great service with one a few months ago where Candace was my waitress and my most recent trip we got Nick as a waiter and he was excellent and always smiling. Looks like this location is stepping up their service game! Because I dislike paying $12 for a burger I try to not eat much while at Six Flags Great America. After a 12 hour day at the park I'm pretty hungry and this visit to SnS at 10pm was no exception. We started with a couple shakes although not at half price (2pm to 4pm and 2am to 4am) with one Vanilla and one Hershey's Special Dark (that wasn't on the menu but Nick said he could make one for me). The shakes arrived faster than normal and at some locations it can be frustrating to wait so long for them. We both loved our shakes and found it was truly worth the price even though it wasn't 1/2 price time. We ordered a Deluxe Bacon Double Cheeseburger, a Garlic Double Cheeseburger, and a Chili 5-Way (my absolute favorite SnS dish). We loved all three items with the new Garlic burger being the best of this visit. The new Garlic Double Cheeseburger is made with a toasted garlic bread bun and a rich garlic butter. Just the right combination of burger, garlic, and saltiness. I hope they keep it on the menu like they have with some other limited time special products. Our waiter came back to check on us at least six or seven times during the visit and while some customers may find that too frequent or annoying I rather like it. I'm also very impressed with the restrooms here. With the flow of customers leaving the mall and the rush of Six Flags employees and customers as the theme park just closed the restrooms are always spotless. I also like the fact the paper towel dispenser automatically rolls off enough towel that you need just one piece to dry your hands but also that there is a garbage can next to the door. I wish all restaurants operated their bathroom like this. Sometimes when I'm out I love to stop at Cracker Barrel and will almost always take CB over SnS but this is one location where that is reversed for me. That's just how good I find this SnS to be! Great job Steak 'n Shake, this place runs pretty tight and keep on hiring great wait staff to replace the crabby ones!
(5)
Katelyn J.
Yuck. This place was awful. The floor was super dirty with trash and food. It was seriously black around my area. I was seated near the kitchen, and I had to watch the employees yelling back and forth at each other. I have no idea what kind of drama was happening, but there was a lot of shouting going on. My food took forever, and it was average. Cold fries... but the burger was okay. I guess I kinda of wished I would have driven through McDonalds instead... but at least I know now I don't need to go back.
(1)
Dominick N.
Fast Seating and service. Judy was a doll. The Jalepeno burger with cajun fries was great. This place is dirt cheap and the service is quick. We were famished and wanted quick and easy. The place wasn't spotless but it wasnt dirty either. The Server Judy was a doll. I wasnt stuffed when I left, I felt quite content.
(4)
Big D.
Great staff just it took a long, long, long time to get seated and get the drinks and then the food. Portions were ok for money. I will go to Chipotle next time.
(1)
Shaun E.
I've been to this location on several occasions passing through town towards either Chicago or Milwaukee. The service was awesome. Our server Char was stellar! She was very attentive and the most friendly ever! The food was delicious as always, thanks cooking staff for your hard work! The restaurant was clean and presentable. If you're in the area craving an all American meal stop by steak and shake for a very affordable meal for $4.
(4)
jim s.
Very good service by Charlotte and the food came fairly quick and hot and exactly as ordered.....but I couldn't give 5 stars because the place seemed kind of dirty and unmanaged. ....other employees, besides my server, walking around wasting time....a guy at the register had to wait a long time for a simple chocolate shake
(4)
Phillip C.
You know, I lived very close to this establishment for over six years. I came here all of 10 times in those six years, and twice in the past six months. I'm never coming here ever again. Their food, when it actually gets to you, is usually not bad. It's hot/warm/cold, whatever's appropriate. One time, I was seated at the bar. I ordered a simple burger. Watched the fry cook flip burgers using bare hands. Asked for eggs over easy. Got undercooked eggs instead. Asked for eggs over hard. Got over easy eggs instead. Once, I ordered scrambled eggs because it's the safest bet. Nope, I got undercooked eggs, again. I've been through the drive-through maybe four times. Each time the order takes over 15 minutes for a few items and there are often mistakes (wrong items, missing items, etc.) My worst experience is when I waited at the window a grand total of 40 minutes. They still screwed up the order. Don't even think about going to this Steak and Shake. I've been to other locations, and they're perfectly fine. This place, however, is a damn joke.
(1)
Kat B.
I find this chain to be Friendly's meets 5 Guys Burgers and Fries meets a younger sibling of Johnny Rockets sans the dancing and music. Bright red and silver decor with the smell of burgers sizzling on the grill and packed with people. Our waiter was the best and my son, who is in the military, had his ice cream paid for by one of the nice customers.....so .....yay! First, the menu...wow, unbelievablely cheap prices here. $4 for a burger and plate of fries? Did I die and go to heaven? Various hot dogs with toppings, including the Chicago hotdog, are also listed on the menu as well as shakes and all kinds of sundaes. And these are BIG sundaes. Plus another nice customer gave us a coupon for a buy one, get one free ice cream sundae... I need to go on a diet after my vacation....
(4)
Earl S.
Right hours -- check Right location-- check Right food choices-- check DELICIOUS FOOD-- CHECK CHECK CHECK! I just wish this chain will come to Wisconsin.
(4)
Keaunis G.
This is the closest Steak n Shake to my home! Every time that I come to this location, the staff is always friendly and my food is ready is a timely fashion. Love it! The food and the shakes are very delicious and are priced reasonably.
(5)
Magdaline V.
So good! Burgers freshly made and my favorite small, thin fries. I don't really like fries but love these. I order a kids' size malt with no whipped cream and it's fantastic. Server Judy is very nice and she works hard in this busy place. Usually one or two managers on duty. I like to sit at the counter and watch the food being prepared. Yummy!
(5)
Joze C.
Steak & shake is good! Good food & good desserts. The only thing this establishment lacks is customer service and quickness The drive through took 20 minutes today and the associates were not very friendly. But they weren't terrible Dining in isn't much different either. Focus more on customer service & you'll be at 4-5 stars in know time
(3)
Deb M.
We have been eating here for years. Usually stop on our way to Chicago! Love the food! But the last few time we stopped it's a mess! Bathrooms were filthy! The table condiments containers filthy greasy. And to top it off today one of the workers were taking a nap at the entry way of the restaurant!
(1)
David R.
We stopped in at about 9pm after a very long day. The place was pretty busy. We stood and waited to be seated for almost 15 minutes. Not one of the 3 employees that passed us multiple times ever said a word to us. This has happened at this location previously too. I will not go back again.
(1)
Ron R.
So, I grew up eating at Steak N Shake in the 70's. The older, 24 hour ones like Main St in Peoria, these things were like a step back in time. But alas, these are all gone, replaced by a pseudo-dinerish looking things covered in chrome. Yes the subway tile is gone, long gone are the days of setting next to a 3rd shift worker at the counter, after an all night bender. So why 5 stars? The food baby. SnS is the KING of Midwest style smashed burgers. For nearly a century, Steak N Shake has been making prime cuts of ground beef, and smashing them paper thin on a blazingly hot grill. The end result is a thin patty of flavor, encased by a crispy, crunchy exterior. Since moving to MKE- they are no longer around the corner, so my closest SnS is in Gurnee. Here's where I get my fix- a single with cheese, mustard and onion. Frisco Melt- extra sauce. I'm on it- just like Jim Bonnet.
(5)
Kevin N.
I love the Happy Days Fifties vibe here. Complete with table service, drive through or takeout, they have a fast food preparation model but it's definitely more fun to eat in diner style. The service staff has nostalgic style uniforms complete with the paper hats on the cooks. My waitress was serving Flo-realness from Mel's diner. The steakburgers are tasty, pressed thin on the griddle, and you can get whatever you want on them. The fries are the thin shoestring style. I enjoy these. They also have old-school Chili burgers and Chili Mac! Spice up your chili with some dashes of the pick-a-peppa sauce, which is vinegar-based and packed with sport peppers. Best of all, service is fast and friendly and it won't break the bank. Honestly, the prices on their burger and fries combos are no more than the major burger chains. They feature multiple entrees at $4! I tried an Octoberfest special last time which was a double Swiss burger with ham, mustard and grilled onions on a pretzel roll. Ausgezeichnet! (That's German for awesome!) They also have a half price shake happy hour 2-4pm and 2-4am with discounts excellent hand dipped milkshakes. The red velvet cake shake is so good it should be banned because you'll want to go back again and again. Open 24 hours for your midnight munchies!
(4)
JD C.
This is single-handledly the worst food service experience I had in my whole life. We waited 15 minutes to be seated and we are now at one hour in the restaurant with no shakes, no food. The whole team is clearly incompetent starting from the top. This entire restaurant and potentially the franchisee needs to be rotated out. Do not go there. It's too bad as we love our Steak 'n Shake by us in Chicago.
(1)
Anthony M.
Went through the drive thru to take part in Happy Hour Shakes! From 2-4 pm you can get half price shakes...that's a deal! They also run the promotion late night too but I don't know the hours...I personally do not need a shake past 8pm unless it is served in a martini glass. I thought this review was gonna be 2 stars because there were like 8 cars in front of me and I thought this was going to take a while! But I was amazed at how fast it moved. Great service by the employees here, in order to get all of the cars through quickly. Our chocolate shake was delicious and blended perfectly. It was also a great deal for $1.50. I like Happy Hour at Steak-N-Shake!!! Luckily for me there aren't any in downtown Chicago or I might be here daily!
(5)
Phil A.
We stopped by this evening to grab a quick dinner and we stood by the wait to be seated sign and were completely ignored. The place was less than half full and two customers were waiting to pay their bill. We decided to go to Chipotle since it's right next door.
(1)
Mike D.
The food is good but the service is terrible. We sat in the drive thru line for 30 minutes, and it always seems to take a tremendous amount of time to make a shake and a burger. They DEFINATELY need new managers
(1)
Robin C.
The service was terrible, when we finally got our order it was wrong. The restaurant and bathrooms were so dirty it was disgusting; food, silverware and napkins all over the floor, it looked like the floors hadn't been mopped in a month.
(1)
Raul I.
If I could award zero stars I would. This place was honestly THAT bad. And I don't give bad reviews for the most part. Decided to stop in after spending the day at nearby Six Flags Great America. Of course we were not the only ones with the same idea, so the place was busy. Regardless, the service up to the point where they took our orders was ok, it all then went downhill from there. 1. The food was super late and took over 20 minutes to receive. (this was a chain restaurant, nothing fancy). 2. I accidentally spilled one of the glasses with Dr. Pepper all over the table while reaching for napkins and spilled the syrupy liquid all over the table and myself. The restaurant manager saw me just as this happened and so did 3 other waiters. I saw them, they saw me. Our eyes locked and made contact, there was a momentary pause, and then they looked away. NONE OF THEM OFFERED TO HELP OR REMEDY THE SITUATION. This immediately put me into the red zone, I had to loudly request that one of the waiters stop by our table, and when she did, seeing the mess that had just occurred had the nerve to ask, how can I help you. I asked for paper towels, they brought me a giant roll and left it at the corner of the table and immediately ran off again. So I said screw it, cleaned off the whole table, my seat, my soaked shorts, everything. I then had to get up, go to the kitchen and ask for a tray so that I could direct all of the flowing liquid onto something, finished cleaning and then had to shout out for a waiter several times so they could fetch the mess. 3. After all of this, they saw the empty glass and upset customers, and no one even offered to refill the recently emptied drink, so I had to chase another waiter down to ask for a refill. 4. The waitress came by after about 20-25 minutes of waiting to let us know that the food would be late and they were working as fast as they could. 5. The food finally arrived. Guess what.....it was cold. Nothing gets my appetite going like cold soggy burgers! mmmmmm Needless to say, the experience was horrible. Service was the worst i've seen. I did notice that the waiters all had the same sense of lackluster, unmotivated, selfish sense of service as their manager. One waitress even spilled her tray by accident, and I watched as her fellow co-workers who were not busy, just standing around walked around her and around her mess and refused to lift a finger to assist. The manager would yell at people to do something, they rolled their eyes and walked away. Service was crap all the way up to the point where we walked out the door. Arriving at the register and being asked to wait, while the waitress went towards the kitchen to complain that she was done at the register and wanted to go on break. She asked me how my service was when she returned, I told her it was crap, she said "sorry to hear that". And for the first time ever, I left without leaving a tip. This was my first time at Steak & Shake. And my last.
(1)
A C.
Food is okay. Service is okay. Price is just okay. Everything is just ok imho. I would come back but there are plenty of dining options in the area.
(3)
Natasha K.
10 minutes for a server to appear at the table after we got up to get someone. 10 minutes for water. Burgers are cold, fries are cold, orders are wrong. People standing around to be seated in a near empty restaurant.
(1)
Desirae K.
Horrible, horrible service.
(1)
C R.
I took my daughter to dinner tonight, our waitress was very good. However, our order took 40 minutes for 2 burgers and one shake. While waiting for our food, I looked around and had more than enough time to see how filthy dirty the floor was as well as the grill. The restuarant was quite busy but none of the staff moved very quickly or with urgency to get the food served to customers. By the time our meal arrived, I no longer wished to eat the food based on my observations of the dirt. I was surprised that a restaurant in Gurnee would be so unkept. That was my last visit.
(2)
Niko T.
Not only does this Steak n Shake Have rude management (Bob) who yells at his workers and fires them for no reason im guessing because every time me and my family go in here there's new people.....but the restaurant is dirty they have nats flying every where rude service dirty dishes I saw in the back when I went to go talk to a server.....long wait time in the drive 12min...cold food n my list goes on how many times I been here but the last time I was here I most certainly will not be returning. I warn you stay away from here there's slot of employees that are discussing the way the look (sloppy) im glad I don't go here but good luck to you and ur family and friends.
(1)
Casey B.
The pricing is great and the food and shakes are very good. However, take the drive thru. The service inside is absolutely horrible. I think the staff is so used to getting stiffed on tips that they just have the mindset of giving horrible service. The inside is always full and pretty noisy. But like I said the food is delicious and my family of 5 eats for less than $30 and that includes shakes!!
(3)
Gregory C.
Steak-N-Shake. What happened? You used to be so clean and quick and friendly, but alas. Tables falling apart, damaged fixtures in the restroom, surly staff, slow service, food of questionable integrity...in a word--AVOID.
(1)
Diana G.
I think I've been to one Steak-N-Shake years ago. I had a horrible experience at one in Michigan City, IN. My friend and I was done shopping so I decided to give this chain one more try. We were seated and they took our order quickly. The food arrived in a decent amount of time. Nothing special about the food. The prices are fair and they give enough amount. Me and my friend finished ours and we liked that we didn't have to waste or anything. I felt like it was the right amount of food.....for us at least! I agree....the tables stay untaken care of because they have no bus boy. There was like 2-3 large tables that still had yet to be cleaned. I have never seen so many people have to clean a table. One waitress would start to clean and then leave and then someone else would start on it and leave.....you get the point. Just hire 1 bus boy and they would be so much more efficient. The table behind us did have a complaint. I think they were saying their food was sitting there and no one gave it to them. The guy scarfed down his burger, but the lady ate like half of hers and the girl took maybe 2 bites out of hers. They talked to the manager and he seemed like he didn't know what to say. So, he just gave them a plate of fries. We overheard him asking if he should leave them a tip, but they did like $2-3. Not impressed with this chain at all!
(2)
Paul M.
So, stomach growling and wallet ... well, after all it is a ressession, right? But I'm really hungry and I need something substantial. Steak 'n Shake? Not the name I'd choose first, but it does have "Steak" in its name. I was amazed at the prices, very affordable. We went during the 2PM to 4PM "Happy Hour" so we had 1/2 price shakes. All in all it was a nice experience if you want decent fast food and a really tasty shake for a reasonable price. Price vs. Delivered goods here rates as a good value.
(4)
Ab B.
Poor service. Waited over 45 min for a side salad & almost an hr for our meals. All our food was cold. The guacamole chicken sandwich was actually good but the burgers were so dry and yuck. When the manager did her 'rounds' & asked how everything was, we looked at each other and said 'um just ok.' she moved on to the next table. Why did she even ask if she didnt care? That was even more offensive than not asking at all! Will NOT go here again!
(1)
Chad H.
1 1/2 stars? Oh this place isn't that bad. Where else are you going to go for food at 2:00 AM? Denny's? Hell no! Back in high school my friends and I used to come here all the time. Sure, the food kind of sucks (although I do like their milkshakes and cheese fries) and is definitely over-priced, and the place is pretty dirty, and the service is borderline atrocious. So maybe it's my nostalgia, but I still like hitting this place up every now and then when I'm back in town. Go here with very low expectations and you should be pleasantly surprised.
(3)
Mike U.
I usually love going to steak and shake for the frisco melt and shakes. This location however is disgusting. The bread always has little fuzzies all over it. The service is very unpredictable and they almost always have people working there that you can barely understand because they appear that they just don't care.
(1)
Lauren H.
This was absolutely the worst service I have ever had at a restaurant. I was there with about.. 6 or 7 people including myself. Before even ordering we ordered waters. It was around 2am and they were pretty dead. There were 2 other tables in the restaurant with people at the time. They took our orders. We all got food and shakes. A really really really long time later our food came. We never got our waters. The waitress said our shakes would be there in a minute. So we didn't care about the water anymore- because we'd have our shakes. We ate and it was good and stuff but we were all extremely thirsty during our meals and she never came back to the table to see if everything was okay. About a half hour AFTER we finished eating our food the shakes came. By then one of the people at the table had left to pay his bill because no one wanted to sit there all day waiting for her. I guess the drive through was backed up or something because the waitress and cook were yelling at eachother about how he only cooks (because she was way behind). She was the only server working and clearly couldn't handle it. I don't want to say she was awful because she had to do everything herself. But it was a pretty bad experience overall. I went to the Steak N Shake in Elk Grove Village the next day with a different friend. Around 2am again, and with the one waiter he was extremely kind, joked around with us, brought our food, water, and shakes, and came back a few times asking how everything was and if we were doing okay. He was the only waiter then too, and that Steak N Shake was a lot busier then the Gurnee one. I think they should either have more then one person working those shifts, or have one working who knows how to handle the extra work. I was really disappointed and a frustrating night just got more frustrating from a restaurant that is generally a pretty fast place to eat.
(1)
Daniel M.
The food is great. The value is even better but they could improve on their portions. The service is OK, some waiters are the nicest people ever and there are some you really hope you don't get stuck with. Every time I come into Steak-N-Shake, I haven't experienced a bad visit (knock on wood). Everything was near perfect and was delicious. Plus, it's fast but it isn't fast food. It's a casual sit down but a fast food speed, which is great for those who are on the go. I, myself love this place. I don't know why but I do. I would eat here more often if I could but the calories would be packing on. A little recommendation - Campfire S'Mores Milkshake and the Triple Bacon Burger.. The best combination I could ever ask for. Oh, and don't forget the fries! :) 4/5 stars for this one! Improve the service a little bit, increase portions and clean a little better and you have stellar restaurant!
(4)
Mike L.
A chain fast food joint. being a non-local I can say that I have never gotten the concept of this place seeing as they cant do both at the same time, either make a good hamburger or make a good shake. Ok the whole "Steak" part is just a naming bit as most of their sandwiches are just burgers. My major complaint upon first trying them was that they did not have pickles but a vastly inferior substitute in relish. A really big change in taste and one I did not like. Last time I tried one of their shakes I will have to admit it was very thick and tasty. However I have sat at their drive-through for 10 minutes which really negates the whole concept---yes there is a sign explaining this. I have eaten at this franchise a number of times over the years in various locations and have come away every time wondering why I ate here, I have reached the point of never again. After viewing their "value menu" I think my arteries just hardened by 10 years even though I did not eat anything from it.
(2)
Vivian Y.
Ew. Came here after a long day at Six Flags. My friends and I were hoping to avoid the traffic on the Edens as we were dumb enough to leave at the end of the night. We were craving burgers, and I had never had SNS before. Never again. The service was HORRENDOUS. It took us 30 mins to have our order taken. The food was TERRIBLE and TASTELESS. And worse part - the cook wasn't even wearing a hat or a net.
(1)
Tim J.
This place is minutes from Six Flags, next to a huge mall, and two midrange hotels. It could be a goldmine. So after about 8 minutes of waiting at the bar and realizing that nobody was tending the bar, I got in line for the cashier. After about 20 total minutes of waiting to place my order, and the moment I did place my order, the cashier turned her head and asked about the mans order whom was standing next to me, and added, " they have been here for a while" He added, Over an hour" That was it for me and I canceled my order and walked out. This place is fairly clean despite how busy they are, but I did notice a sheen of grease on the floor.. There is a total clusterfuck of about 15 employees in the back taking care of drive through. There is one poor lady taking carry out orders and the front area was literally packed with at least 30 people. The grill had one....ONE grill cook and one burger prep. There was literally about 15 very young people in white shirts making shakes in the back and little else. This place needs a general manager who gives a shit enough to reorganize. There was a skinny little indian guy in a button down shirt running around paying no attention to anything. I assume he was the manager or owner. They need a bigger grill, with at least two grill cooks and two prep people. They need one person making shakes. Know why? they have one shake prep station. As I walked away I noticed that the cars were moving ok through the drive through ok. It made me want to walk up to the drive through and get my order on foot. When I called to complain, they very lady that took my order asked me to come back and bought me my $3.99 burger. She was very nice and clearly a great expediter, but has terrible management behind her. Tammi was her name and she was clearly the best part of this place. She was working despite being on medical leave. I could not resist giving her a six dollar tip. My burger was incorrectly prepared. Too bad, too...This place could be a goldmine. I advise you avoid it completely.
(1)
Tiffany L.
what's with all the negativity? you gotta review this place for what it is, and that's a franchised grease joint. steak-n-shake sits in the canyon between fast food and sit-down burger joints. the burger feels like fast food but the service and need to tip make it a sit-down place. the burgers are extensive and the fries grow on you. however the real draw is the milkshakes, especially during 1/2 off happy hour. their $3.99 deals are a no-brainer when it comes to value.
(3)
Pedro M.
Horrible food horrible service cant believe still open. Went twice and on both occasions service was slow and food flavorless. On the first visit had to wait 15 minutes before anyone took order. No napkins or straws were given while waitress clearly was lost. I almost dehydrated from the lack of refills. On the second visit i decided to try the drive thru since the waitresses were clearly incapable of doing such a easy job at a simple burger restaurant. The drive thru personal couldn't understand and when finally took order had to repeat it on multiple occasions. The food was flavorless tasted like absolute garbage. The fries were ice cold and no salt was ever put on them (guess they care about your health after feeding you a greasy burger.) the coke tasted horrendous almost like toilet water. I will never go back better meals at the local McDonalds. Like these kids say now a days SMH.
(1)
Stacy T.
Sometimes nostalgia makes you do silly things. I used to frequent the Gainesville, FL Steak-N-Shake quite frequently and thought it was just the best thing ever. Perhaps my taste buds have evolved a bit since my good ole college days where a thin little gridded slab of beef between a bun with wilted lettuce, watery tomato, and white onion was a gourmet treat saved only for celebratory occasions. Wow - I've come a long way since then. Not much has changed - the formulaic menu still holds strong and the $3.99 triple steakburger is as greasy and satisfying as ever. Add onion rings, a cup of chili, and a lemonade and you've got all the artery clogging points of the food pyramid covered. The fries suck, so you pretty much HAVE to get the onion rings (I know...my rationale is wonky). I always try to save room for a shake, but I have never been successful. Thank goodness or I'd definitely be a solid by now. I plan to save future indulgences of this sort for the In-N-Out Burger Animal Style!
(2)
Syretta H.
I tried this place for the first time since it opened in Gurnee. The first time, I went through the drive thru. It was late and I was starving. I got it home and it was pretty tasty. My daughter likes the shakes, so we decided to go back and dine inside. It wasn't that clean, to say the least. There was food on the empty tables, pieces of food on the floor. We sat there for like 5 minutes before anyone helped us. Then when she came and took our order, she promptly let me know that her shift was over, but that she would make sure that someone checked on us....HUH??? Of course only one person bothered to come over and ask us if we were okay. When we were ready to leave I needed a plastic cup to take the rest of my daughter's shake home and no one ever came back. I ended up getting one at the counter where I paid the bill..... That one experience would keep me from going back to dine inside. I may try to go thru the drive thru again...MAYBE.....
(1)
Amy C.
Tried Steak and Shake for the very first time over the weekend. The shake definitely did not stand up to the anticipation and the bread on my sandwich was soggy! GROSS! The fries are like over-sized hash browns and you wait in drive thru forever! I would eat White Castle before I ever returned to Steak and Shake. yuck!
(1)
Mike L.
Saturday evening dinner was pretty good. Chili from a can...not so good. Burger, fries, onion rings, grilled cheese, and shakes are all solid and a good value. Not exactly fast food but we had the nicest server I could ever expect and was overall very pleased with everything. Free kids meal on weekends didn't hurt.
(3)
Carl F.
First, I'm a big fan of Steak-N-Shake. I've eaten at many of them.. it is a simple menu, and overall the food is good comfort eats. However, my single star rating is strictly pointed at this particular location. The service at best is poor. The staff argue with each other directly in front of the customers. The manager admonishes the staff right in the open. The cooks are horrible and you generally wait an extended time for a poor meal. More over, the staff can't even make a good shake. Again, please do try Steak-N-Shake... but just stay away from this Gurnee location.
(1)
Don J.
Okay. Whoever thought of the whole "Happy Hour" half-price shake thing is a genius. An evil, evil, EVIL genius. Rising to the challenge of an economy in a tailspin, Steak-n-Shake has trotted out a great selection of moderately priced meals, including some pretty awesome fresh food and some awesome burger, dog and fries combos. There's a lotta good stuff here for under $5. Yeah, yeah. It sounds like a commercial. But it's hard to argue with both a good price and a freshly-made product. As far as value menus go, this place has one with the best actual value. The Gurnee store has a few really great things going for it. One is the staff, the other -- oddly enough -- is the management. I've had good service just about every time I've been here. There's even a staffer who makes it her business to keep coupons in her apron. She'll lay down a selection appropriate to your choices and save you a bundle. So, when I really need a cheeseburger fix, this is the place to go. And the shakes? Their seasonal stuff is delicious.
(4)
Ben S.
For the genre of restaurant that Steak n Shake is you really can't beat the classic good food fast qualities. Watching them make the steakburgers just like I remember in the 90s!! Tastes the same and great as well. Plus they serve breakfast, doesn't get much better than that!! Ps the BBQ western steakburger rocks!
(4)
Glen H.
OK, I haven't had Steak 'n Shake in probably 10 years. The server was really nice, but everything else was below par. Burger well, I've had better burgers at McDonalds. Fries were a little cold. Milk Shake was amazing, but I came for the burger. I just tasted like it was sitting there for awhile and was flat.
(2)
Angelica D.
I would give it no stars if I could. But the service of this place is HORRIBLE! Do not come here if you are starving or in a rush for food. The lines drag. Getting your order taken drags. And to receive your food drags!
(1)
Tony A.
One particular night it was a little busy. The waiters and assistant manager assisted with the cooking. However, service was still unbelievably slow. Our orders were wrong, cold, and one dish had a piece of plastic in it. No refund or discount was offered. Try to avoid this place.
(1)
James C.
A scosche above Meals-on-Wheels if it were left in a van down by the river for three days. Our meals came wrong and incomplete. Then our sides. And then some of our drinks. Some drinks and food were never brought out at all.
(1)
Brad M.
Recently visited this place for the first time in a while and now I see why there are terrible reviews. As soon as I walked in it seemed disorganized. It was an odd time around 3:00 and it was pretty busy. We were seated fairy quickly but it took 10-15 mins for someone to come serve us. I would have rated this place higher if it wasn't for the service. The girl that waited on us acted like she did not want to be there whatsoever. She never checked back on us after the food came out, not even asking once how our food was. I dont think she even smiled once, not even a grin. As a matter of fact, most of the staff looked plain miserable. There was one waitress right across from us serving other tables that was very friendly and outgoing. Ours was lucky that the food saved the day. It came out very fast and was hot and fresh. I think it's safe to say that the food is good and the prices are cheap but the customer service needs a makeover. Not sure if I'll be back to dine in anytime soon.
(3)
Sarah E.
I go here quite often. I actually went a few days ago and had an experience that changed my mind about the place. We were sitting next to the kitchen area. We had the great misfortune of overhearing two employees describe (in detail) how one woke up with pink eye this morning. The other just advised her to wash her hands a lot and don't tell anyone. I pretty much lost my appetite after that. Ew.
(1)
Abel P.
Food is great but service is horrible, waitress had my family and I waiting for about 20 minute which isnt so bad but as others walked in and checked in. The waitress was giving others their table as they walked in after us. We finally told the manager something and as they checked the list, we found out she did not even write our names down.
(2)
Joseph L.
Was out of town visiting family- this place was next door to our hotel and we love steak and shake so we hit it up. As usual, great place, great food, and quick!
(4)
Nicole H.
I luuuurrrrrvvvveee Steak N Shake. But this location is sad and busy and dirty and the only I reason I go is because it's the closest one we have! Listen, skinny cheese fries covered in warm, gloopy processed cheese food and a banana/chocolate side-by-side would likely be the meal I ask for on Death Row, but this particular location is just really one to be survived in your pursuit of the delicious goodness. Since they closed the ones in the Milwaukee area, we take advantage of the Gurnee one pretty much any time we head into Chicago. And it gives us our fix. But the frills are non-existent. The waitstaff always seems harried and overwhelmed, you get your shake well after you've gotten your meal (seriously, buy another shake mixer gadget thingy) and there are always sketchy folks and screaming children (I'm looking at you, Evangelical old man in the crazy suit). But I will go through all that in pursuit of an occasional fix. So I guess it depends on how bad your jones is, right?
(2)
Eric W.
Way to dirty to rate any higher then this. Food is very reasonably priced but nothing special. Milkshake was disappointing, grilled cheese was tasty. Open 24hrs and probably dirtier then it should be for everyone of them.
(2)
Danielle A.
The service here is incredibly slow and the greasy mediocre food is not worth the wait. I had two bites of the Jalepeño burger and was done. The milkshakes were okay, there was not anything special about them. And hearing one of cooks say "Eww!!" While cooking your meal, will in fact make you lose your appetite.
(1)
Gordon G.
WARNING ( Reasons not to not visit ) : waitress itching hair with long nails Lettuce super juicy Cup smeared with brown stuff and cherry juice Filthy floors Brown object on bathroom in floors Hostess had hair on rump Jimmy's all down side of malt cup Carmel pretzel shake has super soggy "pretzels" ? Uniforms dirty Windows smeared Steakburger was dis-formed and the barbecue was in a glob Having stomach probs ( Reasons to visit ) : waitress was very pleasant Pricepoint ok Makes Arby's look like a palace
(1)
Bill M.
Just stopped here in Gurnee for a quick meal with wife. What a joke this place is. Waited for a table for 5 minutes while the whole wait staff stares at you. Tables are dirty and no one sitting has food. I counted at least 7 servers pretending to work and just giggling when manager comes over and points at us like to say take care of us. No one seats us for another 5 minutes so we leave. Nice managing!! Usually like the food here but will go somewhere else from now on.
(1)
Joel A.
I see a lot of low reviews but at Steak and Shake you get what you pay for and being open 24 hours makes this place awesome. $4 menu of amazing hamburgers and fries and other goodies are all good. I won't eat McDonald's crappy processed hamburgers anymore so when I need a late night meal ill drive the extra distance here. They have a cheap midnight to 11am breakfast menu that's really good for the price. Again, if this was Burger Bar or another high end hamburger joint I'd give it one star but this is Steak and Shake and the prices are reasonable and the food is perfect when I need a 2am snack!
(4)
Thuy H.
You can't expect much from here. The foods are great but the service isn't so great. Sometimes it'll take them over 10 minutes before taking your order. It's like they have forgotten about you
(3)
Carl P.
I've visited this location several times and the food is usually very good. There is the occasional slip up with our order, but by the time it arrives that's usually the least of our worries. To begin, we generally are not greeted when entering the restaurant. If the tables are not occupied by customers, they're filthy and remain that wat for some time. In general it takes about 20 minutes of standing at the "please wait to be seated" sign before anyone acknowledges your presence. On occasion I've grown impatient and seated myself. The manager seems flustered and overwhelmed and the staff seems like they could care less about the state of their dining room or their guests. I understand busy restaurants, I've run several of them. Gurnee is a high volume restaurant, which makes the fact thay they cannot maintain a proper staff level, or the necessary training to maintain such a volume is troubling. It's unfortunate that this is how the Steak n' Shake brand is represented. During my most recent visit, after waiting for a shake for 20 minutes I see one of the guys making shakes sticking a bottle of flavored syrup up his nose and laughing. After quelling a minor heart attack, I approached the manager and complained that perhaps the reason nothing was leaving the shake side of things was because the team is messing around. As I type this I've actually watched an entire shake melt on an uncleaned table as the same 10 guests I walked in with stand at the welcome area. I really suggest that if you are planning on visiting this location, that you budget your time accordingly.
(1)
Adam H.
Very busy place and you get what you should expect - mediocre food with mediocre service. I'll pretty much agree with Jake R on the review, but I think accusing the area health inspector of some sort of corruption is a little much. Things like that are what the filters should be used for.
(1)
Christine F.
We always try new restaurants wherever we go and were very happy with Steak and Shake. We went on Sunday for the kids eat free. You really can't argue with free. One kid eats free for every $8.00 you spend. I had the new California burger with avocado and my hubby had the Western BBQ and bacon. Both were tasty. We shared a 3 way chili which was also good. The kids portions were kind of small. Our waiter charged us for the large shakes instead of the kids shakes but adjusted our bill. The shakes were delicious and the fries reminded me of the old George Webb fries here in Milwaukee. All in all, we couldn't beat the value. All five of us ate for $26.00 and were full for the entire night.
(4)
LaWanna O.
The frisco melt is my favorite here. I must say though, steak -n- shake isn't as good as they use to be.
(3)
Juan Z.
This Steak n Shake has lost its value. Last time I went I found a hair on my bun so I asked to get it changed and when they brought it back there was a hair in the meat. This time I went with my friends and one of them ordered a guacamole burger but when he got it there wasn't any guacamole. And when we paid the cashier charged my friends my meal and charged me their meals even though I had already told her what seats I was going to pay beforehand. Apparently they hire people who are doing community service or something too. I do not recommend this place anymore.
(2)
Phillip C.
You know, I lived very close to this establishment for over six years. I came here all of 10 times in those six years, and twice in the past six months. I'm never coming here ever again. Their food, when it actually gets to you, is usually not bad. It's hot/warm/cold, whatever's appropriate. One time, I was seated at the bar. I ordered a simple burger. Watched the fry cook flip burgers using bare hands. Asked for eggs over easy. Got undercooked eggs instead. Asked for eggs over hard. Got over easy eggs instead. Once, I ordered scrambled eggs because it's the safest bet. Nope, I got undercooked eggs, again. I've been through the drive-through maybe four times. Each time the order takes over 15 minutes for a few items and there are often mistakes (wrong items, missing items, etc.) My worst experience is when I waited at the window a grand total of 40 minutes. They still screwed up the order. Don't even think about going to this Steak and Shake. I've been to other locations, and they're perfectly fine. This place, however, is a damn joke.
(1)
Kat B.
I find this chain to be Friendly's meets 5 Guys Burgers and Fries meets a younger sibling of Johnny Rockets sans the dancing and music. Bright red and silver decor with the smell of burgers sizzling on the grill and packed with people. Our waiter was the best and my son, who is in the military, had his ice cream paid for by one of the nice customers.....so .....yay! First, the menu...wow, unbelievablely cheap prices here. $4 for a burger and plate of fries? Did I die and go to heaven? Various hot dogs with toppings, including the Chicago hotdog, are also listed on the menu as well as shakes and all kinds of sundaes. And these are BIG sundaes. Plus another nice customer gave us a coupon for a buy one, get one free ice cream sundae... I need to go on a diet after my vacation....
(4)
Earl S.
Right hours -- check Right location-- check Right food choices-- check DELICIOUS FOOD-- CHECK CHECK CHECK! I just wish this chain will come to Wisconsin.
(4)
Ben S.
For the genre of restaurant that Steak n Shake is you really can't beat the classic good food fast qualities. Watching them make the steakburgers just like I remember in the 90s!! Tastes the same and great as well. Plus they serve breakfast, doesn't get much better than that!! Ps the BBQ western steakburger rocks!
(4)
Z B.
After a long day at Six Flags, this is the place I usually go to. I love Steak and Shake. I noticed there was one near Six Flags. I usually go to the one in Frankfort, but I wanted to try this one. Expect a line for a table after Six Flags. The service was just okay. The staff are friendly, and they always have a smile on their fades. The only thing is that my family and me didn't get our drinks (which were mostly shakes) until after we got the food. It's drinks, THEN the food. Does it really take that long to make shakes? The food and the shakes are definitely worth the wait. I got the new Garlic Double Steakburger. I'm a big fan of it because it's really good! There's a lot of flavor in the garlic. The patty tastes different which I like! The shakes are great! The ice cream in the shake is very tasty! All in all, this is a pretty good Steak and Shake. I will come back.
(3)
Aj C.
I'm rating this 4/5 just because ever since I moved to California, there's barely any Steak n Shake there. It's plagued with the ubiquitous presence of In-N-Out. I believe the price is very affordable and I find it tasty. I love getting my usual which is the jalapeno crunch burger. I usually get it with extra jalapenos. I just tried the sriracha version which had sriracha on it and it was amazing! If you love spicy food, you should definitely try that. The fries are flavorful as well as long as you put their special seasoning on it. What I also love about Steak n Shake is that it's 24/7 so you can come here whenever you're feeling it. The wait times to be seated is usually not bad when I go here. When it's really busy it can get as bad as 20-30 minutes. Kudos to the staff that sticks through for a couple months because it seems like their employees here are never permanent.
(4)
Doug R.
Took almost 10 minutes to be seated. There were unoccupied tables but nobody was cleaning off the mess on them. Once we were seated, the service was quick and the waitress was attentive. It took another few minutes for someone to come to the cash register so we could pay. I'll give 3 starts instead of two bc even though they seemed to be severely understaffed, our waitress was quick and the food was as good as always.
(3)
Joel R.
Without a doubt the worst location i have visited. Restroom is dirty. Service (or lack of) is horrible. Went one time for a shake and waited 30 minutes. The second time i went, the server never checked on me after i got my food. I had to go to the register to get my bill so i could leave. For those late nights when i am hungry and nothing is open, i will just go to bed hungry.
(1)
Hoss M.
Right next to Gurnee Mills is not easy. The staff here is courteous and pleasant. Food was great. Nicole was one of the best servers I have had at any restaurant. Kids had a good time and so did mom and I.
(5)
Vesna M.
I stopped by with my kids to have lunch there yesterday. As soon as you walk in the place looks so dirty. The chairs were full of dust, once you sat, the table was sticky and not cleaned properly. I ordered a cup of coffee and when the waitress brought it to me, half of the coffee was spilled into the bottom of the cup and the cup had stains on it. It was disgusting. Once the waitress brought our food out, the fries were cold, and the bottom of the plates were also sticky and we lost our appetite. This place should be more clean. I will never ever never eat here again. Such a dirty place.
(1)
Kori Y.
Hard to resist the shakes here. Need a quick lunch stop, and this was convenient. Food was good, although predictable as well as the service.
(3)
Anthony U.
I visit this Steak 'n Shake a few times a year usually after a trip to Gurnee Mills or a day at Great America. For the most part I find everything here to be perfect except for the crabby older (50+) women who do most of the table waiting service. My last two trips have provided great service with one a few months ago where Candace was my waitress and my most recent trip we got Nick as a waiter and he was excellent and always smiling. Looks like this location is stepping up their service game! Because I dislike paying $12 for a burger I try to not eat much while at Six Flags Great America. After a 12 hour day at the park I'm pretty hungry and this visit to SnS at 10pm was no exception. We started with a couple shakes although not at half price (2pm to 4pm and 2am to 4am) with one Vanilla and one Hershey's Special Dark (that wasn't on the menu but Nick said he could make one for me). The shakes arrived faster than normal and at some locations it can be frustrating to wait so long for them. We both loved our shakes and found it was truly worth the price even though it wasn't 1/2 price time. We ordered a Deluxe Bacon Double Cheeseburger, a Garlic Double Cheeseburger, and a Chili 5-Way (my absolute favorite SnS dish). We loved all three items with the new Garlic burger being the best of this visit. The new Garlic Double Cheeseburger is made with a toasted garlic bread bun and a rich garlic butter. Just the right combination of burger, garlic, and saltiness. I hope they keep it on the menu like they have with some other limited time special products. Our waiter came back to check on us at least six or seven times during the visit and while some customers may find that too frequent or annoying I rather like it. I'm also very impressed with the restrooms here. With the flow of customers leaving the mall and the rush of Six Flags employees and customers as the theme park just closed the restrooms are always spotless. I also like the fact the paper towel dispenser automatically rolls off enough towel that you need just one piece to dry your hands but also that there is a garbage can next to the door. I wish all restaurants operated their bathroom like this. Sometimes when I'm out I love to stop at Cracker Barrel and will almost always take CB over SnS but this is one location where that is reversed for me. That's just how good I find this SnS to be! Great job Steak 'n Shake, this place runs pretty tight and keep on hiring great wait staff to replace the crabby ones!
(5)
Katelyn J.
Yuck. This place was awful. The floor was super dirty with trash and food. It was seriously black around my area. I was seated near the kitchen, and I had to watch the employees yelling back and forth at each other. I have no idea what kind of drama was happening, but there was a lot of shouting going on. My food took forever, and it was average. Cold fries... but the burger was okay. I guess I kinda of wished I would have driven through McDonalds instead... but at least I know now I don't need to go back.
(1)
Dominick N.
Fast Seating and service. Judy was a doll. The Jalepeno burger with cajun fries was great. This place is dirt cheap and the service is quick. We were famished and wanted quick and easy. The place wasn't spotless but it wasnt dirty either. The Server Judy was a doll. I wasnt stuffed when I left, I felt quite content.
(4)
Jerrold A.
Terrible service had our party waiting almost an hour after our waiter took our order. The waiter not only give us the wrong check but also didn't give us utensils. Sadly the only thing he got us right away was our waters. I have been to many steak n shakes and by far this location is the worst. Our waiter was sitting down with another table chatting with other people after we ask for silverware. We ended up asking another waiter to grab the utensils.
(1)
Jessica G.
This Place has the worst servers I have ever experienced out of steak n shake. I repeated my order 3 time because my waitress wasn't listening, my boyfriend ordered the same exact thing and didn't get it, I also repeated my sister's order and everything came out wrong. DO NOT GO HERE IF YOU WANT ANY SERVICE!!!!
(1)
Carole L.
This place has gone downhill fast! Restaurant is filthy dirty. Today while waiting more than 5 minutes to be seated, (plenty of tables open but all dirty) we watched an employee wipe a table with a wet napkin, no spray cleaner! Not surprised! Needless to say we left!
(1)
Stuart G.
Bad service, slow, and gets orders wrong. Don't go here. Made friend cry and almost die.
(1)
Big D.
Great staff just it took a long, long, long time to get seated and get the drinks and then the food. Portions were ok for money. I will go to Chipotle next time.
(1)
Shaun E.
I've been to this location on several occasions passing through town towards either Chicago or Milwaukee. The service was awesome. Our server Char was stellar! She was very attentive and the most friendly ever! The food was delicious as always, thanks cooking staff for your hard work! The restaurant was clean and presentable. If you're in the area craving an all American meal stop by steak and shake for a very affordable meal for $4.
(4)
jim s.
Very good service by Charlotte and the food came fairly quick and hot and exactly as ordered.....but I couldn't give 5 stars because the place seemed kind of dirty and unmanaged. ....other employees, besides my server, walking around wasting time....a guy at the register had to wait a long time for a simple chocolate shake
(4)
Keaunis G.
This is the closest Steak n Shake to my home! Every time that I come to this location, the staff is always friendly and my food is ready is a timely fashion. Love it! The food and the shakes are very delicious and are priced reasonably.
(5)
Magdaline V.
So good! Burgers freshly made and my favorite small, thin fries. I don't really like fries but love these. I order a kids' size malt with no whipped cream and it's fantastic. Server Judy is very nice and she works hard in this busy place. Usually one or two managers on duty. I like to sit at the counter and watch the food being prepared. Yummy!
(5)
Brad M.
Recently visited this place for the first time in a while and now I see why there are terrible reviews. As soon as I walked in it seemed disorganized. It was an odd time around 3:00 and it was pretty busy. We were seated fairy quickly but it took 10-15 mins for someone to come serve us. I would have rated this place higher if it wasn't for the service. The girl that waited on us acted like she did not want to be there whatsoever. She never checked back on us after the food came out, not even asking once how our food was. I dont think she even smiled once, not even a grin. As a matter of fact, most of the staff looked plain miserable. There was one waitress right across from us serving other tables that was very friendly and outgoing. Ours was lucky that the food saved the day. It came out very fast and was hot and fresh. I think it's safe to say that the food is good and the prices are cheap but the customer service needs a makeover. Not sure if I'll be back to dine in anytime soon.
(3)
Sarah E.
I go here quite often. I actually went a few days ago and had an experience that changed my mind about the place. We were sitting next to the kitchen area. We had the great misfortune of overhearing two employees describe (in detail) how one woke up with pink eye this morning. The other just advised her to wash her hands a lot and don't tell anyone. I pretty much lost my appetite after that. Ew.
(1)
Abel P.
Food is great but service is horrible, waitress had my family and I waiting for about 20 minute which isnt so bad but as others walked in and checked in. The waitress was giving others their table as they walked in after us. We finally told the manager something and as they checked the list, we found out she did not even write our names down.
(2)
Joseph L.
Was out of town visiting family- this place was next door to our hotel and we love steak and shake so we hit it up. As usual, great place, great food, and quick!
(4)
Nicole H.
I luuuurrrrrvvvveee Steak N Shake. But this location is sad and busy and dirty and the only I reason I go is because it's the closest one we have! Listen, skinny cheese fries covered in warm, gloopy processed cheese food and a banana/chocolate side-by-side would likely be the meal I ask for on Death Row, but this particular location is just really one to be survived in your pursuit of the delicious goodness. Since they closed the ones in the Milwaukee area, we take advantage of the Gurnee one pretty much any time we head into Chicago. And it gives us our fix. But the frills are non-existent. The waitstaff always seems harried and overwhelmed, you get your shake well after you've gotten your meal (seriously, buy another shake mixer gadget thingy) and there are always sketchy folks and screaming children (I'm looking at you, Evangelical old man in the crazy suit). But I will go through all that in pursuit of an occasional fix. So I guess it depends on how bad your jones is, right?
(2)
Eric W.
Way to dirty to rate any higher then this. Food is very reasonably priced but nothing special. Milkshake was disappointing, grilled cheese was tasty. Open 24hrs and probably dirtier then it should be for everyone of them.
(2)
Joze C.
Steak & shake is good! Good food & good desserts. The only thing this establishment lacks is customer service and quickness The drive through took 20 minutes today and the associates were not very friendly. But they weren't terrible Dining in isn't much different either. Focus more on customer service & you'll be at 4-5 stars in know time
(3)
Deb M.
We have been eating here for years. Usually stop on our way to Chicago! Love the food! But the last few time we stopped it's a mess! Bathrooms were filthy! The table condiments containers filthy greasy. And to top it off today one of the workers were taking a nap at the entry way of the restaurant!
(1)
David R.
We stopped in at about 9pm after a very long day. The place was pretty busy. We stood and waited to be seated for almost 15 minutes. Not one of the 3 employees that passed us multiple times ever said a word to us. This has happened at this location previously too. I will not go back again.
(1)
Ron R.
So, I grew up eating at Steak N Shake in the 70's. The older, 24 hour ones like Main St in Peoria, these things were like a step back in time. But alas, these are all gone, replaced by a pseudo-dinerish looking things covered in chrome. Yes the subway tile is gone, long gone are the days of setting next to a 3rd shift worker at the counter, after an all night bender. So why 5 stars? The food baby. SnS is the KING of Midwest style smashed burgers. For nearly a century, Steak N Shake has been making prime cuts of ground beef, and smashing them paper thin on a blazingly hot grill. The end result is a thin patty of flavor, encased by a crispy, crunchy exterior. Since moving to MKE- they are no longer around the corner, so my closest SnS is in Gurnee. Here's where I get my fix- a single with cheese, mustard and onion. Frisco Melt- extra sauce. I'm on it- just like Jim Bonnet.
(5)
Blair F.
Went there during shake happy hour for just a chocolate shake. I was told I would have to wait 10 minutes, but didn't have a problem with that. Other came in behind me, sat down at the counter and received their food with shakes well before there was any sign of my one shake. Finally after 25 minutes, I politely asked the lady order taker if she could check on my shake. I pointed out that other people were getting their shakes and ask why was mine taking longer. She then rudely snapped at me at said "because they are sitting down and staying!" A few minutes later my shake arrived and she then delivered a few more sarcastic remarks. Another customer witnessed my interaction and walked out with me saying that she saw the whole interaction and wasn't going to wait nor tolerate the attitude. The chocolate shake didn't taste normal either. It had a plastic type of taste to it so I ended throwing most of it out.
(1)
Teepee-liquor N.
This is the dirtiest restaurant I ever been to ... the food is cold and the service is horrible. .. can someone call the health department lol
(1)
Jennifer L.
Meh. Wasn't worth the calories. Hadn't had Steak N Shake in about 10 years. Was close-by, figured we'd try it. Hit the drive through, but then parked in mall parking lot to eat (we had the dog in the car, so couldn't go in). By the time I got my fries, they were already cold. And the buger was just kinda nominal. Nothing special. Overall, will probably never come back. Just wasn't worth the calories. If I'm gonna go hog-wild, I'd rather McD's fries or something else :)
(2)
Serena M.
Our server is always super nice. Glenda is her name. I'm here now, my sister and I both ordered some milkshakes. Happy Hour 2-4! Great deal! However, they take forever.. Which ruins the experience. The food always comes out first. It's annoying. But then again, there is only a couple servers on per shift. Ugh. Anyhow, enjoy!
(2)
Tony M.
Food is usually good here! The service is slow usually every time I come here. I usually have to ask for my refill of drink. I order different sandwiches every time I come here tasting great! If you are in a hurry to eat, don't come here. Lots of people come here to dine in which they do not have a lot of tables to handle everyone. I see a long line for the drive thru cause the cooks have to cook your order fresh as you wait. It's quicker to come inside to order to go!!! There is not enough servers usually here too! I come for the food at a great price, not the service!!!
(4)
Kevin N.
I love the Happy Days Fifties vibe here. Complete with table service, drive through or takeout, they have a fast food preparation model but it's definitely more fun to eat in diner style. The service staff has nostalgic style uniforms complete with the paper hats on the cooks. My waitress was serving Flo-realness from Mel's diner. The steakburgers are tasty, pressed thin on the griddle, and you can get whatever you want on them. The fries are the thin shoestring style. I enjoy these. They also have old-school Chili burgers and Chili Mac! Spice up your chili with some dashes of the pick-a-peppa sauce, which is vinegar-based and packed with sport peppers. Best of all, service is fast and friendly and it won't break the bank. Honestly, the prices on their burger and fries combos are no more than the major burger chains. They feature multiple entrees at $4! I tried an Octoberfest special last time which was a double Swiss burger with ham, mustard and grilled onions on a pretzel roll. Ausgezeichnet! (That's German for awesome!) They also have a half price shake happy hour 2-4pm and 2-4am with discounts excellent hand dipped milkshakes. The red velvet cake shake is so good it should be banned because you'll want to go back again and again. Open 24 hours for your midnight munchies!
(4)
JD C.
This is single-handledly the worst food service experience I had in my whole life. We waited 15 minutes to be seated and we are now at one hour in the restaurant with no shakes, no food. The whole team is clearly incompetent starting from the top. This entire restaurant and potentially the franchisee needs to be rotated out. Do not go there. It's too bad as we love our Steak 'n Shake by us in Chicago.
(1)
Anthony M.
Went through the drive thru to take part in Happy Hour Shakes! From 2-4 pm you can get half price shakes...that's a deal! They also run the promotion late night too but I don't know the hours...I personally do not need a shake past 8pm unless it is served in a martini glass. I thought this review was gonna be 2 stars because there were like 8 cars in front of me and I thought this was going to take a while! But I was amazed at how fast it moved. Great service by the employees here, in order to get all of the cars through quickly. Our chocolate shake was delicious and blended perfectly. It was also a great deal for $1.50. I like Happy Hour at Steak-N-Shake!!! Luckily for me there aren't any in downtown Chicago or I might be here daily!
(5)
Phil A.
We stopped by this evening to grab a quick dinner and we stood by the wait to be seated sign and were completely ignored. The place was less than half full and two customers were waiting to pay their bill. We decided to go to Chipotle since it's right next door.
(1)
Mike D.
The food is good but the service is terrible. We sat in the drive thru line for 30 minutes, and it always seems to take a tremendous amount of time to make a shake and a burger. They DEFINATELY need new managers
(1)
Robin C.
The service was terrible, when we finally got our order it was wrong. The restaurant and bathrooms were so dirty it was disgusting; food, silverware and napkins all over the floor, it looked like the floors hadn't been mopped in a month.
(1)
Raul I.
If I could award zero stars I would. This place was honestly THAT bad. And I don't give bad reviews for the most part. Decided to stop in after spending the day at nearby Six Flags Great America. Of course we were not the only ones with the same idea, so the place was busy. Regardless, the service up to the point where they took our orders was ok, it all then went downhill from there. 1. The food was super late and took over 20 minutes to receive. (this was a chain restaurant, nothing fancy). 2. I accidentally spilled one of the glasses with Dr. Pepper all over the table while reaching for napkins and spilled the syrupy liquid all over the table and myself. The restaurant manager saw me just as this happened and so did 3 other waiters. I saw them, they saw me. Our eyes locked and made contact, there was a momentary pause, and then they looked away. NONE OF THEM OFFERED TO HELP OR REMEDY THE SITUATION. This immediately put me into the red zone, I had to loudly request that one of the waiters stop by our table, and when she did, seeing the mess that had just occurred had the nerve to ask, how can I help you. I asked for paper towels, they brought me a giant roll and left it at the corner of the table and immediately ran off again. So I said screw it, cleaned off the whole table, my seat, my soaked shorts, everything. I then had to get up, go to the kitchen and ask for a tray so that I could direct all of the flowing liquid onto something, finished cleaning and then had to shout out for a waiter several times so they could fetch the mess. 3. After all of this, they saw the empty glass and upset customers, and no one even offered to refill the recently emptied drink, so I had to chase another waiter down to ask for a refill. 4. The waitress came by after about 20-25 minutes of waiting to let us know that the food would be late and they were working as fast as they could. 5. The food finally arrived. Guess what.....it was cold. Nothing gets my appetite going like cold soggy burgers! mmmmmm Needless to say, the experience was horrible. Service was the worst i've seen. I did notice that the waiters all had the same sense of lackluster, unmotivated, selfish sense of service as their manager. One waitress even spilled her tray by accident, and I watched as her fellow co-workers who were not busy, just standing around walked around her and around her mess and refused to lift a finger to assist. The manager would yell at people to do something, they rolled their eyes and walked away. Service was crap all the way up to the point where we walked out the door. Arriving at the register and being asked to wait, while the waitress went towards the kitchen to complain that she was done at the register and wanted to go on break. She asked me how my service was when she returned, I told her it was crap, she said "sorry to hear that". And for the first time ever, I left without leaving a tip. This was my first time at Steak & Shake. And my last.
(1)
A C.
Food is okay. Service is okay. Price is just okay. Everything is just ok imho. I would come back but there are plenty of dining options in the area.
(3)
Natasha K.
10 minutes for a server to appear at the table after we got up to get someone. 10 minutes for water. Burgers are cold, fries are cold, orders are wrong. People standing around to be seated in a near empty restaurant.
(1)
Glen H.
OK, I haven't had Steak 'n Shake in probably 10 years. The server was really nice, but everything else was below par. Burger well, I've had better burgers at McDonalds. Fries were a little cold. Milk Shake was amazing, but I came for the burger. I just tasted like it was sitting there for awhile and was flat.
(2)
Angelica D.
I would give it no stars if I could. But the service of this place is HORRIBLE! Do not come here if you are starving or in a rush for food. The lines drag. Getting your order taken drags. And to receive your food drags!
(1)
Tony A.
One particular night it was a little busy. The waiters and assistant manager assisted with the cooking. However, service was still unbelievably slow. Our orders were wrong, cold, and one dish had a piece of plastic in it. No refund or discount was offered. Try to avoid this place.
(1)
James C.
A scosche above Meals-on-Wheels if it were left in a van down by the river for three days. Our meals came wrong and incomplete. Then our sides. And then some of our drinks. Some drinks and food were never brought out at all.
(1)
Danielle A.
The service here is incredibly slow and the greasy mediocre food is not worth the wait. I had two bites of the Jalepeño burger and was done. The milkshakes were okay, there was not anything special about them. And hearing one of cooks say "Eww!!" While cooking your meal, will in fact make you lose your appetite.
(1)
Gordon G.
WARNING ( Reasons not to not visit ) : waitress itching hair with long nails Lettuce super juicy Cup smeared with brown stuff and cherry juice Filthy floors Brown object on bathroom in floors Hostess had hair on rump Jimmy's all down side of malt cup Carmel pretzel shake has super soggy "pretzels" ? Uniforms dirty Windows smeared Steakburger was dis-formed and the barbecue was in a glob Having stomach probs ( Reasons to visit ) : waitress was very pleasant Pricepoint ok Makes Arby's look like a palace
(1)
Bill M.
Just stopped here in Gurnee for a quick meal with wife. What a joke this place is. Waited for a table for 5 minutes while the whole wait staff stares at you. Tables are dirty and no one sitting has food. I counted at least 7 servers pretending to work and just giggling when manager comes over and points at us like to say take care of us. No one seats us for another 5 minutes so we leave. Nice managing!! Usually like the food here but will go somewhere else from now on.
(1)
Joel A.
I see a lot of low reviews but at Steak and Shake you get what you pay for and being open 24 hours makes this place awesome. $4 menu of amazing hamburgers and fries and other goodies are all good. I won't eat McDonald's crappy processed hamburgers anymore so when I need a late night meal ill drive the extra distance here. They have a cheap midnight to 11am breakfast menu that's really good for the price. Again, if this was Burger Bar or another high end hamburger joint I'd give it one star but this is Steak and Shake and the prices are reasonable and the food is perfect when I need a 2am snack!
(4)
Thuy H.
You can't expect much from here. The foods are great but the service isn't so great. Sometimes it'll take them over 10 minutes before taking your order. It's like they have forgotten about you
(3)
Carl P.
I've visited this location several times and the food is usually very good. There is the occasional slip up with our order, but by the time it arrives that's usually the least of our worries. To begin, we generally are not greeted when entering the restaurant. If the tables are not occupied by customers, they're filthy and remain that wat for some time. In general it takes about 20 minutes of standing at the "please wait to be seated" sign before anyone acknowledges your presence. On occasion I've grown impatient and seated myself. The manager seems flustered and overwhelmed and the staff seems like they could care less about the state of their dining room or their guests. I understand busy restaurants, I've run several of them. Gurnee is a high volume restaurant, which makes the fact thay they cannot maintain a proper staff level, or the necessary training to maintain such a volume is troubling. It's unfortunate that this is how the Steak n' Shake brand is represented. During my most recent visit, after waiting for a shake for 20 minutes I see one of the guys making shakes sticking a bottle of flavored syrup up his nose and laughing. After quelling a minor heart attack, I approached the manager and complained that perhaps the reason nothing was leaving the shake side of things was because the team is messing around. As I type this I've actually watched an entire shake melt on an uncleaned table as the same 10 guests I walked in with stand at the welcome area. I really suggest that if you are planning on visiting this location, that you budget your time accordingly.
(1)
Adam H.
Very busy place and you get what you should expect - mediocre food with mediocre service. I'll pretty much agree with Jake R on the review, but I think accusing the area health inspector of some sort of corruption is a little much. Things like that are what the filters should be used for.
(1)
Christine F.
We always try new restaurants wherever we go and were very happy with Steak and Shake. We went on Sunday for the kids eat free. You really can't argue with free. One kid eats free for every $8.00 you spend. I had the new California burger with avocado and my hubby had the Western BBQ and bacon. Both were tasty. We shared a 3 way chili which was also good. The kids portions were kind of small. Our waiter charged us for the large shakes instead of the kids shakes but adjusted our bill. The shakes were delicious and the fries reminded me of the old George Webb fries here in Milwaukee. All in all, we couldn't beat the value. All five of us ate for $26.00 and were full for the entire night.
(4)
Mike U.
I usually love going to steak and shake for the frisco melt and shakes. This location however is disgusting. The bread always has little fuzzies all over it. The service is very unpredictable and they almost always have people working there that you can barely understand because they appear that they just don't care.
(1)
Lauren H.
This was absolutely the worst service I have ever had at a restaurant. I was there with about.. 6 or 7 people including myself. Before even ordering we ordered waters. It was around 2am and they were pretty dead. There were 2 other tables in the restaurant with people at the time. They took our orders. We all got food and shakes. A really really really long time later our food came. We never got our waters. The waitress said our shakes would be there in a minute. So we didn't care about the water anymore- because we'd have our shakes. We ate and it was good and stuff but we were all extremely thirsty during our meals and she never came back to the table to see if everything was okay. About a half hour AFTER we finished eating our food the shakes came. By then one of the people at the table had left to pay his bill because no one wanted to sit there all day waiting for her. I guess the drive through was backed up or something because the waitress and cook were yelling at eachother about how he only cooks (because she was way behind). She was the only server working and clearly couldn't handle it. I don't want to say she was awful because she had to do everything herself. But it was a pretty bad experience overall. I went to the Steak N Shake in Elk Grove Village the next day with a different friend. Around 2am again, and with the one waiter he was extremely kind, joked around with us, brought our food, water, and shakes, and came back a few times asking how everything was and if we were doing okay. He was the only waiter then too, and that Steak N Shake was a lot busier then the Gurnee one. I think they should either have more then one person working those shifts, or have one working who knows how to handle the extra work. I was really disappointed and a frustrating night just got more frustrating from a restaurant that is generally a pretty fast place to eat.
(1)
Daniel M.
The food is great. The value is even better but they could improve on their portions. The service is OK, some waiters are the nicest people ever and there are some you really hope you don't get stuck with. Every time I come into Steak-N-Shake, I haven't experienced a bad visit (knock on wood). Everything was near perfect and was delicious. Plus, it's fast but it isn't fast food. It's a casual sit down but a fast food speed, which is great for those who are on the go. I, myself love this place. I don't know why but I do. I would eat here more often if I could but the calories would be packing on. A little recommendation - Campfire S'Mores Milkshake and the Triple Bacon Burger.. The best combination I could ever ask for. Oh, and don't forget the fries! :) 4/5 stars for this one! Improve the service a little bit, increase portions and clean a little better and you have stellar restaurant!
(4)
Desirae K.
Horrible, horrible service.
(1)
C R.
I took my daughter to dinner tonight, our waitress was very good. However, our order took 40 minutes for 2 burgers and one shake. While waiting for our food, I looked around and had more than enough time to see how filthy dirty the floor was as well as the grill. The restuarant was quite busy but none of the staff moved very quickly or with urgency to get the food served to customers. By the time our meal arrived, I no longer wished to eat the food based on my observations of the dirt. I was surprised that a restaurant in Gurnee would be so unkept. That was my last visit.
(2)
Niko T.
Not only does this Steak n Shake Have rude management (Bob) who yells at his workers and fires them for no reason im guessing because every time me and my family go in here there's new people.....but the restaurant is dirty they have nats flying every where rude service dirty dishes I saw in the back when I went to go talk to a server.....long wait time in the drive 12min...cold food n my list goes on how many times I been here but the last time I was here I most certainly will not be returning. I warn you stay away from here there's slot of employees that are discussing the way the look (sloppy) im glad I don't go here but good luck to you and ur family and friends.
(1)
Casey B.
The pricing is great and the food and shakes are very good. However, take the drive thru. The service inside is absolutely horrible. I think the staff is so used to getting stiffed on tips that they just have the mindset of giving horrible service. The inside is always full and pretty noisy. But like I said the food is delicious and my family of 5 eats for less than $30 and that includes shakes!!
(3)
Gregory C.
Steak-N-Shake. What happened? You used to be so clean and quick and friendly, but alas. Tables falling apart, damaged fixtures in the restroom, surly staff, slow service, food of questionable integrity...in a word--AVOID.
(1)
Diana G.
I think I've been to one Steak-N-Shake years ago. I had a horrible experience at one in Michigan City, IN. My friend and I was done shopping so I decided to give this chain one more try. We were seated and they took our order quickly. The food arrived in a decent amount of time. Nothing special about the food. The prices are fair and they give enough amount. Me and my friend finished ours and we liked that we didn't have to waste or anything. I felt like it was the right amount of food.....for us at least! I agree....the tables stay untaken care of because they have no bus boy. There was like 2-3 large tables that still had yet to be cleaned. I have never seen so many people have to clean a table. One waitress would start to clean and then leave and then someone else would start on it and leave.....you get the point. Just hire 1 bus boy and they would be so much more efficient. The table behind us did have a complaint. I think they were saying their food was sitting there and no one gave it to them. The guy scarfed down his burger, but the lady ate like half of hers and the girl took maybe 2 bites out of hers. They talked to the manager and he seemed like he didn't know what to say. So, he just gave them a plate of fries. We overheard him asking if he should leave them a tip, but they did like $2-3. Not impressed with this chain at all!
(2)
Mike L.
Saturday evening dinner was pretty good. Chili from a can...not so good. Burger, fries, onion rings, grilled cheese, and shakes are all solid and a good value. Not exactly fast food but we had the nicest server I could ever expect and was overall very pleased with everything. Free kids meal on weekends didn't hurt.
(3)
Carl F.
First, I'm a big fan of Steak-N-Shake. I've eaten at many of them.. it is a simple menu, and overall the food is good comfort eats. However, my single star rating is strictly pointed at this particular location. The service at best is poor. The staff argue with each other directly in front of the customers. The manager admonishes the staff right in the open. The cooks are horrible and you generally wait an extended time for a poor meal. More over, the staff can't even make a good shake. Again, please do try Steak-N-Shake... but just stay away from this Gurnee location.
(1)
Don J.
Okay. Whoever thought of the whole "Happy Hour" half-price shake thing is a genius. An evil, evil, EVIL genius. Rising to the challenge of an economy in a tailspin, Steak-n-Shake has trotted out a great selection of moderately priced meals, including some pretty awesome fresh food and some awesome burger, dog and fries combos. There's a lotta good stuff here for under $5. Yeah, yeah. It sounds like a commercial. But it's hard to argue with both a good price and a freshly-made product. As far as value menus go, this place has one with the best actual value. The Gurnee store has a few really great things going for it. One is the staff, the other -- oddly enough -- is the management. I've had good service just about every time I've been here. There's even a staffer who makes it her business to keep coupons in her apron. She'll lay down a selection appropriate to your choices and save you a bundle. So, when I really need a cheeseburger fix, this is the place to go. And the shakes? Their seasonal stuff is delicious.
(4)
Paul M.
So, stomach growling and wallet ... well, after all it is a ressession, right? But I'm really hungry and I need something substantial. Steak 'n Shake? Not the name I'd choose first, but it does have "Steak" in its name. I was amazed at the prices, very affordable. We went during the 2PM to 4PM "Happy Hour" so we had 1/2 price shakes. All in all it was a nice experience if you want decent fast food and a really tasty shake for a reasonable price. Price vs. Delivered goods here rates as a good value.
(4)
Ab B.
Poor service. Waited over 45 min for a side salad & almost an hr for our meals. All our food was cold. The guacamole chicken sandwich was actually good but the burgers were so dry and yuck. When the manager did her 'rounds' & asked how everything was, we looked at each other and said 'um just ok.' she moved on to the next table. Why did she even ask if she didnt care? That was even more offensive than not asking at all! Will NOT go here again!
(1)
Chad H.
1 1/2 stars? Oh this place isn't that bad. Where else are you going to go for food at 2:00 AM? Denny's? Hell no! Back in high school my friends and I used to come here all the time. Sure, the food kind of sucks (although I do like their milkshakes and cheese fries) and is definitely over-priced, and the place is pretty dirty, and the service is borderline atrocious. So maybe it's my nostalgia, but I still like hitting this place up every now and then when I'm back in town. Go here with very low expectations and you should be pleasantly surprised.
(3)
Tim J.
This place is minutes from Six Flags, next to a huge mall, and two midrange hotels. It could be a goldmine. So after about 8 minutes of waiting at the bar and realizing that nobody was tending the bar, I got in line for the cashier. After about 20 total minutes of waiting to place my order, and the moment I did place my order, the cashier turned her head and asked about the mans order whom was standing next to me, and added, " they have been here for a while" He added, Over an hour" That was it for me and I canceled my order and walked out. This place is fairly clean despite how busy they are, but I did notice a sheen of grease on the floor.. There is a total clusterfuck of about 15 employees in the back taking care of drive through. There is one poor lady taking carry out orders and the front area was literally packed with at least 30 people. The grill had one....ONE grill cook and one burger prep. There was literally about 15 very young people in white shirts making shakes in the back and little else. This place needs a general manager who gives a shit enough to reorganize. There was a skinny little indian guy in a button down shirt running around paying no attention to anything. I assume he was the manager or owner. They need a bigger grill, with at least two grill cooks and two prep people. They need one person making shakes. Know why? they have one shake prep station. As I walked away I noticed that the cars were moving ok through the drive through ok. It made me want to walk up to the drive through and get my order on foot. When I called to complain, they very lady that took my order asked me to come back and bought me my $3.99 burger. She was very nice and clearly a great expediter, but has terrible management behind her. Tammi was her name and she was clearly the best part of this place. She was working despite being on medical leave. I could not resist giving her a six dollar tip. My burger was incorrectly prepared. Too bad, too...This place could be a goldmine. I advise you avoid it completely.
(1)
Tiffany L.
what's with all the negativity? you gotta review this place for what it is, and that's a franchised grease joint. steak-n-shake sits in the canyon between fast food and sit-down burger joints. the burger feels like fast food but the service and need to tip make it a sit-down place. the burgers are extensive and the fries grow on you. however the real draw is the milkshakes, especially during 1/2 off happy hour. their $3.99 deals are a no-brainer when it comes to value.
(3)
Pedro M.
Horrible food horrible service cant believe still open. Went twice and on both occasions service was slow and food flavorless. On the first visit had to wait 15 minutes before anyone took order. No napkins or straws were given while waitress clearly was lost. I almost dehydrated from the lack of refills. On the second visit i decided to try the drive thru since the waitresses were clearly incapable of doing such a easy job at a simple burger restaurant. The drive thru personal couldn't understand and when finally took order had to repeat it on multiple occasions. The food was flavorless tasted like absolute garbage. The fries were ice cold and no salt was ever put on them (guess they care about your health after feeding you a greasy burger.) the coke tasted horrendous almost like toilet water. I will never go back better meals at the local McDonalds. Like these kids say now a days SMH.
(1)
Mike L.
A chain fast food joint. being a non-local I can say that I have never gotten the concept of this place seeing as they cant do both at the same time, either make a good hamburger or make a good shake. Ok the whole "Steak" part is just a naming bit as most of their sandwiches are just burgers. My major complaint upon first trying them was that they did not have pickles but a vastly inferior substitute in relish. A really big change in taste and one I did not like. Last time I tried one of their shakes I will have to admit it was very thick and tasty. However I have sat at their drive-through for 10 minutes which really negates the whole concept---yes there is a sign explaining this. I have eaten at this franchise a number of times over the years in various locations and have come away every time wondering why I ate here, I have reached the point of never again. After viewing their "value menu" I think my arteries just hardened by 10 years even though I did not eat anything from it.
(2)
Vivian Y.
Ew. Came here after a long day at Six Flags. My friends and I were hoping to avoid the traffic on the Edens as we were dumb enough to leave at the end of the night. We were craving burgers, and I had never had SNS before. Never again. The service was HORRENDOUS. It took us 30 mins to have our order taken. The food was TERRIBLE and TASTELESS. And worse part - the cook wasn't even wearing a hat or a net.
(1)
LaWanna O.
The frisco melt is my favorite here. I must say though, steak -n- shake isn't as good as they use to be.
(3)
Juan Z.
This Steak n Shake has lost its value. Last time I went I found a hair on my bun so I asked to get it changed and when they brought it back there was a hair in the meat. This time I went with my friends and one of them ordered a guacamole burger but when he got it there wasn't any guacamole. And when we paid the cashier charged my friends my meal and charged me their meals even though I had already told her what seats I was going to pay beforehand. Apparently they hire people who are doing community service or something too. I do not recommend this place anymore.
(2)
Stacy T.
Sometimes nostalgia makes you do silly things. I used to frequent the Gainesville, FL Steak-N-Shake quite frequently and thought it was just the best thing ever. Perhaps my taste buds have evolved a bit since my good ole college days where a thin little gridded slab of beef between a bun with wilted lettuce, watery tomato, and white onion was a gourmet treat saved only for celebratory occasions. Wow - I've come a long way since then. Not much has changed - the formulaic menu still holds strong and the $3.99 triple steakburger is as greasy and satisfying as ever. Add onion rings, a cup of chili, and a lemonade and you've got all the artery clogging points of the food pyramid covered. The fries suck, so you pretty much HAVE to get the onion rings (I know...my rationale is wonky). I always try to save room for a shake, but I have never been successful. Thank goodness or I'd definitely be a solid by now. I plan to save future indulgences of this sort for the In-N-Out Burger Animal Style!
(2)
Syretta H.
I tried this place for the first time since it opened in Gurnee. The first time, I went through the drive thru. It was late and I was starving. I got it home and it was pretty tasty. My daughter likes the shakes, so we decided to go back and dine inside. It wasn't that clean, to say the least. There was food on the empty tables, pieces of food on the floor. We sat there for like 5 minutes before anyone helped us. Then when she came and took our order, she promptly let me know that her shift was over, but that she would make sure that someone checked on us....HUH??? Of course only one person bothered to come over and ask us if we were okay. When we were ready to leave I needed a plastic cup to take the rest of my daughter's shake home and no one ever came back. I ended up getting one at the counter where I paid the bill..... That one experience would keep me from going back to dine inside. I may try to go thru the drive thru again...MAYBE.....
(1)
Amy C.
Tried Steak and Shake for the very first time over the weekend. The shake definitely did not stand up to the anticipation and the bread on my sandwich was soggy! GROSS! The fries are like over-sized hash browns and you wait in drive thru forever! I would eat White Castle before I ever returned to Steak and Shake. yuck!
(1)
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Address :6070 Gurnee Mills Cir E
Gurnee, IL, 60031
Takes Reservations : No Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Lunch, Dinner, Late Night Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : No Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Alcohol : No Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : No Has TV : No Waiter Service : Yes Drive-Thru : Yes Caters : No
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Blair F.
Went there during shake happy hour for just a chocolate shake. I was told I would have to wait 10 minutes, but didn't have a problem with that. Other came in behind me, sat down at the counter and received their food with shakes well before there was any sign of my one shake. Finally after 25 minutes, I politely asked the lady order taker if she could check on my shake. I pointed out that other people were getting their shakes and ask why was mine taking longer. She then rudely snapped at me at said "because they are sitting down and staying!" A few minutes later my shake arrived and she then delivered a few more sarcastic remarks. Another customer witnessed my interaction and walked out with me saying that she saw the whole interaction and wasn't going to wait nor tolerate the attitude. The chocolate shake didn't taste normal either. It had a plastic type of taste to it so I ended throwing most of it out.
(1)Teepee-liquor N.
This is the dirtiest restaurant I ever been to ... the food is cold and the service is horrible. .. can someone call the health department lol
(1)Jennifer L.
Meh. Wasn't worth the calories. Hadn't had Steak N Shake in about 10 years. Was close-by, figured we'd try it. Hit the drive through, but then parked in mall parking lot to eat (we had the dog in the car, so couldn't go in). By the time I got my fries, they were already cold. And the buger was just kinda nominal. Nothing special. Overall, will probably never come back. Just wasn't worth the calories. If I'm gonna go hog-wild, I'd rather McD's fries or something else :)
(2)Serena M.
Our server is always super nice. Glenda is her name. I'm here now, my sister and I both ordered some milkshakes. Happy Hour 2-4! Great deal! However, they take forever.. Which ruins the experience. The food always comes out first. It's annoying. But then again, there is only a couple servers on per shift. Ugh. Anyhow, enjoy!
(2)Tony M.
Food is usually good here! The service is slow usually every time I come here. I usually have to ask for my refill of drink. I order different sandwiches every time I come here tasting great! If you are in a hurry to eat, don't come here. Lots of people come here to dine in which they do not have a lot of tables to handle everyone. I see a long line for the drive thru cause the cooks have to cook your order fresh as you wait. It's quicker to come inside to order to go!!! There is not enough servers usually here too! I come for the food at a great price, not the service!!!
(4)Z B.
After a long day at Six Flags, this is the place I usually go to. I love Steak and Shake. I noticed there was one near Six Flags. I usually go to the one in Frankfort, but I wanted to try this one. Expect a line for a table after Six Flags. The service was just okay. The staff are friendly, and they always have a smile on their fades. The only thing is that my family and me didn't get our drinks (which were mostly shakes) until after we got the food. It's drinks, THEN the food. Does it really take that long to make shakes? The food and the shakes are definitely worth the wait. I got the new Garlic Double Steakburger. I'm a big fan of it because it's really good! There's a lot of flavor in the garlic. The patty tastes different which I like! The shakes are great! The ice cream in the shake is very tasty! All in all, this is a pretty good Steak and Shake. I will come back.
(3)Aj C.
I'm rating this 4/5 just because ever since I moved to California, there's barely any Steak n Shake there. It's plagued with the ubiquitous presence of In-N-Out. I believe the price is very affordable and I find it tasty. I love getting my usual which is the jalapeno crunch burger. I usually get it with extra jalapenos. I just tried the sriracha version which had sriracha on it and it was amazing! If you love spicy food, you should definitely try that. The fries are flavorful as well as long as you put their special seasoning on it. What I also love about Steak n Shake is that it's 24/7 so you can come here whenever you're feeling it. The wait times to be seated is usually not bad when I go here. When it's really busy it can get as bad as 20-30 minutes. Kudos to the staff that sticks through for a couple months because it seems like their employees here are never permanent.
(4)Doug R.
Took almost 10 minutes to be seated. There were unoccupied tables but nobody was cleaning off the mess on them. Once we were seated, the service was quick and the waitress was attentive. It took another few minutes for someone to come to the cash register so we could pay. I'll give 3 starts instead of two bc even though they seemed to be severely understaffed, our waitress was quick and the food was as good as always.
(3)Joel R.
Without a doubt the worst location i have visited. Restroom is dirty. Service (or lack of) is horrible. Went one time for a shake and waited 30 minutes. The second time i went, the server never checked on me after i got my food. I had to go to the register to get my bill so i could leave. For those late nights when i am hungry and nothing is open, i will just go to bed hungry.
(1)Hoss M.
Right next to Gurnee Mills is not easy. The staff here is courteous and pleasant. Food was great. Nicole was one of the best servers I have had at any restaurant. Kids had a good time and so did mom and I.
(5)Vesna M.
I stopped by with my kids to have lunch there yesterday. As soon as you walk in the place looks so dirty. The chairs were full of dust, once you sat, the table was sticky and not cleaned properly. I ordered a cup of coffee and when the waitress brought it to me, half of the coffee was spilled into the bottom of the cup and the cup had stains on it. It was disgusting. Once the waitress brought our food out, the fries were cold, and the bottom of the plates were also sticky and we lost our appetite. This place should be more clean. I will never ever never eat here again. Such a dirty place.
(1)Kori Y.
Hard to resist the shakes here. Need a quick lunch stop, and this was convenient. Food was good, although predictable as well as the service.
(3)Jerrold A.
Terrible service had our party waiting almost an hour after our waiter took our order. The waiter not only give us the wrong check but also didn't give us utensils. Sadly the only thing he got us right away was our waters. I have been to many steak n shakes and by far this location is the worst. Our waiter was sitting down with another table chatting with other people after we ask for silverware. We ended up asking another waiter to grab the utensils.
(1)Jessica G.
This Place has the worst servers I have ever experienced out of steak n shake. I repeated my order 3 time because my waitress wasn't listening, my boyfriend ordered the same exact thing and didn't get it, I also repeated my sister's order and everything came out wrong. DO NOT GO HERE IF YOU WANT ANY SERVICE!!!!
(1)Carole L.
This place has gone downhill fast! Restaurant is filthy dirty. Today while waiting more than 5 minutes to be seated, (plenty of tables open but all dirty) we watched an employee wipe a table with a wet napkin, no spray cleaner! Not surprised! Needless to say we left!
(1)Stuart G.
Bad service, slow, and gets orders wrong. Don't go here. Made friend cry and almost die.
(1)Anthony U.
I visit this Steak 'n Shake a few times a year usually after a trip to Gurnee Mills or a day at Great America. For the most part I find everything here to be perfect except for the crabby older (50+) women who do most of the table waiting service. My last two trips have provided great service with one a few months ago where Candace was my waitress and my most recent trip we got Nick as a waiter and he was excellent and always smiling. Looks like this location is stepping up their service game! Because I dislike paying $12 for a burger I try to not eat much while at Six Flags Great America. After a 12 hour day at the park I'm pretty hungry and this visit to SnS at 10pm was no exception. We started with a couple shakes although not at half price (2pm to 4pm and 2am to 4am) with one Vanilla and one Hershey's Special Dark (that wasn't on the menu but Nick said he could make one for me). The shakes arrived faster than normal and at some locations it can be frustrating to wait so long for them. We both loved our shakes and found it was truly worth the price even though it wasn't 1/2 price time. We ordered a Deluxe Bacon Double Cheeseburger, a Garlic Double Cheeseburger, and a Chili 5-Way (my absolute favorite SnS dish). We loved all three items with the new Garlic burger being the best of this visit. The new Garlic Double Cheeseburger is made with a toasted garlic bread bun and a rich garlic butter. Just the right combination of burger, garlic, and saltiness. I hope they keep it on the menu like they have with some other limited time special products. Our waiter came back to check on us at least six or seven times during the visit and while some customers may find that too frequent or annoying I rather like it. I'm also very impressed with the restrooms here. With the flow of customers leaving the mall and the rush of Six Flags employees and customers as the theme park just closed the restrooms are always spotless. I also like the fact the paper towel dispenser automatically rolls off enough towel that you need just one piece to dry your hands but also that there is a garbage can next to the door. I wish all restaurants operated their bathroom like this. Sometimes when I'm out I love to stop at Cracker Barrel and will almost always take CB over SnS but this is one location where that is reversed for me. That's just how good I find this SnS to be! Great job Steak 'n Shake, this place runs pretty tight and keep on hiring great wait staff to replace the crabby ones!
(5)Katelyn J.
Yuck. This place was awful. The floor was super dirty with trash and food. It was seriously black around my area. I was seated near the kitchen, and I had to watch the employees yelling back and forth at each other. I have no idea what kind of drama was happening, but there was a lot of shouting going on. My food took forever, and it was average. Cold fries... but the burger was okay. I guess I kinda of wished I would have driven through McDonalds instead... but at least I know now I don't need to go back.
(1)Dominick N.
Fast Seating and service. Judy was a doll. The Jalepeno burger with cajun fries was great. This place is dirt cheap and the service is quick. We were famished and wanted quick and easy. The place wasn't spotless but it wasnt dirty either. The Server Judy was a doll. I wasnt stuffed when I left, I felt quite content.
(4)Big D.
Great staff just it took a long, long, long time to get seated and get the drinks and then the food. Portions were ok for money. I will go to Chipotle next time.
(1)Shaun E.
I've been to this location on several occasions passing through town towards either Chicago or Milwaukee. The service was awesome. Our server Char was stellar! She was very attentive and the most friendly ever! The food was delicious as always, thanks cooking staff for your hard work! The restaurant was clean and presentable. If you're in the area craving an all American meal stop by steak and shake for a very affordable meal for $4.
(4)jim s.
Very good service by Charlotte and the food came fairly quick and hot and exactly as ordered.....but I couldn't give 5 stars because the place seemed kind of dirty and unmanaged. ....other employees, besides my server, walking around wasting time....a guy at the register had to wait a long time for a simple chocolate shake
(4)Phillip C.
You know, I lived very close to this establishment for over six years. I came here all of 10 times in those six years, and twice in the past six months. I'm never coming here ever again. Their food, when it actually gets to you, is usually not bad. It's hot/warm/cold, whatever's appropriate. One time, I was seated at the bar. I ordered a simple burger. Watched the fry cook flip burgers using bare hands. Asked for eggs over easy. Got undercooked eggs instead. Asked for eggs over hard. Got over easy eggs instead. Once, I ordered scrambled eggs because it's the safest bet. Nope, I got undercooked eggs, again. I've been through the drive-through maybe four times. Each time the order takes over 15 minutes for a few items and there are often mistakes (wrong items, missing items, etc.) My worst experience is when I waited at the window a grand total of 40 minutes. They still screwed up the order. Don't even think about going to this Steak and Shake. I've been to other locations, and they're perfectly fine. This place, however, is a damn joke.
(1)Kat B.
I find this chain to be Friendly's meets 5 Guys Burgers and Fries meets a younger sibling of Johnny Rockets sans the dancing and music. Bright red and silver decor with the smell of burgers sizzling on the grill and packed with people. Our waiter was the best and my son, who is in the military, had his ice cream paid for by one of the nice customers.....so .....yay! First, the menu...wow, unbelievablely cheap prices here. $4 for a burger and plate of fries? Did I die and go to heaven? Various hot dogs with toppings, including the Chicago hotdog, are also listed on the menu as well as shakes and all kinds of sundaes. And these are BIG sundaes. Plus another nice customer gave us a coupon for a buy one, get one free ice cream sundae... I need to go on a diet after my vacation....
(4)Earl S.
Right hours -- check Right location-- check Right food choices-- check DELICIOUS FOOD-- CHECK CHECK CHECK! I just wish this chain will come to Wisconsin.
(4)Keaunis G.
This is the closest Steak n Shake to my home! Every time that I come to this location, the staff is always friendly and my food is ready is a timely fashion. Love it! The food and the shakes are very delicious and are priced reasonably.
(5)Magdaline V.
So good! Burgers freshly made and my favorite small, thin fries. I don't really like fries but love these. I order a kids' size malt with no whipped cream and it's fantastic. Server Judy is very nice and she works hard in this busy place. Usually one or two managers on duty. I like to sit at the counter and watch the food being prepared. Yummy!
(5)Joze C.
Steak & shake is good! Good food & good desserts. The only thing this establishment lacks is customer service and quickness The drive through took 20 minutes today and the associates were not very friendly. But they weren't terrible Dining in isn't much different either. Focus more on customer service & you'll be at 4-5 stars in know time
(3)Deb M.
We have been eating here for years. Usually stop on our way to Chicago! Love the food! But the last few time we stopped it's a mess! Bathrooms were filthy! The table condiments containers filthy greasy. And to top it off today one of the workers were taking a nap at the entry way of the restaurant!
(1)David R.
We stopped in at about 9pm after a very long day. The place was pretty busy. We stood and waited to be seated for almost 15 minutes. Not one of the 3 employees that passed us multiple times ever said a word to us. This has happened at this location previously too. I will not go back again.
(1)Ron R.
So, I grew up eating at Steak N Shake in the 70's. The older, 24 hour ones like Main St in Peoria, these things were like a step back in time. But alas, these are all gone, replaced by a pseudo-dinerish looking things covered in chrome. Yes the subway tile is gone, long gone are the days of setting next to a 3rd shift worker at the counter, after an all night bender. So why 5 stars? The food baby. SnS is the KING of Midwest style smashed burgers. For nearly a century, Steak N Shake has been making prime cuts of ground beef, and smashing them paper thin on a blazingly hot grill. The end result is a thin patty of flavor, encased by a crispy, crunchy exterior. Since moving to MKE- they are no longer around the corner, so my closest SnS is in Gurnee. Here's where I get my fix- a single with cheese, mustard and onion. Frisco Melt- extra sauce. I'm on it- just like Jim Bonnet.
(5)Kevin N.
I love the Happy Days Fifties vibe here. Complete with table service, drive through or takeout, they have a fast food preparation model but it's definitely more fun to eat in diner style. The service staff has nostalgic style uniforms complete with the paper hats on the cooks. My waitress was serving Flo-realness from Mel's diner. The steakburgers are tasty, pressed thin on the griddle, and you can get whatever you want on them. The fries are the thin shoestring style. I enjoy these. They also have old-school Chili burgers and Chili Mac! Spice up your chili with some dashes of the pick-a-peppa sauce, which is vinegar-based and packed with sport peppers. Best of all, service is fast and friendly and it won't break the bank. Honestly, the prices on their burger and fries combos are no more than the major burger chains. They feature multiple entrees at $4! I tried an Octoberfest special last time which was a double Swiss burger with ham, mustard and grilled onions on a pretzel roll. Ausgezeichnet! (That's German for awesome!) They also have a half price shake happy hour 2-4pm and 2-4am with discounts excellent hand dipped milkshakes. The red velvet cake shake is so good it should be banned because you'll want to go back again and again. Open 24 hours for your midnight munchies!
(4)JD C.
This is single-handledly the worst food service experience I had in my whole life. We waited 15 minutes to be seated and we are now at one hour in the restaurant with no shakes, no food. The whole team is clearly incompetent starting from the top. This entire restaurant and potentially the franchisee needs to be rotated out. Do not go there. It's too bad as we love our Steak 'n Shake by us in Chicago.
(1)Anthony M.
Went through the drive thru to take part in Happy Hour Shakes! From 2-4 pm you can get half price shakes...that's a deal! They also run the promotion late night too but I don't know the hours...I personally do not need a shake past 8pm unless it is served in a martini glass. I thought this review was gonna be 2 stars because there were like 8 cars in front of me and I thought this was going to take a while! But I was amazed at how fast it moved. Great service by the employees here, in order to get all of the cars through quickly. Our chocolate shake was delicious and blended perfectly. It was also a great deal for $1.50. I like Happy Hour at Steak-N-Shake!!! Luckily for me there aren't any in downtown Chicago or I might be here daily!
(5)Phil A.
We stopped by this evening to grab a quick dinner and we stood by the wait to be seated sign and were completely ignored. The place was less than half full and two customers were waiting to pay their bill. We decided to go to Chipotle since it's right next door.
(1)Mike D.
The food is good but the service is terrible. We sat in the drive thru line for 30 minutes, and it always seems to take a tremendous amount of time to make a shake and a burger. They DEFINATELY need new managers
(1)Robin C.
The service was terrible, when we finally got our order it was wrong. The restaurant and bathrooms were so dirty it was disgusting; food, silverware and napkins all over the floor, it looked like the floors hadn't been mopped in a month.
(1)Raul I.
If I could award zero stars I would. This place was honestly THAT bad. And I don't give bad reviews for the most part. Decided to stop in after spending the day at nearby Six Flags Great America. Of course we were not the only ones with the same idea, so the place was busy. Regardless, the service up to the point where they took our orders was ok, it all then went downhill from there. 1. The food was super late and took over 20 minutes to receive. (this was a chain restaurant, nothing fancy). 2. I accidentally spilled one of the glasses with Dr. Pepper all over the table while reaching for napkins and spilled the syrupy liquid all over the table and myself. The restaurant manager saw me just as this happened and so did 3 other waiters. I saw them, they saw me. Our eyes locked and made contact, there was a momentary pause, and then they looked away. NONE OF THEM OFFERED TO HELP OR REMEDY THE SITUATION. This immediately put me into the red zone, I had to loudly request that one of the waiters stop by our table, and when she did, seeing the mess that had just occurred had the nerve to ask, how can I help you. I asked for paper towels, they brought me a giant roll and left it at the corner of the table and immediately ran off again. So I said screw it, cleaned off the whole table, my seat, my soaked shorts, everything. I then had to get up, go to the kitchen and ask for a tray so that I could direct all of the flowing liquid onto something, finished cleaning and then had to shout out for a waiter several times so they could fetch the mess. 3. After all of this, they saw the empty glass and upset customers, and no one even offered to refill the recently emptied drink, so I had to chase another waiter down to ask for a refill. 4. The waitress came by after about 20-25 minutes of waiting to let us know that the food would be late and they were working as fast as they could. 5. The food finally arrived. Guess what.....it was cold. Nothing gets my appetite going like cold soggy burgers! mmmmmm Needless to say, the experience was horrible. Service was the worst i've seen. I did notice that the waiters all had the same sense of lackluster, unmotivated, selfish sense of service as their manager. One waitress even spilled her tray by accident, and I watched as her fellow co-workers who were not busy, just standing around walked around her and around her mess and refused to lift a finger to assist. The manager would yell at people to do something, they rolled their eyes and walked away. Service was crap all the way up to the point where we walked out the door. Arriving at the register and being asked to wait, while the waitress went towards the kitchen to complain that she was done at the register and wanted to go on break. She asked me how my service was when she returned, I told her it was crap, she said "sorry to hear that". And for the first time ever, I left without leaving a tip. This was my first time at Steak & Shake. And my last.
(1)A C.
Food is okay. Service is okay. Price is just okay. Everything is just ok imho. I would come back but there are plenty of dining options in the area.
(3)Natasha K.
10 minutes for a server to appear at the table after we got up to get someone. 10 minutes for water. Burgers are cold, fries are cold, orders are wrong. People standing around to be seated in a near empty restaurant.
(1)Desirae K.
Horrible, horrible service.
(1)C R.
I took my daughter to dinner tonight, our waitress was very good. However, our order took 40 minutes for 2 burgers and one shake. While waiting for our food, I looked around and had more than enough time to see how filthy dirty the floor was as well as the grill. The restuarant was quite busy but none of the staff moved very quickly or with urgency to get the food served to customers. By the time our meal arrived, I no longer wished to eat the food based on my observations of the dirt. I was surprised that a restaurant in Gurnee would be so unkept. That was my last visit.
(2)Niko T.
Not only does this Steak n Shake Have rude management (Bob) who yells at his workers and fires them for no reason im guessing because every time me and my family go in here there's new people.....but the restaurant is dirty they have nats flying every where rude service dirty dishes I saw in the back when I went to go talk to a server.....long wait time in the drive 12min...cold food n my list goes on how many times I been here but the last time I was here I most certainly will not be returning. I warn you stay away from here there's slot of employees that are discussing the way the look (sloppy) im glad I don't go here but good luck to you and ur family and friends.
(1)Casey B.
The pricing is great and the food and shakes are very good. However, take the drive thru. The service inside is absolutely horrible. I think the staff is so used to getting stiffed on tips that they just have the mindset of giving horrible service. The inside is always full and pretty noisy. But like I said the food is delicious and my family of 5 eats for less than $30 and that includes shakes!!
(3)Gregory C.
Steak-N-Shake. What happened? You used to be so clean and quick and friendly, but alas. Tables falling apart, damaged fixtures in the restroom, surly staff, slow service, food of questionable integrity...in a word--AVOID.
(1)Diana G.
I think I've been to one Steak-N-Shake years ago. I had a horrible experience at one in Michigan City, IN. My friend and I was done shopping so I decided to give this chain one more try. We were seated and they took our order quickly. The food arrived in a decent amount of time. Nothing special about the food. The prices are fair and they give enough amount. Me and my friend finished ours and we liked that we didn't have to waste or anything. I felt like it was the right amount of food.....for us at least! I agree....the tables stay untaken care of because they have no bus boy. There was like 2-3 large tables that still had yet to be cleaned. I have never seen so many people have to clean a table. One waitress would start to clean and then leave and then someone else would start on it and leave.....you get the point. Just hire 1 bus boy and they would be so much more efficient. The table behind us did have a complaint. I think they were saying their food was sitting there and no one gave it to them. The guy scarfed down his burger, but the lady ate like half of hers and the girl took maybe 2 bites out of hers. They talked to the manager and he seemed like he didn't know what to say. So, he just gave them a plate of fries. We overheard him asking if he should leave them a tip, but they did like $2-3. Not impressed with this chain at all!
(2)Paul M.
So, stomach growling and wallet ... well, after all it is a ressession, right? But I'm really hungry and I need something substantial. Steak 'n Shake? Not the name I'd choose first, but it does have "Steak" in its name. I was amazed at the prices, very affordable. We went during the 2PM to 4PM "Happy Hour" so we had 1/2 price shakes. All in all it was a nice experience if you want decent fast food and a really tasty shake for a reasonable price. Price vs. Delivered goods here rates as a good value.
(4)Ab B.
Poor service. Waited over 45 min for a side salad & almost an hr for our meals. All our food was cold. The guacamole chicken sandwich was actually good but the burgers were so dry and yuck. When the manager did her 'rounds' & asked how everything was, we looked at each other and said 'um just ok.' she moved on to the next table. Why did she even ask if she didnt care? That was even more offensive than not asking at all! Will NOT go here again!
(1)Chad H.
1 1/2 stars? Oh this place isn't that bad. Where else are you going to go for food at 2:00 AM? Denny's? Hell no! Back in high school my friends and I used to come here all the time. Sure, the food kind of sucks (although I do like their milkshakes and cheese fries) and is definitely over-priced, and the place is pretty dirty, and the service is borderline atrocious. So maybe it's my nostalgia, but I still like hitting this place up every now and then when I'm back in town. Go here with very low expectations and you should be pleasantly surprised.
(3)Mike U.
I usually love going to steak and shake for the frisco melt and shakes. This location however is disgusting. The bread always has little fuzzies all over it. The service is very unpredictable and they almost always have people working there that you can barely understand because they appear that they just don't care.
(1)Lauren H.
This was absolutely the worst service I have ever had at a restaurant. I was there with about.. 6 or 7 people including myself. Before even ordering we ordered waters. It was around 2am and they were pretty dead. There were 2 other tables in the restaurant with people at the time. They took our orders. We all got food and shakes. A really really really long time later our food came. We never got our waters. The waitress said our shakes would be there in a minute. So we didn't care about the water anymore- because we'd have our shakes. We ate and it was good and stuff but we were all extremely thirsty during our meals and she never came back to the table to see if everything was okay. About a half hour AFTER we finished eating our food the shakes came. By then one of the people at the table had left to pay his bill because no one wanted to sit there all day waiting for her. I guess the drive through was backed up or something because the waitress and cook were yelling at eachother about how he only cooks (because she was way behind). She was the only server working and clearly couldn't handle it. I don't want to say she was awful because she had to do everything herself. But it was a pretty bad experience overall. I went to the Steak N Shake in Elk Grove Village the next day with a different friend. Around 2am again, and with the one waiter he was extremely kind, joked around with us, brought our food, water, and shakes, and came back a few times asking how everything was and if we were doing okay. He was the only waiter then too, and that Steak N Shake was a lot busier then the Gurnee one. I think they should either have more then one person working those shifts, or have one working who knows how to handle the extra work. I was really disappointed and a frustrating night just got more frustrating from a restaurant that is generally a pretty fast place to eat.
(1)Daniel M.
The food is great. The value is even better but they could improve on their portions. The service is OK, some waiters are the nicest people ever and there are some you really hope you don't get stuck with. Every time I come into Steak-N-Shake, I haven't experienced a bad visit (knock on wood). Everything was near perfect and was delicious. Plus, it's fast but it isn't fast food. It's a casual sit down but a fast food speed, which is great for those who are on the go. I, myself love this place. I don't know why but I do. I would eat here more often if I could but the calories would be packing on. A little recommendation - Campfire S'Mores Milkshake and the Triple Bacon Burger.. The best combination I could ever ask for. Oh, and don't forget the fries! :) 4/5 stars for this one! Improve the service a little bit, increase portions and clean a little better and you have stellar restaurant!
(4)Mike L.
A chain fast food joint. being a non-local I can say that I have never gotten the concept of this place seeing as they cant do both at the same time, either make a good hamburger or make a good shake. Ok the whole "Steak" part is just a naming bit as most of their sandwiches are just burgers. My major complaint upon first trying them was that they did not have pickles but a vastly inferior substitute in relish. A really big change in taste and one I did not like. Last time I tried one of their shakes I will have to admit it was very thick and tasty. However I have sat at their drive-through for 10 minutes which really negates the whole concept---yes there is a sign explaining this. I have eaten at this franchise a number of times over the years in various locations and have come away every time wondering why I ate here, I have reached the point of never again. After viewing their "value menu" I think my arteries just hardened by 10 years even though I did not eat anything from it.
(2)Vivian Y.
Ew. Came here after a long day at Six Flags. My friends and I were hoping to avoid the traffic on the Edens as we were dumb enough to leave at the end of the night. We were craving burgers, and I had never had SNS before. Never again. The service was HORRENDOUS. It took us 30 mins to have our order taken. The food was TERRIBLE and TASTELESS. And worse part - the cook wasn't even wearing a hat or a net.
(1)Tim J.
This place is minutes from Six Flags, next to a huge mall, and two midrange hotels. It could be a goldmine. So after about 8 minutes of waiting at the bar and realizing that nobody was tending the bar, I got in line for the cashier. After about 20 total minutes of waiting to place my order, and the moment I did place my order, the cashier turned her head and asked about the mans order whom was standing next to me, and added, " they have been here for a while" He added, Over an hour" That was it for me and I canceled my order and walked out. This place is fairly clean despite how busy they are, but I did notice a sheen of grease on the floor.. There is a total clusterfuck of about 15 employees in the back taking care of drive through. There is one poor lady taking carry out orders and the front area was literally packed with at least 30 people. The grill had one....ONE grill cook and one burger prep. There was literally about 15 very young people in white shirts making shakes in the back and little else. This place needs a general manager who gives a shit enough to reorganize. There was a skinny little indian guy in a button down shirt running around paying no attention to anything. I assume he was the manager or owner. They need a bigger grill, with at least two grill cooks and two prep people. They need one person making shakes. Know why? they have one shake prep station. As I walked away I noticed that the cars were moving ok through the drive through ok. It made me want to walk up to the drive through and get my order on foot. When I called to complain, they very lady that took my order asked me to come back and bought me my $3.99 burger. She was very nice and clearly a great expediter, but has terrible management behind her. Tammi was her name and she was clearly the best part of this place. She was working despite being on medical leave. I could not resist giving her a six dollar tip. My burger was incorrectly prepared. Too bad, too...This place could be a goldmine. I advise you avoid it completely.
(1)Tiffany L.
what's with all the negativity? you gotta review this place for what it is, and that's a franchised grease joint. steak-n-shake sits in the canyon between fast food and sit-down burger joints. the burger feels like fast food but the service and need to tip make it a sit-down place. the burgers are extensive and the fries grow on you. however the real draw is the milkshakes, especially during 1/2 off happy hour. their $3.99 deals are a no-brainer when it comes to value.
(3)Pedro M.
Horrible food horrible service cant believe still open. Went twice and on both occasions service was slow and food flavorless. On the first visit had to wait 15 minutes before anyone took order. No napkins or straws were given while waitress clearly was lost. I almost dehydrated from the lack of refills. On the second visit i decided to try the drive thru since the waitresses were clearly incapable of doing such a easy job at a simple burger restaurant. The drive thru personal couldn't understand and when finally took order had to repeat it on multiple occasions. The food was flavorless tasted like absolute garbage. The fries were ice cold and no salt was ever put on them (guess they care about your health after feeding you a greasy burger.) the coke tasted horrendous almost like toilet water. I will never go back better meals at the local McDonalds. Like these kids say now a days SMH.
(1)Stacy T.
Sometimes nostalgia makes you do silly things. I used to frequent the Gainesville, FL Steak-N-Shake quite frequently and thought it was just the best thing ever. Perhaps my taste buds have evolved a bit since my good ole college days where a thin little gridded slab of beef between a bun with wilted lettuce, watery tomato, and white onion was a gourmet treat saved only for celebratory occasions. Wow - I've come a long way since then. Not much has changed - the formulaic menu still holds strong and the $3.99 triple steakburger is as greasy and satisfying as ever. Add onion rings, a cup of chili, and a lemonade and you've got all the artery clogging points of the food pyramid covered. The fries suck, so you pretty much HAVE to get the onion rings (I know...my rationale is wonky). I always try to save room for a shake, but I have never been successful. Thank goodness or I'd definitely be a solid by now. I plan to save future indulgences of this sort for the In-N-Out Burger Animal Style!
(2)Syretta H.
I tried this place for the first time since it opened in Gurnee. The first time, I went through the drive thru. It was late and I was starving. I got it home and it was pretty tasty. My daughter likes the shakes, so we decided to go back and dine inside. It wasn't that clean, to say the least. There was food on the empty tables, pieces of food on the floor. We sat there for like 5 minutes before anyone helped us. Then when she came and took our order, she promptly let me know that her shift was over, but that she would make sure that someone checked on us....HUH??? Of course only one person bothered to come over and ask us if we were okay. When we were ready to leave I needed a plastic cup to take the rest of my daughter's shake home and no one ever came back. I ended up getting one at the counter where I paid the bill..... That one experience would keep me from going back to dine inside. I may try to go thru the drive thru again...MAYBE.....
(1)Amy C.
Tried Steak and Shake for the very first time over the weekend. The shake definitely did not stand up to the anticipation and the bread on my sandwich was soggy! GROSS! The fries are like over-sized hash browns and you wait in drive thru forever! I would eat White Castle before I ever returned to Steak and Shake. yuck!
(1)Mike L.
Saturday evening dinner was pretty good. Chili from a can...not so good. Burger, fries, onion rings, grilled cheese, and shakes are all solid and a good value. Not exactly fast food but we had the nicest server I could ever expect and was overall very pleased with everything. Free kids meal on weekends didn't hurt.
(3)Carl F.
First, I'm a big fan of Steak-N-Shake. I've eaten at many of them.. it is a simple menu, and overall the food is good comfort eats. However, my single star rating is strictly pointed at this particular location. The service at best is poor. The staff argue with each other directly in front of the customers. The manager admonishes the staff right in the open. The cooks are horrible and you generally wait an extended time for a poor meal. More over, the staff can't even make a good shake. Again, please do try Steak-N-Shake... but just stay away from this Gurnee location.
(1)Don J.
Okay. Whoever thought of the whole "Happy Hour" half-price shake thing is a genius. An evil, evil, EVIL genius. Rising to the challenge of an economy in a tailspin, Steak-n-Shake has trotted out a great selection of moderately priced meals, including some pretty awesome fresh food and some awesome burger, dog and fries combos. There's a lotta good stuff here for under $5. Yeah, yeah. It sounds like a commercial. But it's hard to argue with both a good price and a freshly-made product. As far as value menus go, this place has one with the best actual value. The Gurnee store has a few really great things going for it. One is the staff, the other -- oddly enough -- is the management. I've had good service just about every time I've been here. There's even a staffer who makes it her business to keep coupons in her apron. She'll lay down a selection appropriate to your choices and save you a bundle. So, when I really need a cheeseburger fix, this is the place to go. And the shakes? Their seasonal stuff is delicious.
(4)Ben S.
For the genre of restaurant that Steak n Shake is you really can't beat the classic good food fast qualities. Watching them make the steakburgers just like I remember in the 90s!! Tastes the same and great as well. Plus they serve breakfast, doesn't get much better than that!! Ps the BBQ western steakburger rocks!
(4)Glen H.
OK, I haven't had Steak 'n Shake in probably 10 years. The server was really nice, but everything else was below par. Burger well, I've had better burgers at McDonalds. Fries were a little cold. Milk Shake was amazing, but I came for the burger. I just tasted like it was sitting there for awhile and was flat.
(2)Angelica D.
I would give it no stars if I could. But the service of this place is HORRIBLE! Do not come here if you are starving or in a rush for food. The lines drag. Getting your order taken drags. And to receive your food drags!
(1)Tony A.
One particular night it was a little busy. The waiters and assistant manager assisted with the cooking. However, service was still unbelievably slow. Our orders were wrong, cold, and one dish had a piece of plastic in it. No refund or discount was offered. Try to avoid this place.
(1)James C.
A scosche above Meals-on-Wheels if it were left in a van down by the river for three days. Our meals came wrong and incomplete. Then our sides. And then some of our drinks. Some drinks and food were never brought out at all.
(1)Brad M.
Recently visited this place for the first time in a while and now I see why there are terrible reviews. As soon as I walked in it seemed disorganized. It was an odd time around 3:00 and it was pretty busy. We were seated fairy quickly but it took 10-15 mins for someone to come serve us. I would have rated this place higher if it wasn't for the service. The girl that waited on us acted like she did not want to be there whatsoever. She never checked back on us after the food came out, not even asking once how our food was. I dont think she even smiled once, not even a grin. As a matter of fact, most of the staff looked plain miserable. There was one waitress right across from us serving other tables that was very friendly and outgoing. Ours was lucky that the food saved the day. It came out very fast and was hot and fresh. I think it's safe to say that the food is good and the prices are cheap but the customer service needs a makeover. Not sure if I'll be back to dine in anytime soon.
(3)Sarah E.
I go here quite often. I actually went a few days ago and had an experience that changed my mind about the place. We were sitting next to the kitchen area. We had the great misfortune of overhearing two employees describe (in detail) how one woke up with pink eye this morning. The other just advised her to wash her hands a lot and don't tell anyone. I pretty much lost my appetite after that. Ew.
(1)Abel P.
Food is great but service is horrible, waitress had my family and I waiting for about 20 minute which isnt so bad but as others walked in and checked in. The waitress was giving others their table as they walked in after us. We finally told the manager something and as they checked the list, we found out she did not even write our names down.
(2)Joseph L.
Was out of town visiting family- this place was next door to our hotel and we love steak and shake so we hit it up. As usual, great place, great food, and quick!
(4)Nicole H.
I luuuurrrrrvvvveee Steak N Shake. But this location is sad and busy and dirty and the only I reason I go is because it's the closest one we have! Listen, skinny cheese fries covered in warm, gloopy processed cheese food and a banana/chocolate side-by-side would likely be the meal I ask for on Death Row, but this particular location is just really one to be survived in your pursuit of the delicious goodness. Since they closed the ones in the Milwaukee area, we take advantage of the Gurnee one pretty much any time we head into Chicago. And it gives us our fix. But the frills are non-existent. The waitstaff always seems harried and overwhelmed, you get your shake well after you've gotten your meal (seriously, buy another shake mixer gadget thingy) and there are always sketchy folks and screaming children (I'm looking at you, Evangelical old man in the crazy suit). But I will go through all that in pursuit of an occasional fix. So I guess it depends on how bad your jones is, right?
(2)Eric W.
Way to dirty to rate any higher then this. Food is very reasonably priced but nothing special. Milkshake was disappointing, grilled cheese was tasty. Open 24hrs and probably dirtier then it should be for everyone of them.
(2)Danielle A.
The service here is incredibly slow and the greasy mediocre food is not worth the wait. I had two bites of the Jalepeño burger and was done. The milkshakes were okay, there was not anything special about them. And hearing one of cooks say "Eww!!" While cooking your meal, will in fact make you lose your appetite.
(1)Gordon G.
WARNING ( Reasons not to not visit ) : waitress itching hair with long nails Lettuce super juicy Cup smeared with brown stuff and cherry juice Filthy floors Brown object on bathroom in floors Hostess had hair on rump Jimmy's all down side of malt cup Carmel pretzel shake has super soggy "pretzels" ? Uniforms dirty Windows smeared Steakburger was dis-formed and the barbecue was in a glob Having stomach probs ( Reasons to visit ) : waitress was very pleasant Pricepoint ok Makes Arby's look like a palace
(1)Bill M.
Just stopped here in Gurnee for a quick meal with wife. What a joke this place is. Waited for a table for 5 minutes while the whole wait staff stares at you. Tables are dirty and no one sitting has food. I counted at least 7 servers pretending to work and just giggling when manager comes over and points at us like to say take care of us. No one seats us for another 5 minutes so we leave. Nice managing!! Usually like the food here but will go somewhere else from now on.
(1)Joel A.
I see a lot of low reviews but at Steak and Shake you get what you pay for and being open 24 hours makes this place awesome. $4 menu of amazing hamburgers and fries and other goodies are all good. I won't eat McDonald's crappy processed hamburgers anymore so when I need a late night meal ill drive the extra distance here. They have a cheap midnight to 11am breakfast menu that's really good for the price. Again, if this was Burger Bar or another high end hamburger joint I'd give it one star but this is Steak and Shake and the prices are reasonable and the food is perfect when I need a 2am snack!
(4)Thuy H.
You can't expect much from here. The foods are great but the service isn't so great. Sometimes it'll take them over 10 minutes before taking your order. It's like they have forgotten about you
(3)Carl P.
I've visited this location several times and the food is usually very good. There is the occasional slip up with our order, but by the time it arrives that's usually the least of our worries. To begin, we generally are not greeted when entering the restaurant. If the tables are not occupied by customers, they're filthy and remain that wat for some time. In general it takes about 20 minutes of standing at the "please wait to be seated" sign before anyone acknowledges your presence. On occasion I've grown impatient and seated myself. The manager seems flustered and overwhelmed and the staff seems like they could care less about the state of their dining room or their guests. I understand busy restaurants, I've run several of them. Gurnee is a high volume restaurant, which makes the fact thay they cannot maintain a proper staff level, or the necessary training to maintain such a volume is troubling. It's unfortunate that this is how the Steak n' Shake brand is represented. During my most recent visit, after waiting for a shake for 20 minutes I see one of the guys making shakes sticking a bottle of flavored syrup up his nose and laughing. After quelling a minor heart attack, I approached the manager and complained that perhaps the reason nothing was leaving the shake side of things was because the team is messing around. As I type this I've actually watched an entire shake melt on an uncleaned table as the same 10 guests I walked in with stand at the welcome area. I really suggest that if you are planning on visiting this location, that you budget your time accordingly.
(1)Adam H.
Very busy place and you get what you should expect - mediocre food with mediocre service. I'll pretty much agree with Jake R on the review, but I think accusing the area health inspector of some sort of corruption is a little much. Things like that are what the filters should be used for.
(1)Christine F.
We always try new restaurants wherever we go and were very happy with Steak and Shake. We went on Sunday for the kids eat free. You really can't argue with free. One kid eats free for every $8.00 you spend. I had the new California burger with avocado and my hubby had the Western BBQ and bacon. Both were tasty. We shared a 3 way chili which was also good. The kids portions were kind of small. Our waiter charged us for the large shakes instead of the kids shakes but adjusted our bill. The shakes were delicious and the fries reminded me of the old George Webb fries here in Milwaukee. All in all, we couldn't beat the value. All five of us ate for $26.00 and were full for the entire night.
(4)LaWanna O.
The frisco melt is my favorite here. I must say though, steak -n- shake isn't as good as they use to be.
(3)Juan Z.
This Steak n Shake has lost its value. Last time I went I found a hair on my bun so I asked to get it changed and when they brought it back there was a hair in the meat. This time I went with my friends and one of them ordered a guacamole burger but when he got it there wasn't any guacamole. And when we paid the cashier charged my friends my meal and charged me their meals even though I had already told her what seats I was going to pay beforehand. Apparently they hire people who are doing community service or something too. I do not recommend this place anymore.
(2)Phillip C.
You know, I lived very close to this establishment for over six years. I came here all of 10 times in those six years, and twice in the past six months. I'm never coming here ever again. Their food, when it actually gets to you, is usually not bad. It's hot/warm/cold, whatever's appropriate. One time, I was seated at the bar. I ordered a simple burger. Watched the fry cook flip burgers using bare hands. Asked for eggs over easy. Got undercooked eggs instead. Asked for eggs over hard. Got over easy eggs instead. Once, I ordered scrambled eggs because it's the safest bet. Nope, I got undercooked eggs, again. I've been through the drive-through maybe four times. Each time the order takes over 15 minutes for a few items and there are often mistakes (wrong items, missing items, etc.) My worst experience is when I waited at the window a grand total of 40 minutes. They still screwed up the order. Don't even think about going to this Steak and Shake. I've been to other locations, and they're perfectly fine. This place, however, is a damn joke.
(1)Kat B.
I find this chain to be Friendly's meets 5 Guys Burgers and Fries meets a younger sibling of Johnny Rockets sans the dancing and music. Bright red and silver decor with the smell of burgers sizzling on the grill and packed with people. Our waiter was the best and my son, who is in the military, had his ice cream paid for by one of the nice customers.....so .....yay! First, the menu...wow, unbelievablely cheap prices here. $4 for a burger and plate of fries? Did I die and go to heaven? Various hot dogs with toppings, including the Chicago hotdog, are also listed on the menu as well as shakes and all kinds of sundaes. And these are BIG sundaes. Plus another nice customer gave us a coupon for a buy one, get one free ice cream sundae... I need to go on a diet after my vacation....
(4)Earl S.
Right hours -- check Right location-- check Right food choices-- check DELICIOUS FOOD-- CHECK CHECK CHECK! I just wish this chain will come to Wisconsin.
(4)Ben S.
For the genre of restaurant that Steak n Shake is you really can't beat the classic good food fast qualities. Watching them make the steakburgers just like I remember in the 90s!! Tastes the same and great as well. Plus they serve breakfast, doesn't get much better than that!! Ps the BBQ western steakburger rocks!
(4)Z B.
After a long day at Six Flags, this is the place I usually go to. I love Steak and Shake. I noticed there was one near Six Flags. I usually go to the one in Frankfort, but I wanted to try this one. Expect a line for a table after Six Flags. The service was just okay. The staff are friendly, and they always have a smile on their fades. The only thing is that my family and me didn't get our drinks (which were mostly shakes) until after we got the food. It's drinks, THEN the food. Does it really take that long to make shakes? The food and the shakes are definitely worth the wait. I got the new Garlic Double Steakburger. I'm a big fan of it because it's really good! There's a lot of flavor in the garlic. The patty tastes different which I like! The shakes are great! The ice cream in the shake is very tasty! All in all, this is a pretty good Steak and Shake. I will come back.
(3)Aj C.
I'm rating this 4/5 just because ever since I moved to California, there's barely any Steak n Shake there. It's plagued with the ubiquitous presence of In-N-Out. I believe the price is very affordable and I find it tasty. I love getting my usual which is the jalapeno crunch burger. I usually get it with extra jalapenos. I just tried the sriracha version which had sriracha on it and it was amazing! If you love spicy food, you should definitely try that. The fries are flavorful as well as long as you put their special seasoning on it. What I also love about Steak n Shake is that it's 24/7 so you can come here whenever you're feeling it. The wait times to be seated is usually not bad when I go here. When it's really busy it can get as bad as 20-30 minutes. Kudos to the staff that sticks through for a couple months because it seems like their employees here are never permanent.
(4)Doug R.
Took almost 10 minutes to be seated. There were unoccupied tables but nobody was cleaning off the mess on them. Once we were seated, the service was quick and the waitress was attentive. It took another few minutes for someone to come to the cash register so we could pay. I'll give 3 starts instead of two bc even though they seemed to be severely understaffed, our waitress was quick and the food was as good as always.
(3)Joel R.
Without a doubt the worst location i have visited. Restroom is dirty. Service (or lack of) is horrible. Went one time for a shake and waited 30 minutes. The second time i went, the server never checked on me after i got my food. I had to go to the register to get my bill so i could leave. For those late nights when i am hungry and nothing is open, i will just go to bed hungry.
(1)Hoss M.
Right next to Gurnee Mills is not easy. The staff here is courteous and pleasant. Food was great. Nicole was one of the best servers I have had at any restaurant. Kids had a good time and so did mom and I.
(5)Vesna M.
I stopped by with my kids to have lunch there yesterday. As soon as you walk in the place looks so dirty. The chairs were full of dust, once you sat, the table was sticky and not cleaned properly. I ordered a cup of coffee and when the waitress brought it to me, half of the coffee was spilled into the bottom of the cup and the cup had stains on it. It was disgusting. Once the waitress brought our food out, the fries were cold, and the bottom of the plates were also sticky and we lost our appetite. This place should be more clean. I will never ever never eat here again. Such a dirty place.
(1)Kori Y.
Hard to resist the shakes here. Need a quick lunch stop, and this was convenient. Food was good, although predictable as well as the service.
(3)Anthony U.
I visit this Steak 'n Shake a few times a year usually after a trip to Gurnee Mills or a day at Great America. For the most part I find everything here to be perfect except for the crabby older (50+) women who do most of the table waiting service. My last two trips have provided great service with one a few months ago where Candace was my waitress and my most recent trip we got Nick as a waiter and he was excellent and always smiling. Looks like this location is stepping up their service game! Because I dislike paying $12 for a burger I try to not eat much while at Six Flags Great America. After a 12 hour day at the park I'm pretty hungry and this visit to SnS at 10pm was no exception. We started with a couple shakes although not at half price (2pm to 4pm and 2am to 4am) with one Vanilla and one Hershey's Special Dark (that wasn't on the menu but Nick said he could make one for me). The shakes arrived faster than normal and at some locations it can be frustrating to wait so long for them. We both loved our shakes and found it was truly worth the price even though it wasn't 1/2 price time. We ordered a Deluxe Bacon Double Cheeseburger, a Garlic Double Cheeseburger, and a Chili 5-Way (my absolute favorite SnS dish). We loved all three items with the new Garlic burger being the best of this visit. The new Garlic Double Cheeseburger is made with a toasted garlic bread bun and a rich garlic butter. Just the right combination of burger, garlic, and saltiness. I hope they keep it on the menu like they have with some other limited time special products. Our waiter came back to check on us at least six or seven times during the visit and while some customers may find that too frequent or annoying I rather like it. I'm also very impressed with the restrooms here. With the flow of customers leaving the mall and the rush of Six Flags employees and customers as the theme park just closed the restrooms are always spotless. I also like the fact the paper towel dispenser automatically rolls off enough towel that you need just one piece to dry your hands but also that there is a garbage can next to the door. I wish all restaurants operated their bathroom like this. Sometimes when I'm out I love to stop at Cracker Barrel and will almost always take CB over SnS but this is one location where that is reversed for me. That's just how good I find this SnS to be! Great job Steak 'n Shake, this place runs pretty tight and keep on hiring great wait staff to replace the crabby ones!
(5)Katelyn J.
Yuck. This place was awful. The floor was super dirty with trash and food. It was seriously black around my area. I was seated near the kitchen, and I had to watch the employees yelling back and forth at each other. I have no idea what kind of drama was happening, but there was a lot of shouting going on. My food took forever, and it was average. Cold fries... but the burger was okay. I guess I kinda of wished I would have driven through McDonalds instead... but at least I know now I don't need to go back.
(1)Dominick N.
Fast Seating and service. Judy was a doll. The Jalepeno burger with cajun fries was great. This place is dirt cheap and the service is quick. We were famished and wanted quick and easy. The place wasn't spotless but it wasnt dirty either. The Server Judy was a doll. I wasnt stuffed when I left, I felt quite content.
(4)Jerrold A.
Terrible service had our party waiting almost an hour after our waiter took our order. The waiter not only give us the wrong check but also didn't give us utensils. Sadly the only thing he got us right away was our waters. I have been to many steak n shakes and by far this location is the worst. Our waiter was sitting down with another table chatting with other people after we ask for silverware. We ended up asking another waiter to grab the utensils.
(1)Jessica G.
This Place has the worst servers I have ever experienced out of steak n shake. I repeated my order 3 time because my waitress wasn't listening, my boyfriend ordered the same exact thing and didn't get it, I also repeated my sister's order and everything came out wrong. DO NOT GO HERE IF YOU WANT ANY SERVICE!!!!
(1)Carole L.
This place has gone downhill fast! Restaurant is filthy dirty. Today while waiting more than 5 minutes to be seated, (plenty of tables open but all dirty) we watched an employee wipe a table with a wet napkin, no spray cleaner! Not surprised! Needless to say we left!
(1)Stuart G.
Bad service, slow, and gets orders wrong. Don't go here. Made friend cry and almost die.
(1)Big D.
Great staff just it took a long, long, long time to get seated and get the drinks and then the food. Portions were ok for money. I will go to Chipotle next time.
(1)Shaun E.
I've been to this location on several occasions passing through town towards either Chicago or Milwaukee. The service was awesome. Our server Char was stellar! She was very attentive and the most friendly ever! The food was delicious as always, thanks cooking staff for your hard work! The restaurant was clean and presentable. If you're in the area craving an all American meal stop by steak and shake for a very affordable meal for $4.
(4)jim s.
Very good service by Charlotte and the food came fairly quick and hot and exactly as ordered.....but I couldn't give 5 stars because the place seemed kind of dirty and unmanaged. ....other employees, besides my server, walking around wasting time....a guy at the register had to wait a long time for a simple chocolate shake
(4)Keaunis G.
This is the closest Steak n Shake to my home! Every time that I come to this location, the staff is always friendly and my food is ready is a timely fashion. Love it! The food and the shakes are very delicious and are priced reasonably.
(5)Magdaline V.
So good! Burgers freshly made and my favorite small, thin fries. I don't really like fries but love these. I order a kids' size malt with no whipped cream and it's fantastic. Server Judy is very nice and she works hard in this busy place. Usually one or two managers on duty. I like to sit at the counter and watch the food being prepared. Yummy!
(5)Brad M.
Recently visited this place for the first time in a while and now I see why there are terrible reviews. As soon as I walked in it seemed disorganized. It was an odd time around 3:00 and it was pretty busy. We were seated fairy quickly but it took 10-15 mins for someone to come serve us. I would have rated this place higher if it wasn't for the service. The girl that waited on us acted like she did not want to be there whatsoever. She never checked back on us after the food came out, not even asking once how our food was. I dont think she even smiled once, not even a grin. As a matter of fact, most of the staff looked plain miserable. There was one waitress right across from us serving other tables that was very friendly and outgoing. Ours was lucky that the food saved the day. It came out very fast and was hot and fresh. I think it's safe to say that the food is good and the prices are cheap but the customer service needs a makeover. Not sure if I'll be back to dine in anytime soon.
(3)Sarah E.
I go here quite often. I actually went a few days ago and had an experience that changed my mind about the place. We were sitting next to the kitchen area. We had the great misfortune of overhearing two employees describe (in detail) how one woke up with pink eye this morning. The other just advised her to wash her hands a lot and don't tell anyone. I pretty much lost my appetite after that. Ew.
(1)Abel P.
Food is great but service is horrible, waitress had my family and I waiting for about 20 minute which isnt so bad but as others walked in and checked in. The waitress was giving others their table as they walked in after us. We finally told the manager something and as they checked the list, we found out she did not even write our names down.
(2)Joseph L.
Was out of town visiting family- this place was next door to our hotel and we love steak and shake so we hit it up. As usual, great place, great food, and quick!
(4)Nicole H.
I luuuurrrrrvvvveee Steak N Shake. But this location is sad and busy and dirty and the only I reason I go is because it's the closest one we have! Listen, skinny cheese fries covered in warm, gloopy processed cheese food and a banana/chocolate side-by-side would likely be the meal I ask for on Death Row, but this particular location is just really one to be survived in your pursuit of the delicious goodness. Since they closed the ones in the Milwaukee area, we take advantage of the Gurnee one pretty much any time we head into Chicago. And it gives us our fix. But the frills are non-existent. The waitstaff always seems harried and overwhelmed, you get your shake well after you've gotten your meal (seriously, buy another shake mixer gadget thingy) and there are always sketchy folks and screaming children (I'm looking at you, Evangelical old man in the crazy suit). But I will go through all that in pursuit of an occasional fix. So I guess it depends on how bad your jones is, right?
(2)Eric W.
Way to dirty to rate any higher then this. Food is very reasonably priced but nothing special. Milkshake was disappointing, grilled cheese was tasty. Open 24hrs and probably dirtier then it should be for everyone of them.
(2)Joze C.
Steak & shake is good! Good food & good desserts. The only thing this establishment lacks is customer service and quickness The drive through took 20 minutes today and the associates were not very friendly. But they weren't terrible Dining in isn't much different either. Focus more on customer service & you'll be at 4-5 stars in know time
(3)Deb M.
We have been eating here for years. Usually stop on our way to Chicago! Love the food! But the last few time we stopped it's a mess! Bathrooms were filthy! The table condiments containers filthy greasy. And to top it off today one of the workers were taking a nap at the entry way of the restaurant!
(1)David R.
We stopped in at about 9pm after a very long day. The place was pretty busy. We stood and waited to be seated for almost 15 minutes. Not one of the 3 employees that passed us multiple times ever said a word to us. This has happened at this location previously too. I will not go back again.
(1)Ron R.
So, I grew up eating at Steak N Shake in the 70's. The older, 24 hour ones like Main St in Peoria, these things were like a step back in time. But alas, these are all gone, replaced by a pseudo-dinerish looking things covered in chrome. Yes the subway tile is gone, long gone are the days of setting next to a 3rd shift worker at the counter, after an all night bender. So why 5 stars? The food baby. SnS is the KING of Midwest style smashed burgers. For nearly a century, Steak N Shake has been making prime cuts of ground beef, and smashing them paper thin on a blazingly hot grill. The end result is a thin patty of flavor, encased by a crispy, crunchy exterior. Since moving to MKE- they are no longer around the corner, so my closest SnS is in Gurnee. Here's where I get my fix- a single with cheese, mustard and onion. Frisco Melt- extra sauce. I'm on it- just like Jim Bonnet.
(5)Blair F.
Went there during shake happy hour for just a chocolate shake. I was told I would have to wait 10 minutes, but didn't have a problem with that. Other came in behind me, sat down at the counter and received their food with shakes well before there was any sign of my one shake. Finally after 25 minutes, I politely asked the lady order taker if she could check on my shake. I pointed out that other people were getting their shakes and ask why was mine taking longer. She then rudely snapped at me at said "because they are sitting down and staying!" A few minutes later my shake arrived and she then delivered a few more sarcastic remarks. Another customer witnessed my interaction and walked out with me saying that she saw the whole interaction and wasn't going to wait nor tolerate the attitude. The chocolate shake didn't taste normal either. It had a plastic type of taste to it so I ended throwing most of it out.
(1)Teepee-liquor N.
This is the dirtiest restaurant I ever been to ... the food is cold and the service is horrible. .. can someone call the health department lol
(1)Jennifer L.
Meh. Wasn't worth the calories. Hadn't had Steak N Shake in about 10 years. Was close-by, figured we'd try it. Hit the drive through, but then parked in mall parking lot to eat (we had the dog in the car, so couldn't go in). By the time I got my fries, they were already cold. And the buger was just kinda nominal. Nothing special. Overall, will probably never come back. Just wasn't worth the calories. If I'm gonna go hog-wild, I'd rather McD's fries or something else :)
(2)Serena M.
Our server is always super nice. Glenda is her name. I'm here now, my sister and I both ordered some milkshakes. Happy Hour 2-4! Great deal! However, they take forever.. Which ruins the experience. The food always comes out first. It's annoying. But then again, there is only a couple servers on per shift. Ugh. Anyhow, enjoy!
(2)Tony M.
Food is usually good here! The service is slow usually every time I come here. I usually have to ask for my refill of drink. I order different sandwiches every time I come here tasting great! If you are in a hurry to eat, don't come here. Lots of people come here to dine in which they do not have a lot of tables to handle everyone. I see a long line for the drive thru cause the cooks have to cook your order fresh as you wait. It's quicker to come inside to order to go!!! There is not enough servers usually here too! I come for the food at a great price, not the service!!!
(4)Kevin N.
I love the Happy Days Fifties vibe here. Complete with table service, drive through or takeout, they have a fast food preparation model but it's definitely more fun to eat in diner style. The service staff has nostalgic style uniforms complete with the paper hats on the cooks. My waitress was serving Flo-realness from Mel's diner. The steakburgers are tasty, pressed thin on the griddle, and you can get whatever you want on them. The fries are the thin shoestring style. I enjoy these. They also have old-school Chili burgers and Chili Mac! Spice up your chili with some dashes of the pick-a-peppa sauce, which is vinegar-based and packed with sport peppers. Best of all, service is fast and friendly and it won't break the bank. Honestly, the prices on their burger and fries combos are no more than the major burger chains. They feature multiple entrees at $4! I tried an Octoberfest special last time which was a double Swiss burger with ham, mustard and grilled onions on a pretzel roll. Ausgezeichnet! (That's German for awesome!) They also have a half price shake happy hour 2-4pm and 2-4am with discounts excellent hand dipped milkshakes. The red velvet cake shake is so good it should be banned because you'll want to go back again and again. Open 24 hours for your midnight munchies!
(4)JD C.
This is single-handledly the worst food service experience I had in my whole life. We waited 15 minutes to be seated and we are now at one hour in the restaurant with no shakes, no food. The whole team is clearly incompetent starting from the top. This entire restaurant and potentially the franchisee needs to be rotated out. Do not go there. It's too bad as we love our Steak 'n Shake by us in Chicago.
(1)Anthony M.
Went through the drive thru to take part in Happy Hour Shakes! From 2-4 pm you can get half price shakes...that's a deal! They also run the promotion late night too but I don't know the hours...I personally do not need a shake past 8pm unless it is served in a martini glass. I thought this review was gonna be 2 stars because there were like 8 cars in front of me and I thought this was going to take a while! But I was amazed at how fast it moved. Great service by the employees here, in order to get all of the cars through quickly. Our chocolate shake was delicious and blended perfectly. It was also a great deal for $1.50. I like Happy Hour at Steak-N-Shake!!! Luckily for me there aren't any in downtown Chicago or I might be here daily!
(5)Phil A.
We stopped by this evening to grab a quick dinner and we stood by the wait to be seated sign and were completely ignored. The place was less than half full and two customers were waiting to pay their bill. We decided to go to Chipotle since it's right next door.
(1)Mike D.
The food is good but the service is terrible. We sat in the drive thru line for 30 minutes, and it always seems to take a tremendous amount of time to make a shake and a burger. They DEFINATELY need new managers
(1)Robin C.
The service was terrible, when we finally got our order it was wrong. The restaurant and bathrooms were so dirty it was disgusting; food, silverware and napkins all over the floor, it looked like the floors hadn't been mopped in a month.
(1)Raul I.
If I could award zero stars I would. This place was honestly THAT bad. And I don't give bad reviews for the most part. Decided to stop in after spending the day at nearby Six Flags Great America. Of course we were not the only ones with the same idea, so the place was busy. Regardless, the service up to the point where they took our orders was ok, it all then went downhill from there. 1. The food was super late and took over 20 minutes to receive. (this was a chain restaurant, nothing fancy). 2. I accidentally spilled one of the glasses with Dr. Pepper all over the table while reaching for napkins and spilled the syrupy liquid all over the table and myself. The restaurant manager saw me just as this happened and so did 3 other waiters. I saw them, they saw me. Our eyes locked and made contact, there was a momentary pause, and then they looked away. NONE OF THEM OFFERED TO HELP OR REMEDY THE SITUATION. This immediately put me into the red zone, I had to loudly request that one of the waiters stop by our table, and when she did, seeing the mess that had just occurred had the nerve to ask, how can I help you. I asked for paper towels, they brought me a giant roll and left it at the corner of the table and immediately ran off again. So I said screw it, cleaned off the whole table, my seat, my soaked shorts, everything. I then had to get up, go to the kitchen and ask for a tray so that I could direct all of the flowing liquid onto something, finished cleaning and then had to shout out for a waiter several times so they could fetch the mess. 3. After all of this, they saw the empty glass and upset customers, and no one even offered to refill the recently emptied drink, so I had to chase another waiter down to ask for a refill. 4. The waitress came by after about 20-25 minutes of waiting to let us know that the food would be late and they were working as fast as they could. 5. The food finally arrived. Guess what.....it was cold. Nothing gets my appetite going like cold soggy burgers! mmmmmm Needless to say, the experience was horrible. Service was the worst i've seen. I did notice that the waiters all had the same sense of lackluster, unmotivated, selfish sense of service as their manager. One waitress even spilled her tray by accident, and I watched as her fellow co-workers who were not busy, just standing around walked around her and around her mess and refused to lift a finger to assist. The manager would yell at people to do something, they rolled their eyes and walked away. Service was crap all the way up to the point where we walked out the door. Arriving at the register and being asked to wait, while the waitress went towards the kitchen to complain that she was done at the register and wanted to go on break. She asked me how my service was when she returned, I told her it was crap, she said "sorry to hear that". And for the first time ever, I left without leaving a tip. This was my first time at Steak & Shake. And my last.
(1)A C.
Food is okay. Service is okay. Price is just okay. Everything is just ok imho. I would come back but there are plenty of dining options in the area.
(3)Natasha K.
10 minutes for a server to appear at the table after we got up to get someone. 10 minutes for water. Burgers are cold, fries are cold, orders are wrong. People standing around to be seated in a near empty restaurant.
(1)Glen H.
OK, I haven't had Steak 'n Shake in probably 10 years. The server was really nice, but everything else was below par. Burger well, I've had better burgers at McDonalds. Fries were a little cold. Milk Shake was amazing, but I came for the burger. I just tasted like it was sitting there for awhile and was flat.
(2)Angelica D.
I would give it no stars if I could. But the service of this place is HORRIBLE! Do not come here if you are starving or in a rush for food. The lines drag. Getting your order taken drags. And to receive your food drags!
(1)Tony A.
One particular night it was a little busy. The waiters and assistant manager assisted with the cooking. However, service was still unbelievably slow. Our orders were wrong, cold, and one dish had a piece of plastic in it. No refund or discount was offered. Try to avoid this place.
(1)James C.
A scosche above Meals-on-Wheels if it were left in a van down by the river for three days. Our meals came wrong and incomplete. Then our sides. And then some of our drinks. Some drinks and food were never brought out at all.
(1)Danielle A.
The service here is incredibly slow and the greasy mediocre food is not worth the wait. I had two bites of the Jalepeño burger and was done. The milkshakes were okay, there was not anything special about them. And hearing one of cooks say "Eww!!" While cooking your meal, will in fact make you lose your appetite.
(1)Gordon G.
WARNING ( Reasons not to not visit ) : waitress itching hair with long nails Lettuce super juicy Cup smeared with brown stuff and cherry juice Filthy floors Brown object on bathroom in floors Hostess had hair on rump Jimmy's all down side of malt cup Carmel pretzel shake has super soggy "pretzels" ? Uniforms dirty Windows smeared Steakburger was dis-formed and the barbecue was in a glob Having stomach probs ( Reasons to visit ) : waitress was very pleasant Pricepoint ok Makes Arby's look like a palace
(1)Bill M.
Just stopped here in Gurnee for a quick meal with wife. What a joke this place is. Waited for a table for 5 minutes while the whole wait staff stares at you. Tables are dirty and no one sitting has food. I counted at least 7 servers pretending to work and just giggling when manager comes over and points at us like to say take care of us. No one seats us for another 5 minutes so we leave. Nice managing!! Usually like the food here but will go somewhere else from now on.
(1)Joel A.
I see a lot of low reviews but at Steak and Shake you get what you pay for and being open 24 hours makes this place awesome. $4 menu of amazing hamburgers and fries and other goodies are all good. I won't eat McDonald's crappy processed hamburgers anymore so when I need a late night meal ill drive the extra distance here. They have a cheap midnight to 11am breakfast menu that's really good for the price. Again, if this was Burger Bar or another high end hamburger joint I'd give it one star but this is Steak and Shake and the prices are reasonable and the food is perfect when I need a 2am snack!
(4)Thuy H.
You can't expect much from here. The foods are great but the service isn't so great. Sometimes it'll take them over 10 minutes before taking your order. It's like they have forgotten about you
(3)Carl P.
I've visited this location several times and the food is usually very good. There is the occasional slip up with our order, but by the time it arrives that's usually the least of our worries. To begin, we generally are not greeted when entering the restaurant. If the tables are not occupied by customers, they're filthy and remain that wat for some time. In general it takes about 20 minutes of standing at the "please wait to be seated" sign before anyone acknowledges your presence. On occasion I've grown impatient and seated myself. The manager seems flustered and overwhelmed and the staff seems like they could care less about the state of their dining room or their guests. I understand busy restaurants, I've run several of them. Gurnee is a high volume restaurant, which makes the fact thay they cannot maintain a proper staff level, or the necessary training to maintain such a volume is troubling. It's unfortunate that this is how the Steak n' Shake brand is represented. During my most recent visit, after waiting for a shake for 20 minutes I see one of the guys making shakes sticking a bottle of flavored syrup up his nose and laughing. After quelling a minor heart attack, I approached the manager and complained that perhaps the reason nothing was leaving the shake side of things was because the team is messing around. As I type this I've actually watched an entire shake melt on an uncleaned table as the same 10 guests I walked in with stand at the welcome area. I really suggest that if you are planning on visiting this location, that you budget your time accordingly.
(1)Adam H.
Very busy place and you get what you should expect - mediocre food with mediocre service. I'll pretty much agree with Jake R on the review, but I think accusing the area health inspector of some sort of corruption is a little much. Things like that are what the filters should be used for.
(1)Christine F.
We always try new restaurants wherever we go and were very happy with Steak and Shake. We went on Sunday for the kids eat free. You really can't argue with free. One kid eats free for every $8.00 you spend. I had the new California burger with avocado and my hubby had the Western BBQ and bacon. Both were tasty. We shared a 3 way chili which was also good. The kids portions were kind of small. Our waiter charged us for the large shakes instead of the kids shakes but adjusted our bill. The shakes were delicious and the fries reminded me of the old George Webb fries here in Milwaukee. All in all, we couldn't beat the value. All five of us ate for $26.00 and were full for the entire night.
(4)Mike U.
I usually love going to steak and shake for the frisco melt and shakes. This location however is disgusting. The bread always has little fuzzies all over it. The service is very unpredictable and they almost always have people working there that you can barely understand because they appear that they just don't care.
(1)Lauren H.
This was absolutely the worst service I have ever had at a restaurant. I was there with about.. 6 or 7 people including myself. Before even ordering we ordered waters. It was around 2am and they were pretty dead. There were 2 other tables in the restaurant with people at the time. They took our orders. We all got food and shakes. A really really really long time later our food came. We never got our waters. The waitress said our shakes would be there in a minute. So we didn't care about the water anymore- because we'd have our shakes. We ate and it was good and stuff but we were all extremely thirsty during our meals and she never came back to the table to see if everything was okay. About a half hour AFTER we finished eating our food the shakes came. By then one of the people at the table had left to pay his bill because no one wanted to sit there all day waiting for her. I guess the drive through was backed up or something because the waitress and cook were yelling at eachother about how he only cooks (because she was way behind). She was the only server working and clearly couldn't handle it. I don't want to say she was awful because she had to do everything herself. But it was a pretty bad experience overall. I went to the Steak N Shake in Elk Grove Village the next day with a different friend. Around 2am again, and with the one waiter he was extremely kind, joked around with us, brought our food, water, and shakes, and came back a few times asking how everything was and if we were doing okay. He was the only waiter then too, and that Steak N Shake was a lot busier then the Gurnee one. I think they should either have more then one person working those shifts, or have one working who knows how to handle the extra work. I was really disappointed and a frustrating night just got more frustrating from a restaurant that is generally a pretty fast place to eat.
(1)Daniel M.
The food is great. The value is even better but they could improve on their portions. The service is OK, some waiters are the nicest people ever and there are some you really hope you don't get stuck with. Every time I come into Steak-N-Shake, I haven't experienced a bad visit (knock on wood). Everything was near perfect and was delicious. Plus, it's fast but it isn't fast food. It's a casual sit down but a fast food speed, which is great for those who are on the go. I, myself love this place. I don't know why but I do. I would eat here more often if I could but the calories would be packing on. A little recommendation - Campfire S'Mores Milkshake and the Triple Bacon Burger.. The best combination I could ever ask for. Oh, and don't forget the fries! :) 4/5 stars for this one! Improve the service a little bit, increase portions and clean a little better and you have stellar restaurant!
(4)Desirae K.
Horrible, horrible service.
(1)C R.
I took my daughter to dinner tonight, our waitress was very good. However, our order took 40 minutes for 2 burgers and one shake. While waiting for our food, I looked around and had more than enough time to see how filthy dirty the floor was as well as the grill. The restuarant was quite busy but none of the staff moved very quickly or with urgency to get the food served to customers. By the time our meal arrived, I no longer wished to eat the food based on my observations of the dirt. I was surprised that a restaurant in Gurnee would be so unkept. That was my last visit.
(2)Niko T.
Not only does this Steak n Shake Have rude management (Bob) who yells at his workers and fires them for no reason im guessing because every time me and my family go in here there's new people.....but the restaurant is dirty they have nats flying every where rude service dirty dishes I saw in the back when I went to go talk to a server.....long wait time in the drive 12min...cold food n my list goes on how many times I been here but the last time I was here I most certainly will not be returning. I warn you stay away from here there's slot of employees that are discussing the way the look (sloppy) im glad I don't go here but good luck to you and ur family and friends.
(1)Casey B.
The pricing is great and the food and shakes are very good. However, take the drive thru. The service inside is absolutely horrible. I think the staff is so used to getting stiffed on tips that they just have the mindset of giving horrible service. The inside is always full and pretty noisy. But like I said the food is delicious and my family of 5 eats for less than $30 and that includes shakes!!
(3)Gregory C.
Steak-N-Shake. What happened? You used to be so clean and quick and friendly, but alas. Tables falling apart, damaged fixtures in the restroom, surly staff, slow service, food of questionable integrity...in a word--AVOID.
(1)Diana G.
I think I've been to one Steak-N-Shake years ago. I had a horrible experience at one in Michigan City, IN. My friend and I was done shopping so I decided to give this chain one more try. We were seated and they took our order quickly. The food arrived in a decent amount of time. Nothing special about the food. The prices are fair and they give enough amount. Me and my friend finished ours and we liked that we didn't have to waste or anything. I felt like it was the right amount of food.....for us at least! I agree....the tables stay untaken care of because they have no bus boy. There was like 2-3 large tables that still had yet to be cleaned. I have never seen so many people have to clean a table. One waitress would start to clean and then leave and then someone else would start on it and leave.....you get the point. Just hire 1 bus boy and they would be so much more efficient. The table behind us did have a complaint. I think they were saying their food was sitting there and no one gave it to them. The guy scarfed down his burger, but the lady ate like half of hers and the girl took maybe 2 bites out of hers. They talked to the manager and he seemed like he didn't know what to say. So, he just gave them a plate of fries. We overheard him asking if he should leave them a tip, but they did like $2-3. Not impressed with this chain at all!
(2)Mike L.
Saturday evening dinner was pretty good. Chili from a can...not so good. Burger, fries, onion rings, grilled cheese, and shakes are all solid and a good value. Not exactly fast food but we had the nicest server I could ever expect and was overall very pleased with everything. Free kids meal on weekends didn't hurt.
(3)Carl F.
First, I'm a big fan of Steak-N-Shake. I've eaten at many of them.. it is a simple menu, and overall the food is good comfort eats. However, my single star rating is strictly pointed at this particular location. The service at best is poor. The staff argue with each other directly in front of the customers. The manager admonishes the staff right in the open. The cooks are horrible and you generally wait an extended time for a poor meal. More over, the staff can't even make a good shake. Again, please do try Steak-N-Shake... but just stay away from this Gurnee location.
(1)Don J.
Okay. Whoever thought of the whole "Happy Hour" half-price shake thing is a genius. An evil, evil, EVIL genius. Rising to the challenge of an economy in a tailspin, Steak-n-Shake has trotted out a great selection of moderately priced meals, including some pretty awesome fresh food and some awesome burger, dog and fries combos. There's a lotta good stuff here for under $5. Yeah, yeah. It sounds like a commercial. But it's hard to argue with both a good price and a freshly-made product. As far as value menus go, this place has one with the best actual value. The Gurnee store has a few really great things going for it. One is the staff, the other -- oddly enough -- is the management. I've had good service just about every time I've been here. There's even a staffer who makes it her business to keep coupons in her apron. She'll lay down a selection appropriate to your choices and save you a bundle. So, when I really need a cheeseburger fix, this is the place to go. And the shakes? Their seasonal stuff is delicious.
(4)Paul M.
So, stomach growling and wallet ... well, after all it is a ressession, right? But I'm really hungry and I need something substantial. Steak 'n Shake? Not the name I'd choose first, but it does have "Steak" in its name. I was amazed at the prices, very affordable. We went during the 2PM to 4PM "Happy Hour" so we had 1/2 price shakes. All in all it was a nice experience if you want decent fast food and a really tasty shake for a reasonable price. Price vs. Delivered goods here rates as a good value.
(4)Ab B.
Poor service. Waited over 45 min for a side salad & almost an hr for our meals. All our food was cold. The guacamole chicken sandwich was actually good but the burgers were so dry and yuck. When the manager did her 'rounds' & asked how everything was, we looked at each other and said 'um just ok.' she moved on to the next table. Why did she even ask if she didnt care? That was even more offensive than not asking at all! Will NOT go here again!
(1)Chad H.
1 1/2 stars? Oh this place isn't that bad. Where else are you going to go for food at 2:00 AM? Denny's? Hell no! Back in high school my friends and I used to come here all the time. Sure, the food kind of sucks (although I do like their milkshakes and cheese fries) and is definitely over-priced, and the place is pretty dirty, and the service is borderline atrocious. So maybe it's my nostalgia, but I still like hitting this place up every now and then when I'm back in town. Go here with very low expectations and you should be pleasantly surprised.
(3)Tim J.
This place is minutes from Six Flags, next to a huge mall, and two midrange hotels. It could be a goldmine. So after about 8 minutes of waiting at the bar and realizing that nobody was tending the bar, I got in line for the cashier. After about 20 total minutes of waiting to place my order, and the moment I did place my order, the cashier turned her head and asked about the mans order whom was standing next to me, and added, " they have been here for a while" He added, Over an hour" That was it for me and I canceled my order and walked out. This place is fairly clean despite how busy they are, but I did notice a sheen of grease on the floor.. There is a total clusterfuck of about 15 employees in the back taking care of drive through. There is one poor lady taking carry out orders and the front area was literally packed with at least 30 people. The grill had one....ONE grill cook and one burger prep. There was literally about 15 very young people in white shirts making shakes in the back and little else. This place needs a general manager who gives a shit enough to reorganize. There was a skinny little indian guy in a button down shirt running around paying no attention to anything. I assume he was the manager or owner. They need a bigger grill, with at least two grill cooks and two prep people. They need one person making shakes. Know why? they have one shake prep station. As I walked away I noticed that the cars were moving ok through the drive through ok. It made me want to walk up to the drive through and get my order on foot. When I called to complain, they very lady that took my order asked me to come back and bought me my $3.99 burger. She was very nice and clearly a great expediter, but has terrible management behind her. Tammi was her name and she was clearly the best part of this place. She was working despite being on medical leave. I could not resist giving her a six dollar tip. My burger was incorrectly prepared. Too bad, too...This place could be a goldmine. I advise you avoid it completely.
(1)Tiffany L.
what's with all the negativity? you gotta review this place for what it is, and that's a franchised grease joint. steak-n-shake sits in the canyon between fast food and sit-down burger joints. the burger feels like fast food but the service and need to tip make it a sit-down place. the burgers are extensive and the fries grow on you. however the real draw is the milkshakes, especially during 1/2 off happy hour. their $3.99 deals are a no-brainer when it comes to value.
(3)Pedro M.
Horrible food horrible service cant believe still open. Went twice and on both occasions service was slow and food flavorless. On the first visit had to wait 15 minutes before anyone took order. No napkins or straws were given while waitress clearly was lost. I almost dehydrated from the lack of refills. On the second visit i decided to try the drive thru since the waitresses were clearly incapable of doing such a easy job at a simple burger restaurant. The drive thru personal couldn't understand and when finally took order had to repeat it on multiple occasions. The food was flavorless tasted like absolute garbage. The fries were ice cold and no salt was ever put on them (guess they care about your health after feeding you a greasy burger.) the coke tasted horrendous almost like toilet water. I will never go back better meals at the local McDonalds. Like these kids say now a days SMH.
(1)Mike L.
A chain fast food joint. being a non-local I can say that I have never gotten the concept of this place seeing as they cant do both at the same time, either make a good hamburger or make a good shake. Ok the whole "Steak" part is just a naming bit as most of their sandwiches are just burgers. My major complaint upon first trying them was that they did not have pickles but a vastly inferior substitute in relish. A really big change in taste and one I did not like. Last time I tried one of their shakes I will have to admit it was very thick and tasty. However I have sat at their drive-through for 10 minutes which really negates the whole concept---yes there is a sign explaining this. I have eaten at this franchise a number of times over the years in various locations and have come away every time wondering why I ate here, I have reached the point of never again. After viewing their "value menu" I think my arteries just hardened by 10 years even though I did not eat anything from it.
(2)Vivian Y.
Ew. Came here after a long day at Six Flags. My friends and I were hoping to avoid the traffic on the Edens as we were dumb enough to leave at the end of the night. We were craving burgers, and I had never had SNS before. Never again. The service was HORRENDOUS. It took us 30 mins to have our order taken. The food was TERRIBLE and TASTELESS. And worse part - the cook wasn't even wearing a hat or a net.
(1)LaWanna O.
The frisco melt is my favorite here. I must say though, steak -n- shake isn't as good as they use to be.
(3)Juan Z.
This Steak n Shake has lost its value. Last time I went I found a hair on my bun so I asked to get it changed and when they brought it back there was a hair in the meat. This time I went with my friends and one of them ordered a guacamole burger but when he got it there wasn't any guacamole. And when we paid the cashier charged my friends my meal and charged me their meals even though I had already told her what seats I was going to pay beforehand. Apparently they hire people who are doing community service or something too. I do not recommend this place anymore.
(2)Stacy T.
Sometimes nostalgia makes you do silly things. I used to frequent the Gainesville, FL Steak-N-Shake quite frequently and thought it was just the best thing ever. Perhaps my taste buds have evolved a bit since my good ole college days where a thin little gridded slab of beef between a bun with wilted lettuce, watery tomato, and white onion was a gourmet treat saved only for celebratory occasions. Wow - I've come a long way since then. Not much has changed - the formulaic menu still holds strong and the $3.99 triple steakburger is as greasy and satisfying as ever. Add onion rings, a cup of chili, and a lemonade and you've got all the artery clogging points of the food pyramid covered. The fries suck, so you pretty much HAVE to get the onion rings (I know...my rationale is wonky). I always try to save room for a shake, but I have never been successful. Thank goodness or I'd definitely be a solid by now. I plan to save future indulgences of this sort for the In-N-Out Burger Animal Style!
(2)Syretta H.
I tried this place for the first time since it opened in Gurnee. The first time, I went through the drive thru. It was late and I was starving. I got it home and it was pretty tasty. My daughter likes the shakes, so we decided to go back and dine inside. It wasn't that clean, to say the least. There was food on the empty tables, pieces of food on the floor. We sat there for like 5 minutes before anyone helped us. Then when she came and took our order, she promptly let me know that her shift was over, but that she would make sure that someone checked on us....HUH??? Of course only one person bothered to come over and ask us if we were okay. When we were ready to leave I needed a plastic cup to take the rest of my daughter's shake home and no one ever came back. I ended up getting one at the counter where I paid the bill..... That one experience would keep me from going back to dine inside. I may try to go thru the drive thru again...MAYBE.....
(1)Amy C.
Tried Steak and Shake for the very first time over the weekend. The shake definitely did not stand up to the anticipation and the bread on my sandwich was soggy! GROSS! The fries are like over-sized hash browns and you wait in drive thru forever! I would eat White Castle before I ever returned to Steak and Shake. yuck!
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