Steak 'n Shake

Steak 'n Shake Operations, Inc. (doing business as Steak 'n Shake) is an American casual restaurant chain concentrated primarily in the Midwestern United States with locations also in the South, Mid-Atlantic and Western United States, Europe, and the Middle East. The company is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Biglari Holdings. , 628 Steak 'n Shake restaurants were in operation; of those 414 are corporate-owned, and 214 franchised. The company has since attempted to convert to a fully franchised model. Restaurant locations have sit-down, drive-thru, and front-window service; they provide a hybrid of fast-food to-go and diner-style sit-down service. Many locations are open 24 hours a day, seven days per week. The menu features primarily burgers and hand-dipped milkshakes; other entrees, side items, and drinks are also available. The corporation's slogan, "Famous for Steakburgers", refers to its most prominent food item, the Steakburger. The "steak" in the restaurant name comes from the menu item. History A. H. "Gus" Belt (born in Morrisonville, Illinois) founded Steak 'n Shake in Normal, Illinois, in February 1934, after serving four years in the United States Marine Corps. He converted the combination gas station and chicken restaurant that he owned (Shell's Chicken) into a hamburger stand. Steak 'n Shake's slogan, "In Sight It Must Be Right", originally referred to Belt's practice of wheeling a barrel of T-bone, sirloin, and round steaks into the public area of his restaurant, then grinding them into burgers in front of his customers—it was intended to reassure customers of the product's wholesomeness as at the time, ground beef was still viewed with skepticism by the general public, based on the likelihood of its having impurities deliberately added to it.