Steak 'n Shake — Restaurant in Pearl

REVISED REVIEW (11/16/17): Just over a week after its grand opening, the difference in service is night and day. What formerly was an exciting and friendly environment, is now a chaotic and vastly overcrowded train wreck.

I honestly believe that their selected location has been the largest contributing factor to the restaurant's imminent demise. The size of the restaurant is just too small, with most of its real estate containing parking that is constantly blocked off by its drive-thru line, which is bumper-to-bumper from open to close and extends into a highly-trafficked road. Customers can often be found walking over from adjacent parking lots - some even walking across the busy street - to avoid the 2+ hour wait time in the drive-thru.

The restaurant has consistently been over-capacity since day one. It has even been taken to dangerous extremes, which involve extending tables into the walking lanes of the restaurant, and if you've ever worked at a restaurant, this screams "fire hazard." Flies have also become commonplace, as customers often hold the doors open as a result of over-capacity. The staff are noticeably stressed and agitated, as they often have to cover for one another at different tables because of heavy traffic.

All of the above issues could have been resolved with a different location, one that would allow traffic to be regulated and confined to its own parking lot; that would be able to accommodate more customers and staff; that would allow for an enjoyable and more manageable dining experience.

As ridiculous as it sounds, I honestly believe that Steak 'n Shake should seriously consider relocating somewhere in Pearl. There are plenty other places around the area that can allow for a much better dining experience, and I fear that the negative impressions from this location will only get worse, potentially to the point where it is shut down by the city. I also truly hope that Steak 'n Shake take the Pearl launch into consideration with any future locations in the Jackson Metro area. I, along with many others, want Steak 'n Shake to have a successful launch in Mississippi, and it is imperative that the data and feedback from this location are strongly considered for future decisions.

It truly saddens me that those who are new to Steak 'n Shake will only have the negative experience at this location to reflect on. I've had wonderful experiences in the past at other locations, but this one unfortunately just doesn't do the chain justice.

Lastly, PLEASE remember that the staff here are doing the best that they can and have been going through it ever since they opened. I understand your time is important as well, but please be kind, respectful, and encouraging to the staff. They all need it.

ORIGINAL REVIEW: 5/5 (Posted 11/06/17) As always, Steak 'n Shake has delicious food! Service has been great both times I've gone. If you've never tried it before, you REALLY need to! Their options are great! My go-to is a Garlic Double Steakburger with a sunnyside up egg on top! They also have cereal milkshakes. Cinnamon Toast Crunch milkshake? Sign me up!

This location is currently not 24/7 and does not yet have a breakfast option. However, once their staff settles in and the traffic dies down, they intend to expand the store hours, and in six months breakfast items will begin rolling out.

This is also just the beginning of Steak 'n Shake's Jackson Metro conquest. I've heard through the grapevine that there will be five more locations, with one in Clinton and one in Madison. I'd certainly love to see one in Flowood and Brandon!

All this being said, do keep in mind that since they just opened (Nov 6), they're going to stay extremely busy for a little while, so expect wait times, heavy traffic, and potential out-of-stock items such as chocolate ice cream for at least the first...

This was the very first time I had ever been to a steak and shake. My son and I walked through the door at 8pm. It took about 10-15 mins for us to get a table. Not bad at all. We were seated and the very sweet waitress took our drink orders. She came back and took our order not long after. From that point on we sat at the table without getting our food for right at 2 HOURS!! We walked out the doors at 957pm!! She kept coming back saying they were backed up and it would be about 10 mins. I could see having to wait a while if they were slam packed like I have seen before but they weren’t that busy. About 30 mins into our wait it had slowed down and there were empty tables. I watched countless people receive their food and refuse it because it was cold. After I told her I wanted to talk to the manager we received our food about 20 mins later. Our burgers were COLD! The fries were lukewarm at best! The burger looked worse than something you would get at McDonald’s. The patties were so thin and over cooked you could see through them. LITERALLY!! I got a to go box for the food because at this point I had sat there for so long I had a horrible headache and wasn’t hungry anymore. This was the worst experience I have ever had! I have never in my life waited 2 hours after I ordered my food to receive it. There is no telling how much money this location lost tonight. Everybody there was getting the food comped or just walking out because they had been waiting for so long. Most of all the employees in the kitchen were just standing around on their phones not doing anything. There needs to be something done about this asap. The waitress we had was very sweet and tried her best. This however was completely out of her control. I asked if there was a head cook. I was told no. There needs to be someone over the kitchen at all times. Making sure things get done correctly and in a timely manner. This is unacceptable!! I would like to visit again but it definitely won’t be any time soon...

Even though the service was horrible, the food and price point made it hard not to want to give them another chance.

This place is a fast food burger joint, but at the moment there's no take out. They only offer drive-thru or dine in. When we got there, we were informed by the hostess that it'll be about a 30 minute wait, which turned out to be only a 20 min wait, whew right? Wait until you get inside....

Our order was quickly taken, along with the other 4 people sitting at the bar (At the same time). 20 minutes gone by, no food, no refills on drinks. At this point the bf wanted to add onion rings, when we asked to add onion rings, that was when she realized that she forgot to put orders in for everyone that was sitting at the bar. Another 30 minutes have gone by, now everyone at the bar finally got their order.

My taco salad with added grilled chicken and guac didn't have grilled chicken. The first time my salad came out, I found paper in it. They quickly took it back and remade it. The burger was very juicy, cheese was gooey, fries were seasoned and crispy, pretty good! Onion rings were a total miss, soggy, thick breading, but no taste. The bar had ketchup, but only one bottle was actually filled, the 6 of us had to share, there was also no napkins or utensils for my salad.

The manager notice that we waited a total of almost an hour for our order to be complete, she took care of the bill. With all our upgrades, our bill was a little over $14

Our order: Triple burger + extra bacon + upgrade to parmesan fries + Side of onion rings Taco salad + add grilled chicken + add guac

A meal at any fast food joint is easily $10 today, so this place was actually pretty good and for the price it was even better. I'd come back for the burgers, but I'll wait a few weeks until they work...