French fries have been a surprising point of contention in the fast-food world.
In theory, the very popular side dish could be made in a way that makes them an ideal option for vegan customers. Potatoes are, of course, vegan, but how you cook your French fries can make them not just vegan-unfriendly, but also not cleared for vegetarians.
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That has been an issue for McDonald’s over the years. The popular chain used to use beef fat to cook its French fries. Beef fat makes it fries neither vegan nor vegetarian, but it’s no longer used by the chain.
In some markets, McDonald’s uses various types of vegetable oil to cook its fries. In the United Kingdom, for example, the chain’s chips, to use the local parlance, are cooked in a non-hydrogenated blend of rapeseed and sunflower oil.
This makes them safe for vegan and vegetarian customers, although McDonald’s does not operate a kitchen that fully protects customers from cross-contamination.
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In the United States, McDonald’s uses an ingredient that makes its fries not vegan and maybe not vegetarian.
“When our suppliers partially fry our cut potatoes, they use an oil blend that contains beef flavoring. This ensures the great-tasting and recognizable flavor we all love from our World Famous Fries. The fries are cooked in our kitchens, seasoned with salt, and served hot to you.”
That beef flavoring, according to the McDonald’s website, contains milk. That makes them not vegan. It’s unclear whether it contains beef as the chain is not legally required to disclose that and has not done so.
One McDonald’s rival, a chain which has been struggling, has fully embraced a classic (and very non-vegan) method of making its fries.
McDonald’s uses different French fry recipes around the world.
Image source: Shutterstock
Steak ‘n Shake embraces old-school fry recipe
Steak ‘n Shake has been a struggling fast-food chain. Since its 2018 peak, the burger chain has shed about one third of its restaurants.
The chain now has about 420 locations with about 25% of those being company-owned and the rest being franchised. In what seems like a publicity stunt, Steak ‘n Shake has been promoting that its fries will now be cooked in 100% beef tallow.
Tallow is a form of animal fat.
The chain is calling this move “fries cooked the authentic way.”
Steak ‘n Shake also shared a post on X, the former Twitter, that seems to make the decision to make this change at least somewhat political.
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“Tallow Fries now in Ohio, Colorado, Florida, Texas, and Oklahoma. By March 1, ALL locations. Fries will be RFK’d,” the chain posted.
It’s unclear as to how using beef tallow connects to Robert F. Kennedy, the current Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Steak ‘n Shake tries to regain relevance
While Steak ‘n Shake has been closing locations and losing relevance, its owner, Biglari Holdings considers its ownership of the company a success.
When we took over the predecessor corporation, Steak n Shake, in August 2008, its net worth was about $293 million, a figure based on the prior fiscal quarter. Book value, or net worth, represents the capital invested in a company by its owners; it is an accounting term that reflects the capital that has built up in the corporation,” the company shared on its website.
The new owner tried to sell the chain and was not able to get offers that matched its book value.
“In August 2008, Steak n Shake’s book value clearly overstated its going-concern value and its liquidation value; the enterprise was at that time a money-losing restaurant operation saddled with substantial lease liabilities,” it shared.
The company proudly states that it turned the brand around “in the midst of the Great Recession, and we made it a subsidiary of the holding company we created, Biglari Holdings,” it added.
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Steak n Shake has gone on to generate aggregate pre-tax earnings of $314 million over a 16-year period.
“Steak n Shake’s history has seen long stretches of earnings interrupted by a few periods of losses. By the end of 2024, Steak n Shake had a book value of just $177 million, as cash dividends to its parent company exceeded net earnings duringthis time frame. Notwithstanding, we believe the intrinsic value of Steak n Shake today to be far in excess of its carrying value,” the company shared.
