- Steak ‘n Shake will begin accepting Bitcoin at all locations starting May 16, branding the move as the start of a “movement.”
- The fast-food chain joins Chipotle, Subway, and McDonald’s in embracing crypto payments, expanding Bitcoin’s mainstream reach.
- The announcement comes nearly 13 years after the first Bitcoin purchase — two pizzas for 10,000 BTC, now worth over a billion dollars.
Steak ‘n Shake is about to make a big splash in the crypto world. The American fast-food chain announced on May 9 that it will start accepting Bitcoin at all its locations beginning May 16, calling it the start of “the movement” and signing off as “Steaktoshi” in a tweet that quickly went viral.
Back in March, the chain teased the idea by asking its followers, “Should Steak ‘n Shake accept Bitcoin?” The crypto crowd, including Jack Dorsey, jumped in with a resounding “yes.” Since then, the brand has gone all-in on Bitcoin-themed marketing — Tesla giveaways, Bitcoin graphics, you name it.
Crypto Meets Fast Food — A Growing Trend
Steak ‘n Shake isn’t the first fast-food chain to embrace crypto, but it’s one of the few to roll it out across all locations. Chipotle’s been taking Bitcoin and other cryptos via Flexa since 2022, and Subway has been experimenting with BTC payments since 2013.
Burger King has accepted crypto in places like Germany and Venezuela, and McDonald’s even took Bitcoin in Lugano, Switzerland, as part of a local crypto push. But the real OG? Pizza Hut in El Salvador, which started accepting Bitcoin when the country made it legal tender in 2021.
Bitcoin Payments and Fast Food — Full Circle Moment
It’s a pretty full-circle moment, considering the first-ever Bitcoin transaction was for fast food. On May 22, 2010, Laszlo Hanyecz spent 10,000 BTC on two pizzas — worth $40 at the time. Today, that same BTC stash would be worth over a billion dollars.
Now, with Steak ‘n Shake jumping into the crypto game, Bitcoin payments in everyday places are inching closer to the mainstream. “The future is bright,” Steak ‘n Shake said in April. But will it actually catch on? That’s the million-dollar question.
