Shake Shack Vs Steak 'N Shake: Who Makes The Best Chocolate Milkshake?

What happens when Shake Shack and Steak 'n Shake go head-to-head? Things get tongue-twistingly delicious.

These two chains were practically destined to meet in a face-off. I mean, you can't share practically the same name and serve up many of the same foods and expect anything less — even if your backstories are starkly different. Shake Shack was born on the streets of New York City as a humble hot dog cart, and it has quickly become a burger, shake, and dog empire over the last 25 years. Steak 'n Shake, meanwhile, has much deeper Midwestern roots. Founded in 1934, it had nearly a 70-year head start on its East Coast competitor and has been slinging Steakburgers and hand-dipped milkshakes ever since.

No matter their origins, one thing is clear: Both chains treat their milkshakes as a point of pride. If their monikers aren't enough of a hint at that, then their endless backlogs of shake flavors will tell you. The sweet, slurpable options run deep at both restaurants. But today, I'm stripping things back to the gold standard of milkshake flavors: chocolate. What better way to compare two milkshake moguls than with this classic? I'm looking at everything from the ingredients and chocolate flavor all the way to the cherry on top (if applicable, of course) to see which chain shakes out on top when it comes to a timeless chocolate shake.

Ordering a chocolate shake at either chain is pretty straightforward — after you've sifted through the array of other flavors, of course. At Shake Shack, a standard chocolate shake is currently priced at $6 at my local spot, and it comes in just one size. Whipped cream costs an extra $0.49, so I made the tough decision to skip that part. That also meant no cherry on top, which isn't really a thing at Shake Shack anyway.

Steak 'n Shake keeps things a little more traditional. A regular chocolate shake is currently $4.99, while the only other option is a kids' size for $3.29. Both come with whipped cream and, most importantly, that classic cherry on top at no additional charge.

When it came time to compare the two, I looked at just about every aspect of each shake. I contemplated their chocolatey flavors and, more specifically, how those flavors were achieved. I briefly looked into the ingredients each chain uses and considered sweetness levels and overall richness. Consistency was another major factor. I was hoping for that sweet spot where a shake is thick and creamy but still drinkable. After taking all of that into account, it was time to decide which chocolate shake was truly the cream of the crop.

Did you know that Shake Shack uses custard in its shakes instead of ice cream? That custard connection goes way back, too. "Custard's First Stand" was actually a name up for contention when the chain first opened, though Shake Shack is what stuck thanks to its connection to the movie "Grease," which inspired the chain's moniker.

That custard distinction is also responsible for this chocolate shake's extra-creamy texture. Egg yolks (aka the defining ingredient of a custard) certainly work their magic to thicken up this bad boy. And that's just the beginning. There's an entire cast of real ingredients in the mix. The base of Shake Shack's custard is made with real cane sugar, cream, and milk. And the chocolate component feels just as intentional, rather than simply being a last-minute addition or a squirt of generic chocolate syrup. I'd bet it's a true chocolate custard that's hand spun with milk right at the restaurant. It just has an authentic taste about it that's really desirable.

The consistency is certainly dense, but not so much that I had to fight to suck it through a straw. Flavor-wise, I'd say it lands somewhere between a chocolate Frosty and a scoop of dark chocolate ice cream on the cocoa scale. It leans more toward the sweet side, but there are still those subtle bitter notes to give it a bit more depth and indulgence.

Not to brag, but I'm something of an expert on Steak 'n Shake's milkshakes after trying every single one on the menu (for a separate ranking, not just to appease my own sweet tooth). So, trust me when I say the chain's approach to its chocolate flavor is, well, different.

The chain does use real ice cream in all of its milkshakes. But the ice cream used in the chocolate shake isn't actually chocolate ice cream. Instead, it's ice cream (presumably vanilla) blended with chocolate syrup. It didn't appear that a whole lot of that syrup was squeezed in, either, given the shake's noticeably lighter brown hue. That was more of a yellow flag than a red one for me, though, because the shake offers more flavor than its appearance lets on. There's actually a certain kind of charm about it. It leans into that familiar Hershey's syrup kind of flavor that I associate with a homemade milkshake or sundae. It's classically milk chocolatey rather than diving headfirst into an abyss of cocoa, and it manages to avoid tasting cloying or artificial.

The consistency isn't quite as thick and velvety as Shake Shack's custard-based shake, though maybe that was to be expected. Instead, it takes on a more traditional consistency that flows a bit more freely, similar to what you'd expect from a McDonald's shake. But hey, what it lacks in thickness, it makes up for in adornments, aka the fluffy whipped cream and bright cherry.

It's hard to mess up a chocolate shake. I could probably whip one up myself with no professional shake-spinning experience and practically guarantee it would still be delicious. So, it comes as no surprise that these two milkshake mainstays both spin up respectable versions of the classic. That said, based on my standards for what makes up the absolute best kind of chocolate milkshake, Shake Shack wins this contest by a landslide. Its shake has the creaminess. It has the decadent cocoa flavor that's consistent all the way through. It has the custard base that gives it a more luxurious finish — it essentially has all the makings of an elevated, gourmet-style frozen treat.

Steak 'n Shake's version is good. But next to Shake Shack's, it doesn't just feel nostalgic but also dated, like an ode to a different time. Shake Shack's chocolate shake 2.0 is playing in the big leagues while Steak 'n Shake's milkshake is plastered on a vintage baseball card.

So, New York wins this battle handily, despite its steeper price tag. But Steak 'n Shake has that Midwestern grit, and its old-fashioned approach isn't going anywhere anytime soon. Plus, with whipped cream and a cherry included, sometimes old school has its perks.