96th Street Steakburgers

Tim and I were out running errands a few weekends ago, and needed lunch.  Since we were on the north side and I was craving a milkshake, we decided to head to 96th Street Steakburgers.

I've gotten fries and shakes there several times through the years via the drive-thru, but I think I've only had a burger there maybe once, and it wasn't all that memorable.  I recall thinking it was pretty good, but nothing special--in my opinion, the fries and shakes were what they did best.  This trip didn't really change my mind, although they have added all kinds of topping combinations since I was last inside (which, again, hadn't been for years and years). 

I opted for a burger with mushrooms and what was supposed to be swiss, but was actually the 'American cheese' version of swiss (you know the stuff I'm talking about--no holes to be found, and tastes nothing like swiss cheese).  It's a shame they went with this low-grade version of the swiss, because the mushrooms were outstanding.  Freshly sauteed, meaty, well-seasoned, and most importantly, not from a can.  I don't understand why they'd go premium on the veggie but cheap on the cheese!  Lame.  And doubly lame because I could barely taste the mushrooms over the fake cheese taste.  The burger patty itself is thin, sort of like Steak-n-Shake, and pretty good, but if the meat seems like an after-thought in this review, it's just because its flavor was also masked by the cheese.

Tim got what I believe was called a Cowboy Burger which involved BBQ, cheese, and I think some form of onion, and he really enjoyed his.  I didn't taste it as I'm not a big fan of BBQ sauce on burgers.

I did get a side of fries, and they were fresh cut and fried golden.  I've always maintained that they have a very homemade quality to them--they are almost exactly like the homemade fries my dad has always made, which is probably why they hold a special place in my heart.  They're cut relatively thin and fried to a golden brown.  Yummy.

The chocolate shake was also delish--they are "hand-dipped" and do seem like they're made from the real thing.  Very sweet and chocolatey, and very thick.

Apologies for the lack of prices on this one, but I have slept many times since then and they aren't posted on the website.  We each got special burgers, fries, and drinks (plus my upgrade to the shake) and it was well under $20 for us both--I want to say the combo meals ended up being $7-8 each?

96th Street Steakburgers makes for a fairly tasty lunch, but I'd stick with the standard burger next time (or, maybe try their bleu cheese burger...they can't fake bleu cheese, can they?).  At the very least, I know I'll likely grab some fries or a shake again someday.

Website:  96th Street Steakburgers