About

Steak 'n Shake's RFK'ed Fries, also known as Steak and Shake's RFK Jr. Fries, refers to memes and discussions about American fast-food chain Steak 'n Shake's decision to release "100% beef tallow throwback fries" and enlist the help of American politician and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to advertise its brand in March 2025. The move led to discussions and debates that Steak 'n Shake was supposedly employing explicitly "right-wing" imagery to advertise its brand, including German Fraktur font graphics, anti-seed-oil messaging and AI-generated images.

Origin

On January 21st, 2025, Steak 'n Shake's official Twitter / X^[1] account posted a photo of RFK Jr. alongside text that read, "Did this man just pull up in our drive-thru?" The post gathered over 30,000 likes in two months.

Steak 'n Shake continued to release advertisements with nostalgic imagery in early 2025, as seen in a February 21st, tweet^[2] that read, "Now serving Tallow Fries in Texas, Oklahoma and Florida. All other locations by the end of next week!"

Also on February 21st, the Steak 'n Shake COO went on Fox and Friends to say, "We RFK'ed our fries," in reference to an October 2024 Instagram^[10] post by RFK Jr that discusses how McDonald's used beef tallow in the 1990s.^[11]

Spread

On March 1st, 2025, the @SteaknShake X account tweeted^[3] out a photo of a MAGA-style hat with text that read, "Make Frying Oil Tallow Again." The post gathered over 29,000 likes in 10 days.

On March 5th, 2025, @SteaknShake^[4] posted a graphic that read, "100% Beef Tallow Throwback Fries." The tweet was posted alongside the text, "America deserves the best. America gets the best when fries are cooked in 100% Beef Tallow. Only available at Steak 'n Shake. Sayonara Ronald." The post received over 1.1 million views before it was deleted.

The tweet, which has since been deleted, prompted discussions and debates about whether Steak 'n Shake was explicitly advertising to the right-wing community.

For example, X^[5][6] users @default_friend and @laptopmicdrop made posts commenting on the "mainstream commodification of the Online Right," and the fast-food brand "advertising to online neofascists," gathering over 2,000 and 24,000 likes, respectively, in roughly one week.

RFK Jr. Advertising Steak 'n Shake Controversy

On March 10th, 2025, the @SteaknShake X account posted an image of RFK Jr. visiting one of its franchise locations, writing, "Thank you for visiting Steak n Shake Secretary Kennedy!" and gathering over 90,000 likes in a day.^[7]

Also on March 10th, conservative political commentator Charlie Kirk reposted a clip of RFK Jr. eating Steak 'n Shake during a Fox News interview with Sean Hannity, gathering over 83,000 likes in a day.^[8]

Several internet users commented on what they viewed to be an unprecedented move on the part of a Western politician, with X user @DrewPavlou^[9] writing, "I've never seen anything like this from a major politician in the West. Health Secretary RFK Jr is doing a paid advertisement for Steak 'n Shake during a TV interview. This is incredible – so much grift." The post gathered over 2,000 likes in a day.

Search Interest

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External References