Steak 'n Shake officially embraces Bitcoin payments: American fast food accelerates its integration into the crypto era

American fast food chain Steak 'n Shake announced that it will accept Bitcoin (BTC) payments in all its stores from May 16, providing cryptocurrency payment options to more than 100 million customers. This move marks a key step in the adoption of cryptocurrency in the mainstream restaurant industry.The company made the announcement on May 9 through the social platform X, saying that "this movement has just begun" and ending the tweet with the crypto-signed "Steaktoshi", further inspiring community enthusiasm. The announcement is also seen as a formal response to an earlier social media vote. In March this year, Steak 'n Shake launched a vote on X asking users whether they should accept Bitcoin payments, which triggered a warm response including from Bitcoin supporter Jack Dorsey.Before the official announcement, Steak 'n Shake had been paving the way for this strategy through Bitcoin-themed marketing, promotional activities in cooperation with Tesla, and visual cues on various social platforms.This move makes Steak 'n Shake one of the few chain brands to promote cryptocurrency payments to stores nationwide. In contrast, many companies are still only piloting in some areas or providing limited payment options through third-party platforms. This breakthrough not only reflects the feasibility of cryptocurrencies as a means of payment, but also indicates that digital assets are gradually entering daily consumer life.In fact, the addition of Steak 'n Shake makes it another fast food giant that has normalized crypto payments after brands such as Chipotle, Subway, KFC, McDonald's, Burger King and Pizza Hut. For example, Chipotle has supported payments in up to 100 cryptocurrencies through the Flexa platform since 2022; Subway tried a Bitcoin payment pilot as early as 2013; and in El Salvador, where Bitcoin is legalized, Pizza Hut became one of the first merchants to accept BTC.The fast food industry has a special historical origin with Bitcoin. In 2010, programmer Laszlo Hanyecz bought two pizzas with 10,000 Bitcoins - this transaction is now considered the first real-world Bitcoin transaction in history, and it has also spawned the commemorative tradition of "Bitcoin Pizza Day". These Bitcoins are worth more than $1 billion today.With the addition of Steak 'n Shake, the availability of Bitcoin in daily consumption has increased again, which also indicates that more catering brands may join this trend in the future, accelerating the popularization and implementation of digital asset payments.