6 Restaurant Chains That Cook With Beef Tallow

If you haven't noticed, beef tallow is having a bit of a moment. The glow-up started when Robert Kennedy Jr. began praising the fat as a wellness superstar and far superior to seed oils in media interviews. Beef tallow itself, though, is nothing new — it has been made from the fatty tissue of animals and used in cooking since the early 20th century, along with lard, butter, and bacon grease. As alternative fats like olive oil, peanut oil, and vegetable oils became more prevalent and started to be touted as better for your heart health, people abandoned the saturated animal fats in favor of the seed and vegetable oils.

Now, since everything seems to be cyclical, animal fats like beef tallow are coming back into fashion and being praised as less processed and more natural. With RFK Jr.'s blessing, restaurant chains that use beef tallow for cooking and frying are gaining popularity. Whether you're a staunch believer in the hype or not, here are six restaurant chains that use beef tallow in their preparation of fries, burgers, wings, and other items.

Founded in 1934 in Normal, Illinois (yes, really), Steak 'n' Shake touts itself as the home of the original burgers and milkshakes fast-eating concept. Its founder, Gus Belt, was known for bringing in prime cuts of beef — from T-bones to prime ribs — and grinding them into delicious, meaty burgers right in front of guests to drive home the top-tier quality of his products. The fast-casual eatery, which is decorated in the style of a '50s-era diner, has a menu brimming with the usual suspects in terms of all-American eateries: burgers, cheeseburgers, bacon burgers, fries, onion rings, chili, and, of course, milkshakes.

Although nothing discussed above is regarded as "healthy" (the plain vanilla milkshake alone clocks in at 610 calories), Steak 'n Shake has become a darling of the beef tallow movement, thanks to RFK Jr.'s praise. Arriving at a podcast with one of the chain's burgers and fries in hand, Kennedy discussed how the chain fried its signature chicken tenders, French fries, and onion rings in beef tallow. Steak 'n Shake released a statement on its website, too, confirming the beef tallow usage and promising to divorce itself from seed oils completely in the near future.

The Aussie-inspired eatery has long been applauded for its steaks and decadent dishes (lookin' at you, Bloomin' Onion). However, its new claim to fame may be swapping beef tallow in for vegetable and seed oils. Founded in Tampa, Florida, in the late 1980s, Outback is the largest steakhouse chain in the United States — and with good reason. The eatery offers diners a flavorful and filling meal at a reasonable price. An 8-ounce sirloin with two sides will only set you back about $16.79. A chain like Ruth's Chris, for example, hawks a petit filet  –with no sides included — for over $50.

That said, Outback is currently getting accolades for its use of beef tallow for its fried dishes, according to USA Today. That would include its Bloomin' Onion, fries, and Sydney Shrooms. Although rumors abound that the chain uses beef tallow to cook its steaks, Efrem Cutler — the VP of Research & Development for Outback's parent company, Bloomin' Brands — confirmed to Tasting Table that butter is actually used for the eatery's meat.

"Looooove that chicken from Popeye's," don't you? This Louisiana-inspired fast food stop got its start in Arabi, a New Orleans suburb. Alvin C. Copeland Sr. began selling traditional Southern-fried chicken in 1972, but with so-so sales, he closed and reopened to sell spicy, New Orleans-style chicken. The restaurant took off and franchise locations began popping up. By 1985, there were 500 locations worldwide, and from there, the eatery has only grown. Menu staples include, obviously, Louisiana-style fried chicken, biscuits, sandwiches, and sides like coleslaw, French fries, macaroni and cheese, Cajun rice, red beans and rice, and mashed potatoes.

As it pertains to the beef tallow cooking debate, though, Popeye's has made use of the fat. According to Seed Oil Scout, Popeye's uses a blend of 75% beef tallow and 25% vegetable oil to fry its fresh, never-frozen, chicken items. The only exceptions to the rule are its Spiciest Fried Chicken and its Honey Mustard Chicken tenders, which are fried in a 50/50 blend and a 100% vegetable oil blend, respectively.

Sports, never-ending snack-atizers, and Buffalo wings come together at the bar and casual eatery, Buffalo Wild Wings. Started in Ohio after a few bros were unable to locate Buffalo-style chicken wings, the casual concept has ballooned to 1,300 franchised locations nationwide as of 2024. Those wings — be they boneless, drums only, or flats only — are notoriously good even without the plethora of sauce choices and extras that can help jazz them up.

There are plenty of theories as to why Buffalo Wild Wings signature item tastes so good, but one of the main reasons is that B-Dubs uses beef tallow to fry its wings, drums, and flats. In fact, the restaurant only uses beef shortening in all of its frying endeavors, as confirmed by the restaurant itself via its nutrition guide. Your nachos, tenders, cauliflower wings, and mozzarella sticks are all fried in beef tallow — helping to impart a deeply rich flavor that simply can't be got with vegetable, canola, and other seed oil blends.

Started in 2007 in Denver, Colorado, Smashburger is a fast casual (notably, it doesn't want to be synonymous with fast food) eatery that specializes in, you guessed it, smash burgers. For the unfamiliar, a smash burger is exactly that — a beef patty or burger that's squashed down on the hot grill, giving it a delightful thinness and crisp exterior; the perfect juxtaposition to a pillowy soft bun.

In terms of the beef tallow conversation, Smashburger cooks its burgers and other items on the grill with butter. However, its fries — be they the classic rendition or the beloved Smash Fries — are fried in a combination of beef tallow and canola oil. The hybrid fat allows for the richness of the beef tallow to permeate the fries while cooking them to a golden crisp. The chain's tater-tots of all varieties, sweet potato fries, crispy Brussels sprouts, and other fried items are also bathed in the canola oil beef tallow mixture.

If you're outside of the Midwest, you may be unfamiliar with the absolute gem of a chain known as Portillo's. A purveyor of Chicago street food like hot dogs, beef and sausage sandwiches, ribs, burgers, and even pasta, Portillo's started in 1963 when founder Dick Portillo opened a hot dog stand in Villa Park, Illinois. He was soon able to upgrade the trailer — which had no running water and no restroom, a no-no in today's day and age — and eventually, Portillo's was born. Portillo's operates about 70 restaurants, with the majority in the Chicago area. There are other locations in Wisconsin, Michigan, Florida, California, Arizona, and Texas.

But is beef tallow used in the old-school eatery's kitchen? Partially, yes. According to the company's website, its fries are cooked in a combination of beef tallow and vegetable oil. Its onion rings, too, are fried in the rich fat, lending them a meaty undertone.