The New White Steamer Hamburgers

Stopped here for lunch with my wife and I was pretty impressed with the food and the service. Not bad priced meals for a sit down restaurant. Wife was raised in this town and said its been here forever but was my first time going. I would recommend this place. They quit serving breakfast at 10:30am so if your wanting breakfast get there before then

Had a late lunch here today.
Had a burger and a shake.
Both were really good.
I read an article above my table that gave some history on this place.
It’s been open since 10÷1÷1938.
It’s had a few owners since then but I’m guessing that the burgers have tasted the same over the years.
Definitely has that small town feel to it.
Appeared to be pretty clean.
I didn’t use the restrooms so I can’t comment on them.
Could use some updating at some point.

This place is by far my favorite burger place! While it doesn’t look like the big chain type places, they serve up the best tasting burgers without the need of all the fancy items.
The burgers are simple. They are flat but loaded with flavor. I pretty much always get the same thing, two cheeseburgers with onion and fries. The way they do the onions is pretty cool. When they put the ball of beef on the grill, they slap it flat and put the thinly sliced onions on it. Then when they flip it, they get grilled. That is also when they put the cheese on it. In the mean time, the buns are being toasted on the side.
These things haven’t changed in over 20 years, and when my battalion came back from Iraq, my family was there waiting for me with a bag of Steamer burgers :) Best welcome home gift ever!

I’ve loved this place since I was a kid.
I love flat grill skinny burgers. Throw the grilled onions on top.
Bomb.
Their fish sandwich and tenderloins are also very good and part of Indiana tradition.
The divey atmosphere is totally intact and legit.
Forget your new hipster-​chain burger joints and head to the real deal.

All the tables were filled with locals so we had to sit at the counter. Service was quick but we weren’t provided with menus so we just ordered burgers and fries. The fries were crispy and hot, but the burger was small and not very flavorful. On top of that, the meat didn’t taste «fresh.» Not sure how to describe that but it’s the best I could come up with. On top of all this, I had to let my son use my car (not the type of car you’d let your kid borrow) to have him run and grab cash from the ATM because they don’t accept credit cards. I couldn’t go as I was still eating. People here seem to like this place but it’s not for us.

If you want a burger this is the place. Good simple quality food. You’re not going to fine health food or exotic toppings unless grilled onions are exotic. I eat here every time that I’m in Washington. If I could find a place like this in every town that I work in I would be a happy man.

The White Steamer never disappoints. Great food and quick/​friendly service. Try the omelet at breakfast.

I thought the burgers and fries were very good! Good service good prices A neat little small town place

I was visiting family in Washington, IN, which is a very small town, and this place is a landmark here known for their awesome greasy burgers so I was surprised of the low rating on Unilocal.All the locals rave about this place and I noticed all the high ratings on Unilocal are from Unilocal Elites so I just had to go see for myself.
ATMOSPHERE: No frills diner atmosphere with counter and booth seating. The place was packed at lunchtime on a Saturday. Very casual. Don’t come in here dressed up. You will get lots of stares.
LOCATION: In Washington’s downtown right off Main St surrounded by closed businesses and antique shops.
FOOD: Yummy comfort food! I like! I hear that the burgers are not as greasy since it changed to the «New White Steamer.» Burgers seemed greasy enough to me though. I’ve heard the previous version of the White Steamer is better from the locals. I ordered the cheeseburger with the standard pickles and onion on a white soft bun. The burger patty is thin so most people order at least 2. Fries are the crinkle kind and good but nothing unique. They also have standard diner fare as well.
SERVICE: No complaints here! You order from your waitress and then pay at the counter before leaving.
PRICES: CASH ONLY! Cheap, good comfort food! Even cheaper if you order in bulk «by the sack.»
PARKING: Free street parking. It was easy for us to find a spot even during the busier lunch hour on a Saturday.
CONCLUSION: It is not the best burger I’ve ever had but it’s a good simple burger. I would definitely come here again for lunch!

I cannot believe this place is so poorly rated on here. What the hell?
I grew up in Jasper, and we’d come out to the White Steamer (about a 25 minute drive) several times a year for the fun of it, with no other purpose than going to the WS.
I see a couple reviews talking about inconsistency. Maybe it is because I’ve always been on Saturday, but I’ve never had inconsistency here. That is what I LOVE about this place — and the grease, and the flat top that is about 70 years old, and the milkshakes that are to die for, and the cheesy décor that hasn’t changed in two lifetimes, and … well everything.
I moved to Dallas, and I cry because I can’t come here. Seriously, I miss it that badly. I’m flying home in October, and will go here — because my grandparents rented out the place for their wedding anniversary! That’s how much my family loves this place.
Never change, White Steamer, please.

Due to the fact that there aren’t many options during open campus lunch at school if you can’t drive, you’re often forced to go here. The place is full of flies usually. Now I will give them this, the place is pretty clean for being so old. The food is very greasy but of course that’s what people like about it. The one thing that makes me cringe when I think about it though, is the fact that all the waitresses take meat from the cooler with their bare hands to the grill then get drinks and touch your silverware. I wish they would wash their hands…

They had someone new on the grill when we went today, and I think they need to do some training because my burger was not smashed flat and had NO ONIONS ON IT! Blasphemy! I loved this place when I worked in Washington in the late 80s, I’m kinda pissed that I drove all the way over from Vinny and didn’t get my WS fix proper.

Fun place that I would never of found without Unilocal.The hamburger was dry, but the milkshake was great. This place is a greasy spoon. Next time in Washington, IN I will try the White Steamer again.

I’m giving this place 5 stars if only to counter the guy who wrote a glowing review but only gave them 3. But the White Steamer deserves 5 stars on their own merits. The secret… a flat top that must be older than the hills, that cook up a burger White Castle can only dream of. They do it the traditional way… pickles and caramelized onions only. But if you’re a rebel like me there is ketchup and mustard on the table. Note, if you order a double you don’t get two patties, they just mash two normal sized patties together and cook it up that way. If you order just a hamburger and fries get two. Or better yet skip the fries and get three! I can’t really comment on the rest of the menu as I always get a burger. Their shakes and malts are awesome accompaniments to the burgers.

Ahh, the White Steamer.
I had to get back to this place after being away for so long, I swear it’s been 12 or 13 years since I had one of these bad-​boys. You can smell them cooking all over town, and my anticipation just built as the time got closer. Getting here at 11 is advised for lunch because at 12, every booth is filled with a regular, and I am pretty sure you will be sitting in someone’s «Spot.» The walls are covered with route 66 wallpaper, which is hilarious, because not only is it not on route 66, it’s on a one way street in a dying downtown area.
The premise is similar to White Castle, steamed meat with lots of onions and pickles. LOTS OF ONIONS, they actually form a shell of sorts and encase the burger with an entire layer of caramelized and burnt coating, It tastes better than I described it. The aftermath is similar to a White castle situation. My stomach was on standby for about 2 days, and 3 days before my appetite came back. It’s not because the food is bad, not at all, its just about the greasiest burger you will ever love, and it had been a while.
They leave the ketchup and mustard part up to you. They offer all meals in to go form and try to push the «burgers by the bag» option.
All of the prices in this place are solid, 2 people ate 2 meals with milkshakes (they serve them in the metal cup they make them in for like 2.50!) for less than 20 bucks with a tip!
Take note that they do not take cards, but they will take a check! You could ask them if you could pay them tomorrow for a burger today, but you would be copying Wimpy from Popeye and no one likes a plagiarist.