Look in the yellow pages and you might decide to close your eyes and let your finger do the choosing rather than deciding on your own. Oklahoma City has hundreds of eating options, but not to worry. In this chapter, you will be guided to restaurants that are personal favorites or have been highly recommended by friends or other restaurant goers. When you come to town, don’t be shy to ask the locals where they eat. They can point you to small establishments that you might not thought of trying and direct you away from places that may have a lot of glitz and glamour, but really aren’t that good.
The Oklahoma Gazette (www.oklahomagazette.com) is another good place to look for eating advice. Every year, the paper runs a contest choosing the “Best of.” Patrons get to vote on what their favorite restaurants are according to food type. One can be assured of finding new places to eat from reading through the contest list.
This chapter includes not only steak houses but also tearooms. It covers cuisine from French to Mexican and establishments that are casual to dressy and for kids to couples.
Most restaurants feature hearty portions like Ted’s, Canton, and the barbecue places, so be prepared to bring your appetite. If you do get full before you finish, ask for a take-out box. In Oklahoma no one frowns at saving some for later.
What you will not find in this chapter are national chains. If you’re hungry for the familiar, you’ll find Oklahoma City has a hearty list of fast-food and better-known places like Taco Bell, Domino’s, Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and of course the ubiquitous McDonald’s. I have included a few regional chains, but their food is too special to ignore. As a matter of fact, repeat visitors will go to these restaurants the minute they hit town and visit them several time during their stay.
For some of the local hot spots, be prepared for a considerable wait if you go on a Fri or Sat night. An hour wait at Ted’s with people flowing out the front door into the parking lot is not unusual. Most restaurants do not take reservations, but you can call ahead to find out how long the wait is or send a member of your party ahead to get in line. The restaurants that do take reservations are duly noted below.
Most restaurants are open for lunch and serve smaller portions at a lower cost until about 4 p.m. Take-out is always an option if you are pressed for time or just want to get home, kick back, and rest.
Some restaurants have full bars and even those that don’t will have a wine list and certain types of beers. If you are interested in wines or beers, do your homework before going or ask for the wine list once you arrive at the restaurant.
Be aware that different types of eating establishment have different hours. Breakfast restaurants, like Beverly’s, the Classen Grill, and Jimmy’s Egg, are open from 6 a.m. until about 1 or 2 p.m. Tearooms are open from about 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and some dinner establishments don’t open until 4 p.m. Several of the Chinese restaurants are closed from 2 to 5 p.m. If you haven’t eaten at a specific restaurant before, it might be wise to call ahead and make sure it is open.
Almost all the restaurants listed in this chapter have a Web site with an online menu. Checking out the online menus is a good way to find the types of food you may be interested in and their prices.
This chapter is organized according to type of cuisine and restaurants are listed alphabetically. Each listing below includes a price code and the codes reflect dinner prices for one entree and does not include appetizers, alcoholic beverages, taxes, or tips. Tipping 20 percent is customary and greatly appreciated by your server. Unless otherwise noted, assume the restaurants listed accept all major credit cards, are wheelchair accessible, and have a children’s menu.