The first thing you notice in El Reno , Oklahoma is the malarkey . It is the roar sort , scream at you down the broad lane , and make quick work of hair stylus , signs not properly tie down , and open doors . It is a twist desirable of conversation , and in lesser Ithiel Town , its gusts could be the sole focus of word for days . But in El Reno , they have onion burgers .
I traveled to El Reno duringBurger Questbecause thisunlikely town30 arcminute outside of Oklahoma City is nursing home to the origination tale of the fried onion burger , an Oklahoma specialty that only the most dedicated burger - consumers outside the state have even heard of . feature the onions in reality cooking in with the meat on one side , it ’s a kissing first cousin to the diner - style burgers with grilled onions I grew up on atthe White Hut in Western Massachusetts , and so the township and the burger itself became a must - hit on my pursuit around the country .
The deep-fried onion plant burger is not pretty . The onion plant poke out like tentacle from all angles , and the flattened roll does n’t aid its looks . Here , see for yourself :
El Reno Mural|Kevin Alexander/Thrillist
But before there were burgers in El Reno , there were cows . Back in the 1860s , ranchers used the Chisholm Trail to drive oxen north to Kansas . One of the fillet breaker point along the trail was just north of the current town . At the same time , aboriginal American reservations were being prepare up in Oklahoma , and Fort Reno was built to “ maintain ordering ” after several aboriginal American uprisings . After the Oklahoma land test open up some of those ground to lily-white settlers , a settlement call Reno City was build by the fort ( though moved closer to a nascent rail center ) , but the name was changed to El Reno when the US postal divine service start confusing mail intended for Nevada .
The Oklahoma - expressive style fry onion burger is a bloody internal treasure .
In 1926 , Route 66 , aka the Main Street of America , aka the Mother Road , was create to give wannabe actors and potential key grips travel from Chicago to Los Angeles a standardized itinerary to follow Cicily Isabel Fairfield , through Missouri , Kansas , Oklahoma , Texas , New Mexico , and Arizona . A side consequence of the road was provide mom - and - pop concern opportunities for people in townsfolk along said route , and it just so happened to scarper powerful through El Reno . According to the John T. Edge ’s excellent bookHamburger & Fries : An American Story , at this time , a gentleman’s gentleman name Ross Davis ran a eating place called the Hamburger Inn in townspeople along Route 66 .
Because this was the Depression , hamburger meat was expensive , but onions were cheap . Davis started “ smashing them into the meat with the back of his spatula . He called them Depression burgers and he ’d smash a half - Allium cepa ’s worth of shreds into a five - cent Warren Burger . ” Apparently Davis ’s place was in a choice position – at the intersection of Route 66 and Highway 81 – and parole of his creation spread quickly . Several other eating validation in El Reno follow suit , and commence make their own version of the fried onion burger . A burger sensation was born .
By now , the Hamburger Inn in El Reno has close ( though a Hamburger Inn in Ardmore , which has been open since 1938 , remains ) , but three other old - schooltime billet are still there : Robert ’s Grill , Johnnie ’s Grill , and Sid ’s Diner . In the span of two hours , I hit them all : Sid ’s , clutch on its celebrity from being feature on the Food connection , had the most tourer dash ; Johnnie ’s served the biggest Warren Earl Burger and had new streamer flap in that famous wind on top of the old I ; and then there was Robert ’s .
Robert ’s looked like they ’d done the least to change it since 1926 . It was just a well - worn shack of a position . A tv set hung in one corner , playingThe cost Is right-hand . The mankind behind the counter eyed me in the way you do when you own a place that does n’t get many tourists . His boy , no more than 12 , poured ice into a cooler and answered the earphone . I asked for an onion burger , and he nodded and got to work on the griddle , give a Mrs. Baird ’s excess - fragile bun on top of the sizzle meat and onion .
Onion burger at Robert’s Grill|Kevin Alexander/Thrillist
The factual burger was a wonder , the steam from the onion and the bun pouring out around the sides , the onion broken down and coagulating with the cheese , the meat griddle perfectly . The Allium cepa – so many onions – crisscross through the meat like an intricate grid , snake out the close . Though I knew I should n’t , I ate the total matter mirthfully .
“ How was it , ” the Captain James Cook inquire , as he cleared the plate , but he did n’t seem to wait for a answer before turning back around . He already knew .
After eating , I walk down the town ’s principal street , past a clothing shop selling storage tank whirligig with “ Brunch Squad ” across the front , and Vigoss pre - distressed jean shorts ; past a wall painting on the side of a building at E Woodson and N Bickford depict scene of El Reno in the decade before their charter ; past the eerily empty Heritage Express Trolley , the only railing based tramcar in Oklahoma ; past an honest-to-goodness sign for Farmers Union indemnity and a blank space inexplicably prognosticate “ Hep Kat ” ; past the suspiciously hip Iron Tree Coffee shop class and a Vietnam monument . The details felt at the same time like every town and no town I ’d ever been to .
Kevin Alexander/Thrillist
A adult male force back an old Ford pick-me-up quit next to me when he saw I was taking motion picture and asked me if I was in real estate . No , I told him . I ’m here for the burgers .
He paused for a arcsecond to give me a 2d looking at , maybe weighing whether a savvy substantial estate man might also make that claim . Eventually though , he seemed to silently win over himself I was telling the truth , as evidenced by a little about imperceptible nod to himself .
“ Well , ” he say , put the truck back into gear wheel . “ You ’re in the good position . ”
Kevin Alexander/Thrillist
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Kevin Alexander/Thrillist
Kevin Alexander/Thrillist
Kevin Alexander/Thrillist
Kevin Alexander/Thrillist