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Archive for the ‘Route 66’ Category

Food Friday: Jobe’s Country Boy Drive-In

El Reno is known for onion burgers, there are several restaurants in town that specialize in them as well as an Onion Burger Festival every May. Jobe’s had been a mainstay on Route 66 for years but had closed for a while. Now it’s reopened, serving up those famous burgers.

We stopped in on a Saturday for lunch. At first it was quiet and we were the only diners in the building but as time went on, the place filled up. I ordered a bacon cheeseburger on sourdough with a side of chili cheese tots while Big K got a Western Char Burger and chili cheese fries. The orders came out pretty quickly and the food was amazing. My bacon cheeseburger had a beef patty, fried to perfection with onions. Several strips of thick bacon, jack cheese, lettuce, and tomato along with a thousand island dressing all piled high on the toasted sourdough. It was just how a onion burger with bacon should be done. The tots were great as well, the chili had a great flavor with lots of meat. Big K loved his Western Char Burger, also a onion fried beef patty with bacon, American cheese, onion rings, and homemade hickory char sauce. Said it was one of the best burgers he had eaten in a while and to be honest, he eats a lot of burgers. He also loved his chili cheese fries as well.

Jobe’s Country Boy Drive-In originally opened in 1958 by JR Jobe. It served travelers on Route 66 until 2015, when it closed. The building was several different businesses before reopening as a restaurant again in 2024. Now ready to serve adventurers rediscovering Route 66 for its 100th birthday, Jobe’s is a great small-town diner with good onion burgers. I give the 5 strips of thick bacon.

Address: 1220 Sunset Dr., El Reno.

Edmond History Museum

I love history museums, I love learning about the past of an area and seeing how that area has developed over time. The Edmond History Museum is a great place to learn about the early days of Edmond Oklahoma. This is a wonderful place to spend an hour, there are exhibits that change regularly as well as permanent displays.

Sitting next to historic Stephenson Park on south Boulevard, the sandstone building which was built as an armory houses a small library for research along with a large exhibit space. Here you can learn about the history of Edmond. Originally a coal and watering stop along the Atcheson, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, mile marker 103 became Summit but was officially named Edmond in 1887. The town grew on April 22, 1889, when about 150 decided to make it their home after the land run.

Several displays show the growth of Edmond over the years. Edmond became home to the Territorial Normal School in 1891, this helped grow the population of the small town. There are also plenty of artifacts for Route 66 lovers as well. Route 66 came right through town, coming in from the east on Second Street then turning south at Broadway heading to Oklahoma City. The small reproduction of Bradbury Station, which sat at the northwest corner of Route 66 and US 77, has many pictures of historic Route 66 buildings located in Edmond. The museum also has plenty of places for children to learn about the early days of living in Oklahoma, including a reproduction of a farmhouse.

The building it’s housed in is historical as well, the Edmond Armory was built in 1936-37 on the southeast corner of Stepheson Park by the WPA (Works Progress Administration). It was home to the Headquarters Company of the 179th Infantry Unit of the 45th Infantry Division and consisted of 65 men. It was in this building that troops trained to go war in Europe during World War II. The building was used consistently by the Edmond unit of the Oklahoma National Guard until 1968 and was turned over to the city of Edmond in 1972. The historical museum didn’t occupy the space until 1983, when community members collected enough artifacts from Edmond’s past to be displayed. The armory was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

Address: 431 S. Boulevard, Edmond.

Food Friday: The Butcher BBQ Stand

A few weeks ago we had a nice weekend, so we went east on old Route 66. After a quick drive through Wellston, we found The Butcher BBQ Stand where 66B joins Route 66 on the east side of town. I had read about them online and knew if you weren’t in line early, you might not get any food. It was already after noon but we decided to stop anyway.

There was no line outside, so I thought that was a good sign until we got inside and saw the line that went around the dining area. Since we had come that far we decided to stay and see how long it would take. Now to be honest, the line did move pretty well but it still took us 30 minutes before we got to the front to order. Fortunately, they still had quite a bit of food still available, Big K got the rednexican nachos and I got a 2-meat plate with sausage and burnt ends. Before we even got to a table, our dinner was ready. I was surprised by the amount of food on the plate, there was a lot. Not just the 2 meats but sides of potato salad and mac and cheese as well as a huge piece of Texas toast. I jumped right in with the sausage, it had a smoky flavor, quite good. Now the burnt ends were great, melted in my mouth. Perfect combination of fat and meat, and crisp but tender. These were true meat candy and I highly recommend them. The potato salad was good as well but the homemade mac and cheese really stood out. Spiral pasta in a rich cheese sauce that had a sharpness to it that gave it a bit of a kick. Now the rednexican nachos that Big K got were the same way, lots of food piled on a tray. He got his nachos piled high with pulled pork, with creamy queso and barbecue sauce over top. He thought they were some of the best nachos he had ever eaten. Very flavorful with the different combination of food.

So I will highly recommend a drive up old Route 66 to Wellston for The Butcher BBQ Stand. It’s even worth the wait to stand in line. This was easily the best barbeque I’ve had in Oklahoma in a while. The service was great, very friendly employees. I will give the 5 strips of bacon with some of those burnt ends.