I love nothing more than discovering small, locally owned restaurants. Norman has a lot but I don’t always get down there (even with a daughter at OU), so I have made it a mission to try these new places in Norman. The Brown Bag just opened a few months ago on Robinson and it is a must try if you visit Norman.
Located in a strip mall on the west side of Brookhaven Village, it sits close to Robinson so you can’t miss it. We visited on a Sunday afternoon and they were pretty busy, cars lined up at the window and plenty of people inside. Even with the large crowd, we got our orders quickly. I tried the bacon cheese burger with a side of onion rings. Big K got the Boomer burger and tried the fries. My burger was good, loved the melted cheddar cheese and crisp veggies. Their choice of bacon really complimented the burger, had a smoky flavor to it. I really enjoyed the onion rings; big, hand battered in a light flour. They were crisp and flavorful. I also loved the crinkle cut fries, thick-cut with a seasoning covering them, so crisp but soft inside. Big K really liked his Boomer burger, said the sauce was unique, a mix of barbeque sauce with a touch of tomato added to it.
Overall, I really liked The Brown Bag. The prices weren’t outrageous and the food was good. They also serve tacos and chicken strips, I’ll have to try those the next time. I’ll give it 5 strips of bacon.
After a long afternoon of investigating ghost towns and cemeteries in southern Logan county, we stopped for dinner in Waterloo at a small place called Dan’s Pizza. It was a good decision because they have a really good pizza that shouldn’t be missed.
Tucked in the corner of a small trip mall on the corner of Waterloo and Broadway in far north Edmond. It has just a simple store front, with tables and chairs inside. After we ordered our supreme pizza and cheese sticks, we got some Dr. Pepper from the fountain machine. Now it’s hard to find somewhere that has the right mix on their fountain machines but they did and that Dr. Pepper tasted really good. We had a chance to talk while waiting for our pizza, lots of people came in to pick up but no one else sat down to eat in. After a short wait our cheese sticks were served and the pizza not long after. The cheese sticks were great, buttery handmade crust with cheese covering the top. The pizza was similar, a thin handmade crust that had a hint of garlic butter covered with pepperoni, sausage, ground beef, mushrooms, black olives, and green peppers. I was really impressed with the quality of the pizza for such a small place. The prices weren’t outrageous either, we got out with plenty of pizza left over for about $30.
Now I say that this restaurant is in the town of Waterloo, actually at this point it’s just a community but at one time it was a town. From not long after the land run until the 1930’s, Waterloo was a town. It is now part of Edmond. I will definitely be back to try their other pizzas as well. It is worth the drive. 5 strips of bacon.
We live in Oklahoma, it’s hard to find good Chicago style food around here but Cal’s Chicago Style Eatery on NW Highway come close. I have been to Chicago a few times, I absolutely love Italian beef and sausage sandwich. My favorite comes from Portillo’s, which are all over the Chicago area.
At Cal’s, their Italian beef and sausage is very similar to that at Portillo’s. Served on a French roll, the beef has been shaved thin and has a great flavor with a touch of kick to it. The sausage buried under the beef provided all the heat to this sandwich. I had mine topped with sweet bell peppers that added a touch of sweetness to offset the spicy of the sausage. Now you can have the sandwich dipped in au jus, I haven’t in the past but did this time. I’m not going to lie, it is a mess to eat that way and I’m just not sure the au jus added anything to the taste. For a side you have several options, fries, onion rings, chili cheese fries or pickle fries. I have had them all and enjoyed everything.
I haven’t tried their other menu options, they do have Philly cheesesteaks and Gyro burgers. I really need to check those out sometime. But I’ll give them 5 strips of bacon, just for trying to bring Chicago to Oklahoma City.
Address: 7005 NW Expressway, Oklahoma City. At the NE corner of NW highway and Rockwell
Every year on my fathers birthday I try to have some barbeque in his honor. This year I wanted to try Texlahoma Barbeque in Edmond, it was really worth the fight with Edmond traffic.
It was a quiet Saturday afternoon when we stopped at their newest location on East Second Street, we had the place almost to ourselves. I follow them on social media and knew they had bacon burnt ends. Now just regular burnt ends are a treat, but everyone should know how I feel about bacon. You can order either a quarter or half pound, so I went with the half pound. I also got a dinner with sliced brisket and jalapeno cheese sausage with fried okra and mac and cheese on the side. Big K for the bbq nachos with pulled pork for something different. Our order came out quickly and we started on those bacon burnt ends immediately. So good!!! Just as you would expect, juicy and moist, with lots of caramelized bacon fat in between the meat. I could have eaten the whole thing without any help. The brisket was great as well, very juicy and could cut it with a fork. I absolutely loved the jalapeno cheese sausage, such a great flavor, not too spicy, more cheesy. The sides were good as well, mac and cheese was cooked perfectly, noodles not too soft and plenty of cheese. The okra was fried nice and crisp. Big K’s nachos were also good, the chips were thicker to hold the meat, the pulled pork was juicy and mixed well with the queso. Overall he loved them.
This was truly a great visit to Texlahoma, I’m ready to go back again. Those bacon burnt ends are worth it, I do need to note that they are only available Friday, Saturday and Sunday. So get up there on the weekend and try them out. 5 pieces of bacon burnt ends.
Address: 121 E. Waterloo. Rd., Edmond; 20802 E. 2nd St., Edmond.
Braum’s Ice Cream and Dairy Stores are everywhere in Oklahoma. Hard to find a town of any significant size that doesn’t have a Braum’s. They are a mainstay of Oklahoma, even to the point there is a Braum’s meter that floats around social media in the winter that predicts how bad a storm may be. I’ve had Braum’s many times and enjoy their ice cream. It was time for me to tackle a review of their food.
I used to love a good Braum’s burger, their beef and bacon had a great flavor to them. Last one I had was a few years ago, the burger was dry, the veggies old, and the bacon too crisp. It was awful and I hadn’t been back. Until last weekend, I just felt it was time to give them another chance. I went to a location close to me. Usually it’s packed but was quiet when we stopped. I got a straight up double bacon cheeseburger with fries and Big K tried a special sweet n spicy gouda burger. They were quick with the order and everything was correct. The fries were good like I remembered, crinkle cut, nice crisp outside with a soft middle. I was surprised by the burger, I almost didn’t want to like it at first but they made a really good burger. Bun and veggies were fresh, the cheese melted nicely. The burger patties were a nice size and had that good flavor I remembered. The bacon was perfect, not too crisp with a smoky flavor. I was pleasantly surprised. Big K liked his burger as well, said it was fresh and flavorful without being too spicy.
To finish off our dinner we had to have dessert, so we tried one of their new cookie sundaes. The triple chocolate almond cookie looked good, so I got one for the two of us to share. The cookies are on the bottom, then some hot fudge, with two big scoops of mint chocolate chip ice cream, topped by more hot fudge and whipped cream. It’s big enough to be a meal in itself, that’s why we shared. I’ve never had an issue with Braum’s ice cream, it’s always good. This sundae was great, the chocolate cookies mixed well with the mint of the ice cream.
I’m going to get a bit personal with Braum’s, in the 1980’s, when my family was falling apart, my paternal grandparents would visit us at my maternal grandmothers’ home in Norman. Grandpa always took us to the Braum’s at Flood Ave. and Gray St. We loved his visits and getting either an ice cream cone or milkshake. Now that Braum’s is a gas station but every time I pass it I have that happy memory of being with Grandpa and listening to his stories.
Now for a bit of history, the first Braum’s stores opened in the Oklahoma City metro. The grand opening for a half dozen stores was June 3, 1968, with plenty of other locations to follow. In 1975, the dairy herd was moved from Kansas to Tuttle, you can still drive between Tuttle and Minco to see the herd.
Overall, I was really impressed with this visit to Braum’s might have start going back. I’ll give them 5 strips of bacon, as long as it’s their fresh bacon.
Address: There are over 300 locations in Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri, go to their website for exact locations.
About a year ago it was announced that Oklahoma City was about to get a cat cafe. They are a big deal in Japan, the first opening in 2005 with many more afterwards. In 2015, the fad finally came to the United States and now they are all over the country. It took a while to get the permits for Don’t Stress Meowt but they finally opened in May 2023.
We knew a visit was in our future since Mae declares herself “catgirl”, but with a busy summer it has taken us a while to get there. Now the cats are kept in a separate room from the food, and you need reservations to visit with the kitties. But you can just go in to enjoy the food and drinks in the cafe section. We decided against getting a reservation, seeing as how we already have 3 cats, we don’t need more. So we just went in to try out their small menu. They have coffee, tea, and hot chocolate to drink along with light desserts from The Loaded Bowl. We ordered the summer special called Calico Kitten, a latte with caramel, chocolate, and white chocolate, we got ours iced but you can have it warm as well. Mae got a cat cookie and I tried a brownie. We took a seat near the cat room, so we could watch them while enjoying our food. Mae’s cat cookie was lavender lemon with pink icing, I tried a bite and it was good. The brownie was perfect, very chocolatey filled with chocolate chips. Our drinks were also really good, I hope they keep with calico mix on the menu. It had a rich flavor, the 2 different chocolates mixed quite well with the caramel. The whole time we were entertained by the cats in the next room, watching them play and drink from the water fountain.
This place is really good, the only downside I see with it is the parking situation. It shares a building with several other businesses and is hard to find parking. I went around the block 3 times before 1 spot came open. I have read on social media that the cafe owners are trying to work with the building owners to rectify the situation. Makes it hard to visit a restaurant when you can’t find parking. But other than that, the food and atmosphere were great, the service was wonderful as well. Now like I said earlier, you do need a reservation to go into the cat room to play with the cats. You make it online, and it does cost to help with the upkeep of the cats. All of the cats in the cat room are up for adoption through Safe Haven Animal Rescue, so if you do fall in love with one while in the room, you can take him home. Since the grand opening they have helped 31 cats find homes and I love seeing that number, hope it goes up more. Also, leave your own cat at home, this is only to enjoy the cats that are up for adoption in the cat room. A side note, they are doing so well here in Oklahoma City that a Tulsa location is in the works. I will give them 5 strips of bacon.
Address: 1900 Linwood Blvd., Suite 300, Oklahoma City.
Forever I’ve been driving past Tacos Don Nacho on South Council, this is my usual route from my home in northwest Oklahoma City to my in-laws in south Oklahoma City. The parking lot is always full and I had been told my several people over the years that it was good. Finally Big K talked me into going and now I’m mad at myself for not stopping before.
Even at 2pm on a Saturday afternoon, the place was packed but we were still able to find a table. Heads up, you do need to know a bit of Spanish to read the menu, but I’m pretty sure you can always ask. You order at the front counter, then find a seat. The complimentary chips and salsa were brought out quickly. the chips were those thin, light tortilla chips that I love and the salsa had a bit of kick to it. I ordered the Especial 3 Tacos with asada meat. This came out pretty quick as well, the 3 tacos are served in soft flour tortillas with salsa. These were amazing, I loved the taste of the meat, seasoned just right. The beans and rice were also really good, beans weren’t too runny and the rice had a hint of lime. Big K had a burrito plate with chicken. This burrito was huge, covered in red sauce and guacamole, with the beans and rice on the sides. He loved every bite.
We were so stuffed when we left, the food was so good and filling. It will definitely be on our list of favorite places now. Wish I would have stopped years ago. Now I understand why the parking lot is always packed. Definitely 5 strips of bacon.
I’ve only been to the east coast of the United States a few times and never north of Maryland, so I’ve never really been to a true delicatessen. I’m going to take the advice of others when they tell me that the recently opened Krell’s Deli is pretty much what they’re like.
Opened just in March of this year, I’ve already been twice and looking forward to more trips. On my first trip I got the egg salad sandwich, it was really good. I was a bit thrown off by the lettuce and tomato on it but loved the wheat berry bread. Big K had the pastrami special, it looked so good I knew I had to try it next. That’s what I had on my second visit, so much hot pastrami piled on to the bread with Swiss cheese and cole slaw. The flavors just melded together to make a really good sandwich plus it was so big I couldn’t finish the fries that we were sharing.
I love the service there as well, after you order and find a place to sit, someone is at your table bringing some homemade pickles and peppers. These are so good, I don’t normally like bread and butter pickles but theirs are great. You also don’t wait long for your food, every time I have visited there is a full crew in back working on sandwiches. I have also gotten the fries as a side, these are huge steak fries that have been cooked perfectly. I have been so full when leaving that I haven’t had a chance to try their desserts but those lemon bars keep calling, I’m going to get some to go next trip.
Easy to find their location, on Yukon Parkway in the strip mall just south of the high school. I highly recommend them, maybe I’ll even see you there. 5 strips of bacon with a side of pickles.
I had never heard of Detroit style pizza until a few years ago, truthfully it has become one of my favorite types of pizza. There are getting to be a couple of places here in the Oklahoma City metro that have good Detroit style pizza and Rendezvous Pizza is one of them.
My first visit was last year, we went to their Bricktown location. On that visit we ordered Italian nachos, which were outstanding, and a meat lovers Detroit style. Didn’t have a long wait and everything was good. The only downside was it was in Bricktown, parking was hard to find. I was excited when a few months ago they opened a second location near Quail Springs Mall. This is much closer to me and being a standalone building, better parking. I visited that location a few weeks ago, the only thing I was disappointed about is the fact that the Italian nachos aren’t on the menu any longer. I have checked and the Bricktown location doesn’t have them either, not sure why they aren’t on the menu but I did miss them. So I ordered the fried mozzarella instead, this was really good as well, large flat patties of fried cheese. They don’t look like regular mozzarella sticks, more like a mozzarella hash brown. We got the meat lovers Detroit style again and it was just as good as the first time I tried it. Lots of meat with crispy cheese on the edges. Detroit style pizza is similar to Chicago style, deep dish with lots of cheese. They then put the toppings on, followed by the marinara sauce. It’s called Detroit style because it did originate in Detroit and was cooked in used (but cleaned) oil pans. This is why it’s a rectangle or square.
They also have New York style pizza as well, I haven’t tried it yet but need to. Service was good and parking was easy. I’ll give them 5 strips of bacon.
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.
The Fat Okie 