Some of the best meals in Oklahoma come from buildings you might drive right past without a second look. You pull in because you are hungry, slide into a worn booth, and suddenly a plate of chicken fried steak the size of a hubcap lands in front of you.
Then you spot the pie case, and the whole afternoon changes. These six old favorites prove that some things are worth keeping exactly the way they are.
1. Clanton’s Cafe
Route 66 travelers heading west have a tradition worth borrowing: start the Oklahoma chicken fried steak tour in Vinita. Clanton’s Cafe has been part of the Mother Road story since 1927, and it has served from its current spot since roughly 1948.
That kind of staying power usually means the cooks know exactly what they are doing…