chicken fried

If you ever find yourself in Oklahoma City, a must-do that you could easily not know about is Del Rancho. Its an old fast food joint that serves humongous but delicious chicken fried steak sandwiches (and other things too, but those are the star attraction). I've written about it a lot on here over the years in posts about our annual OKC Rodeo pilgrimages, but its never got a post of its own. Most of the Del Rancho's seem to be tucked in odd less-traveled parts of the city that have probably seen better days, and a lot of the restaurants are a little worn around the edges, too. To me, that just adds to their greatness, so don't let it steer you away. Our first-choice location in central OKC closed down a few years ago, and since then we've gone to another one south of the stockyards. Both feature some great kitschy signage and architecture, and they operate much like car-hops, even if you're inside at a table. Once you're ready, you pick up the phone to place your order and the waitress brings it to you when ready. Come hungry - the chicken fried steak sandwich is often twice as large as the bun; plenty big to split in half and share so you can try some of the other fried goodies on the menu like fried corn nuggets, fried green beans, or tater tots. It wouldn't be Oklahoma if it wasn't fried, right? Healthy, it's not. But give in. It's worth the experience.