The Legend of Oklahoma's Fried Onion Burger | Burger Bucket List

confession to make you ready bud I'm so ready I want to be careful how tall with this microphone on okay where I'm sitting right here this is exactly where I have my first onion burger oh holy crap [Music] foreign [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign again here we are but this time we're in Oklahoma this time we're at an RV in the burger RV listen it's not the best RV but it's our RV it's our RV we're basically two hours south of Oklahoma City but four hours north of Dallas and look at look at the open road in front of us dude it's so wide open yeah you can see for miles miles a little bit miles Oklahoma is one of my favorite places to eat burgers because you're gonna find burgers in the state that are totally unaffected by a Time Trend their primary source hamburger so it's also you know it's one of the places where I had one of my greatest hamburger experiences the Oklahoma fried onion burger yes but if you look at a map right okay there's the burger Bell which runs from All the Way North in Wisconsin it goes down south to Texas and some of what sort of the South middle of that belt is what I call the burger Buckle okay and the burger Buckle is that we're hungry let's go I cannot stress more the importance getting on the road getting out there eating these primary source Burgers holy [ __ ] watch out yeah whoa the Rattler sorry the whole Road there today we're going to three places right okay we're going to the mirror store first way out in mirrors Oklahoma far they make a burger man with Longhorn beef then we're gonna go to a place called Johnny's in Oklahoma City they actually have two burgers we're gonna have there the Caesar burger and one of my favorites the Theta burger and then the third spot's gonna be to the birthplace of the Oklahoma fried onion burger we're gonna hit one of my favorite spots since Diner in El Reno Oklahoma and I cannot wait to go back so it's been a long long time Dad I'm excited for me too opening shot of the scene that I shot for hamburger America's right here a lot of history for me here way do you see the mirror store there's literally nothing like it I've never seen it up there but there it is mirrors store and restaurants foreign [Music] have you taken me I've taken you out to the middle of nowhere are you gonna whack me is it very different yeah it's a cobbled together building this place is a very very deep history very deep at the end of the 1800s somebody discovered gold some enterprising young person set up a a building here that was there just to supply the miners with equipment it makes sense they found it right away that it wasn't it was Fool's Gold it was pyrite they actually abandoned the building at some point it became a grocery store it became a post office the good news is it's not just a pretty place it also they also have a great burger we get two burgers coming right yeah the original mearsburger which is a half pound of Texas Longhorn beef cooked flat served on a seven inch bun it's a custom made bun okay served in a seven inch pie plate also we also have the seismic coming that's a later Edition so hungry hello hello onion rings onion rings of course silverware if we need it mirrors cheeseburger you put them down we're going to show you okay they're nicely into quarters [Music] okay look at the side the seismic is the size of my head yeah it's outside your head it's a pound of beef with a pound of beef but it's also cheese onions uh bacon jalapenos on there it's hot like a pie it's served in a pie too yeah look at the cross section of a bad boy Texas Longhorn beef is lean those are actually grass finished animals no no grain the best thing about this burger by the way came from their Ranch which is right nearby they raised all the animals for all the beef in the restaurant Margie bought this place they managed to somehow in anonymously preserve the history of the place you know they could have torn it all down and started over for sure for some reason I think they they had the sense to hold on to tradition and keep it going you know I kind of I appreciate that I've got a nice sear on it is this Smash Bro wow I gotta tell you it tastes kind of like a crossfit a Texas Burger and LA Burger because all it's salad very much so because there's bacon and bacon yeah there's jalapenos yeah lettuce tomato I'm on trade should we trade oh my God oh wow what happened it's all about the beef the reason they call this the seismic is because at one point they used to have a seismic monitor in the front of the restaurant we're on the fault line out here right that's what they're first looking at our earthquakes out here the only place they can plug in the monitor was here in the restaurant I forgot how good this burger was it's one thing eating burgers yeah it's another thing tasting history we should do is go check out the cattle ranch yeah you need a little break between Burgers right I need to know where my burger has come from yeah it's good to know [Music] [Applause] nice Diana's album [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Laughter] [Music] thank you foreign [Music] Bible story hot dogs and prizes that'll get me to go to church if we make it back to Oklahoma City with the back still attached on here I'll be [ __ ] amazed [Music] [Music] Rick Haynes is my name co-owner was my brother of the Johnny's we started in 1971. it's been a run yeah so Johnny is my father he was with a well-known hamburger place called split tea and he was with them from 1953 to 1971 and in 71 he branched off and started Johnny's on his own Theta Burger is the most popular Burger in Oklahoma if you go all around Oklahoma City today on any kind of restaurant that serves Burgers you probably will find a Theta Burger we think we're the real Theta Burger it's made with our hickory sauce we call it Johnny sauce between a barbecue and a smoked sauce is what I would go with you know soy sauce Worcestershire sauce tomato puree and then lots of seasonings and the deal is we just cook it for about four hours we make a season Burger it's made with our own Caesar dressing that we make and we toss it like a caesar salad and we put it on a burger and it is great Messi is all get out you know it's my dad's Legacy that's very important to us that's why we're still here that's why my brother and I still I'm 64 years old he'll be 70. we still work in the business every day the history of Johnny's is is very important to our family I've got a confession to make okay I've never been here before ready whoa place I've never been which is okay people think oh you've been everywhere I feel like you have it's kind of embarrassing I should have been here because this is one of the most historically a significant hamburger restaurants I believe in Oklahoma tell me why there's a reason why it's because there's a crazy lineage to the sauce they have and they have this red sauce okay it's it's a like a barbecue sauce hickory sauce like uh apple pie exactly okay you realize it's actually a lineage that connects this place to The Apple Pan to a place in Tampa called the goody goody of the split tea which is also gone it was right up the street here they're holding onto two very important traditions in the hamburger world this is what I'm learning on this trip is that like Oklahoma is like the birth of a lot of things that are trendy right now on Burgers right hickory sauce being one of them yeah and now we are at the birthplace yeah first time ever together yes exactly that's first that's pretty well Burger show first guys so we're here to talk about two very important hyper Regional Oklahoma burners oh that's my language the Theta and the Caesar Burger Theta it was named after a sorority in Norman Oklahoma at OU wow in the 50s they came up with this burger that has shredded American cheese got any sauce of the sauce that the state of sauce okay back then pickles mayonnaise on a toasted button that was it huh it was it's really good it's a great burger second Burger is a burger called the Caesar burger what I understand you can only get it here what's Caesar about I don't I'm catching you at this really rare moment where you've never been to a place before I've never been to a place before and we're gonna try for the first time pure uncut raw reaction towards Burgers Raw it's gonna be amazing yeah I can't wait I'm starving let's eat let's smell it hello guys how are you today hey Rick welcome to Johnny's this is Rick Rick nice to meet you Rick is Rick is a very important guy in the world of hamburgers I don't know about that but thank you you're one of my hamburger Heroes because it's what you're doing is you're you're upholding a very important tradition and it's very important to us so yeah we feel like the integrity and the equality are still there after 52 years well thank you for guys for coming that's easy thank you thank you thank you Caesar Burger I'm gonna hold the season burger for a minute data first the sauce I can tell you right now [Music] it's almost like a smoky tomato sauce those are some serious shreds of cheese too they're not choking oh holy crap [Music] I just went like yeah so I have to try real don't taste that this is key yeah that's very unique and the amount there's nothing wrong with Alberta it's fantastic it is phenomenal okay the Caesar Burger that's straight up Caesar Caesar sauce with some lettuce there's a Caesar salad on this um wow yo it's basically a Parmesan cheeseburger with some lettuce and that's fantastic that is totally totally unique I've never had them no cheese no cheese in the dressing I've never had anything like that before in my life wow bro this is a power of lunch you don't have time to eat a salad and a burger separately you put it together so next one last stop yeah going to the place where well it All Began for me okay I'm excited but you must be really excited you're getting Goosebumps it's been a while since I've been there yeah and it's been hunched when was the last time you went uh probably six years ago damn it's time it's time yeah let's go [Music] onion Birds Onion Burgers pulling into El Reno right now there's the green elevator over there look at that picture huh wow wait to see downtown it looks like a Norman Rockwell painting oh man classic Americana at its best at its finest right here it's Johnny's the other Chinese there's Robert's right there hey Roberts ready for this one the hair on the back of my head standing up right now this is right here in that corner right here was where the uh where the bank is now that's where the first Onion Burgers were made oh wow and they're SIDS so they're all within a block of each other that is so cool you ready to bed I'm so ready this is this is it I mean I've been in thousands of hamburger joints this is one of those places arguably top three most important here we go let's go [Music] ready how you doing good to see you you're looking pretty good you're exactly the same yeah it's my friend pleasure to meet you I'm sorry Alvin can I ask where you're from I'm from Los Angeles Los Angeles yeah from Oklahoma thank you never it's first time yeah I'm excited he's kind of special to me what changed my life I mean this is yeah this is really the place that uh Champion I owe you I owe a lot to the to this town do you for sure I really do my name's Marty Hall we're at El Reno Oklahoma at Sid's Diner on Route 66 Highway 81. Sid was my dad my dad passed away before I built this Diner but I wanted to name it after him but that's not easy to do he put your daddy's name on something you get your daddy's name on something you're gonna do your best the best you can the Oklahoma Burger the tradition of it is pickles and mustard and fried onions that's it it's been here since the 1920s where we believe that the onion started right across the street and I seasoned my grill with pork salt [Music] and it gives it kind of like the old cast iron skillet taste to it and the slice of the onions how thin they are you know there's Spanish yellow a little bit sweeter they cook faster kind of got to be careful try not to burn them because they're cooking so fast and one thing I think makes my burger a little bit unique is that I I put the bun on top of the hamburger meat while it's cooking I'll take it off put it on the grill and toast it and it gives that bread kind of a flavor to me I think a lot of little things add up to make the burger what it is I had a guy went to school with come in and asked me one day said Marty how many burgers have you cooked now I'm talking about 52 years I said I don't know I figured I cook about 300 a day times six a week times four for a month times 12 for a year times 52. it comes over five million hamburgers I've cooked I'm very honored that the Lord has given me something that I really enjoy doing men like George and a patch on the back say keep going buddy keep going since not just sits but the seat this is exactly where I have my first onion burger and how long ago was this this freaking seat right here that was a long time ago we were younger Marty we were younger it was a while ago yes a while ago you know why I sat here so you can watch exactly because I always this is one of my favorite spots in any diner it's right here because I get two things I get to see what's going on I get to talk to you people who sit here I think get most of your attention right I always ask how you're doing and if I don't know I'm asking where they're from take them how many people of my old world yeah oh I bet yeah that's one thing I love about this Diner you know instead of cooking behind the wall somewhere and then I can talk to people around sure absolutely and you can't hide anything no yeah what you see is what you get that's right I'm gonna place the order here ready yeah right here let's do it we need two Onion Burgers 20 tomato lettuce or anything like that just just fried onions no sir just the pickles on the side right so we get to watch now yeah this is one of the best things about this it's a pretty substantial Patty oh should we just did there I love that he warmed up the spatch a little bit a lot of onions oh that's about a minute say oh that's so much that's it that's the door's remote oh you know why now you know I do that you put salt and Pepper's half and half okay oh bottom first always tops themes yeah I like my bread toasted a little bit yeah okay yeah and most people when they cook them they just started bun on top of the meat steam it that's what I do yeah that's good it's all right that's how we cooked them in the old days too yeah the first time I came here I think you told me the traditional way is to get no cheese you know just fried onions pickles and mustard okay tradition I mean that's what I'm talking about but it's perfect look at how perfect that that is but Marty you have these made for you the uh the trowel the spatula I make them you make them you actually you cut them down yourself yeah from what from from a breakfast yeah put concrete on I love seeing these you know you smell the the amount of onions that's in this look at that perfectly toasted thank you Marty [Music] man man that smells so good smells so good that bun is perfectly warmed through oh cheers bam we did it made it oh that's perfect perfect here Marty oh the crunch the softness of the bottom oh man and this is a real hamburger pickle it's not like fancy it's not too sweet kind of an ugly thing got the onions hanging off of it but anyway that's the Oaky Burger wow that's fantastic well our first time we ever met he showed me how to make one of these things yeah I love making this burger five years later this has become like the most iconic trendy style burger smashing onions into a burger I mean and this is the original to me I like taking that Burger off that Grill and eating it right to you yeah so this burger has now been replicated all over the globe people need to come here and eat this and know where it came from or how it started or at least what it should really taste like can I get you anything else good I gotta go what else is there gotta go chairs Marty thank you so much ma'am of all the burgers that we've had together whether it's Louie's lunch or Shady igliner yeah you know going to herds tasting the original fried onion burger seeing all the great people that eat here and people who make the food it's definitely life-changing it's life-changing and I can see why this is the burger that you chose to master this is only one of the three places right you know that right yeah they're the younger ones they've been around the at least amount of time 1986 but you're gonna have the street there's Roberts only a block away from Saw driving yeah there's a block there on that is basically Johnny's and each one of these places has some connection to the history of this program speaking of History important to set the record straight sometimes erroneously referred to as the depression Burger the fried onion burger was invented seven years before the Great Depression in El Reno Oklahoma as a result of the great Railroad Strike of 1922 also known as the railway shopman strike 400 000 Railway men Nationwide walked off the job on July 1st 1922 after the railroads threatened to cut their pay a guy named Ross Davis had a new burger joint called Hamburger Inn and decided to press a large wad of thin sliced onions into a burger patty as a way to extend his beef supply for the day onions were cheap flavorful and already in use on Burgers When Ross increased the quantity of onions to half the Burger's volume he inadvertently invented an instant classic the tiny Hamburger Inn sat at a trolley stop in the center of town and the intoxicating smell of onions often lured customers off the trolley into the walk-up window 100 years later the Hamburger Inn is long gone but the onion burger Legacy is stronger than ever and lives on at a number of Burger counters in El Reno today unquestionable Marty is one of my hamburger Heroes I can see why you can see why I mean obviously right it's cool to be like the burger guy but on my regular nine to five I'm I'm him exactly and to see a glimpse of how it is to just be a legend yeah hard for it yeah he opened this place literally to preserve history yeah this moment sitting right here has somehow led to me opening a restaurant this year yeah you're a spot that's ridiculous what I'm trying to do is respect the craft and the history of the Oklahoma yeah inverter let's keep it going yep we'll invite him to the restaurant you know sure because people understand like I'm sure I know how to make a hamburger but this guy is really the one the oh gee yeah you know yeah that's why I wanted to make sure you bet him to do that you see now this is a connection yeah it's like it's like shaking Sinatra's hand there you go yeah yeah that's that's the way it feels dude it's like in this bird this really small Burger community on Mars yeah it's full of you know Legend like that I'm so happy you made it here I'm so dude from season one when you made it at your house yeah that's right yeah now we come a long way come a long way yeah and it's all because of this one yeah we did it this is real Burger bucket list thank you for taking care my pleasure that was awesome my pleasure it's over for the camera it's over for the camera we've got more Burgers to eat you best believe I'm eating more Burgers here when this is shut up Burger bucket list we're out good [Applause] hi George I want to see you do this at your time make a lot of noise yeah I like them on the outside [Music] so I saw you did it like this where you put this back on right you did that [Music] and this is the RV that's falling apart Jesus Christ I think they're sad farewell to me sleep beneath the stars in California foreign [Music] hello Internet it's your boy Alvin kylon make sure you hit that like button smash that subscribe button ring that notification Bell if not for me for the burgers this show that show him the wine

Channel: First We Feast

Views: 772,780

Keywords: First we feast, fwf, firstwefeast, food, food porn, cooking, chef, recipe, complex networks, spicy food, foodie, burgers, food documentary, alvin cailan, george motz, burger show, burger scholar sessions, hot ones, Burger month, burger bucket list, fried onion burger, fried onion burger george motz, how to, best burger, burger recipe, sean evans, burger how to, burger scholar, oklahoma city, road trip, okie burger recipe, oklahoma grilled onion burger

Id: pWYqQU9yJYs

Length: 25min 10sec (1510 seconds)

Published: Wed May 24 2023