One day out of the year, the onion burger is placed on a pedestal, and the town of El Reno celebrates its existence by cooking one weighing more than 750 pounds. Lore tells us that El Reno’s Fried Onion Burger Day Festival was born when a local proprietor mixed onions into ground beef and patted it out to make it look bigger. It was the Great Depression, and meat was expensive, but onions were not. The result became a local favorite and tradition carried into today by small-town diners like Robert’s Grill. Route 66 favorite and long-time establishment Robert’s Grill has a basic menu of burgers, coneys, fries, tots, chili and sandwiches. What’s not advertised is the “show” – customers get to watch as the cook throws beef patties on the grill with fresh-cut onions and smashes them together before building the burger on a bun. With this kind of flavor, the onion burger deserves all the kudos it gets; and with each order, Robert’s Grill keeps building its hard-earned reputation for simple goodness. 300 S. Bickford Ave., El Reno. 405.262.1262
