I was under the impression that Del Rancho was a national chain, but after doing more research it appears they’re a fairly local-based business. I never knew! Oh well, you don’t have to know that to enjoy this story.
Today for lunch, a co-worker, my wife and I went to Del Rancho for lunch. Del Ranchos are mostly known for being drive-in type restaurants, but the one near our work has a inside restaurant area as well so we decided to go there and eat inside. They’re also known for their huge chicken fried steak sandwiches.
Upon entering the restaurant, we were immediately taken back to the 70’s. The wallpaper was yellow, coated with years of nicotene. Everything in the restaurant looked either dirty, old, or both. We ordered our dinners and started making small talk.
Then, I felt something on the back of my neck. At first I thought it was just my collar, so I adjusted my shirt. Then I definitely felt something crawling. I brushed my neck and the cockroach which had fallen from the ceiling and onto my neck flew onto the table. Susan did a good job of not completely freaking out, while Johnny just laughed. With a second brush, he fell to the floor. Then I stomped him.
Believe it or not, we finished our meals (although Susan nearly threw up a couple of times). Next to her on the wall was a small hole that I kept watch on to make sure no more came our way, while Susan kept an eye on the ceiling.
BLECH.
It’s my bet that you went to the one on SW 59th street, which was the first Del Rancho in Oklahoma City. And yes, they are locally owned. They started with that one, then added several more. The one on SE 15th and Mansfield in Del City was the 3rd, and that was where I grew up and hung around. That one “belonged” to Crooked Oak Students, while the Sonic in Del City on Sunnylane “belonged” to Del City High School. Just like in American Graffiti, that was the in place to be, to drive around, to sit inside if you didn’t have wheels, or to park at for hours drinking cherry vanilla cokes and watching the world go by. Ah, great memories. The original owners sold them all off, and the one on 59th is now probably owned by a Latino or someone of Middle Easter descent. The only restaurant the original owners still have is Pistol Pete’s on SE 15th in Del City, and they still serve the original huge chicken fried steak sandwich and wonderful homemade onion rings. And no roaches.
My experience with that was at the Mazzio’s in Yukon when you kids were in high school. While dining in, the roaches started crawling out from behind a picture on the wall over our table. That was it for your dad. Pay and leave, and we never ate there again. OK, I wasn’t going to write a book. Just an FYI. Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Mom
You are right, that was the location (SW 59th and May). If I want a steak sandwich supreme I suppose I’ll stick with Chuck House. All the batter with none of the roaches.
You know, I’ve always thought that with the right people in charge (e.g. folks who care about cleanliness, marketing, business, etc.) Del Rancho could be a huge success and even a national chain. I honestly think that their steak sandwich and onion rings are about as good as food can get, but sadly it seems like my experiences with them have always been about the same as the incident that ‘bugged’ you the other day.
I didn’t realize there were any Del Ranchos left that had indoor seating besides the one in Moore. Kind of cool, sans the roaches.
The one in Allen, Texas has indoor seating and it doesn’t have roaches. It’s only about 2 year old and attracts alot of families. The steak sandwich is awesome, I agree with the right management this could become a national chain.