Burgers in Tulsa

November 5, 2019 11:18 AM

I will be in Tulsa in a couple of weeks for work. I really love hamburgers, and it seems like Tulsa has an awful lot of hamburger restaurants. How do I choose?

I've looked through previous questions about Tulsa, and while I won't have much free time, they did show that there are a lot of knowledgeable Tulsans here on the green. I'm hoping you can answer this specific question for me. I've done some preliminary googling and found more burger joints than I can remember: Claud's, Brownies, Arnold's, Hank's, and on and on. All of them look pretty amazing. I'm probably only going to have time for two, maybe three burger meals. Conventional wisdom on other types of restaurants seems to be pretty well aligned: everyone seems to agree that Burn Co is the best barbecue, for example. But with burgers, it seems that they're all good. Could you give me your top three?

For reference, I'll be working downtown, near Fifth and Main. I haven't booked a hotel yet, but it'll probably be either downtown (or just south), or near the airport. I will have a rental car.

posted by kevinbelt to Travel & Transportation around Tulsa, OK (10 answers total)

It's not a classic burger place, but the Prairie Brewpub on Main St. does a good burger, and it's a great place to go if you're into craft beer.
posted by neushoorn at 11:33 AM on November 5, 2019

From my gastronomically-trustworthy friend who lives in Tulsa: "Generally people seem to favor Fat Guys. After 9pm, go to The Tavern for their half price burger deal--Great burger."
posted by sleeping bear at 1:42 PM on November 5, 2019

roadfood also recommends Linda-mar and Freddie's
posted by brujita at 2:49 PM on November 5, 2019

Claud's is my brother's favorite. Arnold's is mine. I used to eat Weber's all the time when I worked nearby. All classic burgers (not upscale or anything) but all good options. Tulsa is a good burger town.

And be sure to pick up a few coneys while you're there too. Three cheese coneys with everything is a requirement when I'm back in town.
posted by downtohisturtles at 3:12 PM on November 5, 2019

Apparently, onion burgers are a thing in OK. My coworker says Garage Burgers in Tulsa carries a decent one if you're so inclined.
posted by Everydayville at 3:14 PM on November 5, 2019

this depends on what you are looking for. arnold's and linda-mar are a good choice, but it's on the west side so chances are it won't be close to you.

my favorite hole-in-the-wall is bill's, which is as good as you are going to find.
posted by lescour at 3:46 PM on November 5, 2019

Also onion burgers are an OKC specialty (really a bit west of there for the originals). Very tasty but Tulsa doesn't have one I recommend.
posted by lescour at 3:48 PM on November 5, 2019 [1 favorite]

Bill's.
posted by wierdo at 1:27 AM on November 6, 2019

I like Fat Guys, Garage Burgers, and Weber's. There are so many places, it's almost hard to go wrong. Weber's and Brownies if you prefer the basic diner vibe. I'd say Fat Guys or Garage Burgers is a tiny step "fancier", or if you want to sit down in a dimly-lit, dark wood, nice restaurant, Charleston's is a steak house that nonetheless serves a very good burger. (fewer options than the burger-focused places, though.) Urban Tulsa magazine and the Tulsa World newspaper will have lists of the best of whatever in town, and I haven't been steered wrong yet by those recommendations.
posted by coppertop at 5:13 AM on November 6, 2019

My go to was always Ron's when I lived in town. Definitely more of a basic diner burger. The Garage does a pretty good burger too -- they're a local chain run by the Hal Smith group out of OKC that are also responsible for Charleston's, Pub W and Louie's (among others). They're solid. Brownies and Weber's have been around forever. Try the root beer!
posted by dislegomena at 5:48 AM on November 6, 2019 [1 favorite]