Ron’s Burgers & Chili Is The South's Best Hamburgers In Oklahoma

Ron’s Burgers & Chili Is The South's Best Hamburgers In Oklahoma

By Katie Akin | Updated on May 16, 2023

PHOTO: ROBBIE CAPONETTO

A frosted mug of root beer, a paper-lined basket of crispy French fries, and a burger obscured by spicy red-brown chili poured on top—this is the meal of champions at Ron’s Hamburgers & Chili. The Oklahoma institution (with locations in Arkansas and Texas) has been feeding hungry diners and delighting their palates since 1975.

Ron’s specializes in simple food made excellently. The fries are hand cut, the signature chili is made in house, and the hamburgers are notable examples of one of the Sooner State’s best culinary inventions, the fried-onion burger. Patties here are studded with chopped onions, imparting new zing to an old standby. You can step up the flavor even more by going for the half-beef-half-sausage mix for your order. For a truly zesty meal, try the Mexican Steak, a wonderful concoction of hamburger steak, pleasantly spicy pepper Jack cheese, and jalapeño chiles on top of the signature award-winning chili and served with Texas toast. And if you’re not craving fries today, don’t worry. Ron’s has just about every side you could want: tots, fried okra, onion rings, fried pickles, coleslaw, chips, and more.

Old-school plastic tabletops with ads for local businesses beckon from underneath your food; the establishments they advertise could be fledgling, or they have closed decades ago. That’s how a lot of the experience at Ron’s feels. It’s easy to imagine diners in the seventies and eighties having the same griddled ham-and-cheese sandwich out of the same plastic basket next to the same condensation-covered glass of root beer. But at this long-standing gem, that consistency doesn’t feel stale; instead, it’s timeless.

When you eat at Ron’s Hamburgers & Chili, your dining neighbors might be your favorite grocery store clerk, old friends having a catch-up, or Uncle Jim’s fishing buddy—but even if you don’t know your fellow customers, Ron’s always feels as familiar and comforting as the food itself.

ronsburgersandchili.com, 918-645-3170, 7119 South Mingo Road, Tulsa, OK 74113