Locally-Owned South Side Dining Options

[dismayed]

In a recent thread it was implied that the south side had no locally owned dining options. Always being one who enjoys the pursuit of truth I looked into this statement... and found it to be inaccurate. Below is a list of some of the more popular south side eating establishments I've been able to dig up. I've even eaten at a few myself. I thought I'd toss this out there because although I'm well acquainted with dining options on the north side and down in Norman, it seems little is mentioned about dining fare to the south, and really there's a lot to offer there.


Cattlemen's Steakhouse. Stockyards City. Quite possibly one of OKC's most famous restaurants and it's on the south side. Every president since Ronald Reagan has eaten here if memory serves. I've had a steak or two here and it's both great atmosphere and great food.

Grill on the Hill. SW 25th and Harvey, Capitol Hill. Looks like a great little place. Stellar reviews suggest the place has an awesome breakfast or burger.

Coney Island. SW 25th and Robinson. Capitol Hill. Great online reviews. I went here once on the recommendation of a family member and was really impressed. Beer, hot dogs, and chili are the main staples.

Longhorn Cafe. Stockyards City. Excellent reviews suggest that its steaks rival those of Cattlemen's.

Tacos San Pedro. SW 44th and Young. Authentic Mexican food. At least one reviewer at The Gazette believes it is the best Mexican establishment in the metro area.

Chelino's. Several Locations. If I remember correctly the original was on Robinson in Capitol Hill. Mexican food.

Ol' Time Diner. SW 84th and Western. Reviewers say it has a great onion burger.

Panang. SW 89th and Penn. It turns out there's quite a little cluster of Asian restaurants at this intersection due to the large Asian supermarket on the corner. This place serves Thai food... I actually ate here and found it to be quite good.

Pho 89. SW 89th and Penn. Vietnamese Pho soup.

Pickerman's Soups and Sandwiches. 89th and Penn. A local sandwich shop; they also have a location up north.

Soda Pop's Cafe. 119th and Western. Online reviews say this place has really cool atmosphere and is a "home cooking" kind of place. Burgers, fries, chicken fried steak, and so on.

Swadley's Smokehouse. 89th and Western. BBQ as the name implies.

Wholly Grounds Coffee. 89th and Western. Coffee shop. Nice location and coffee from what I have read.

Mediterranean Grill. 78th and Western. Mediterranean and Mid-East food. Seems to have great online reviews.

Cafe Bella. 90th and Penn. Coffee, boba tea, sandwiches, and some other food items. Really nice atmosphere. I've eaten here and enjoyed it.

Sushi Hayashi. 106th and Penn. Sushi and Japanese food. Haven't tried it but the online menus look like what you'd expect for a Japanese place.

August Moon. I-240 and Penn. Locally owned for 30+ years. American-style Chinese food.

Anna's Famous Gyros. I-240 and Penn. Locally owned for 30+ years but has had several name changes over the years (previously Abadan Gyros). Greek food. I've eaten here and enjoyed the menu.

Mama Lou's. SE 29th and I-35. Locally owned for 30+ years, originally opened on May Ave. Online reviews say the place has good burgers and American food.

Coit's Root Beer Drive-In. SW 24th and Western. Capitol Hill. Root beer and hot dogs. It's an OKC staple.

Sherri's Diner. SW 59th and Shartel. 50's diner that serves pork chops, fried catfish, veal, chicken-fried steak and more. Seems to have good solid online reviews.

El Pollon Peruvian Rotisserie Chicken. SW 44th and Penn. Peruvian food. Has very strong reviews and the menu looks fascinating. I actually plan to check this place out soon.

Bella Vista. SW 58th and Western. Italian food. Very large menu and the food looks awesome. I plan to check this place out soon.

Brooklyn's Best Pizza & Pasta. SW 60th and Western. Reviews say it's a great little pizza place.

[oneforone]

Is Bella Vista still around.. I never ate their but, I have heard good things about it.

[kevinpate]

A few on S Shields for your excellent list
(very worthy additions in my opinion):


Friendly's
approx SE 64th & S Shields
(all day and into the eve, separate smoking room; excellent breakfast, solid lunch and dinner menu; very good catfish special)

Choice Cafe,
approx. SE 52nd and S Shields
(very excellent breakfast and lunch choices; closes early afternoon)

The Corral
approx. SE 59th & S Shields.
tasty and inexpensive breakfast choices, good burgers.


Pickles
(a hair outside OKC, at I-35 and N 27th in Moore, mile south of 89th/I-45)
Excellent food. A slightly outdated, but very clean, dining space

[Martin]

is bella vista still around..

afaik, it is... however, they do tend to close down for extended periods each year when they go on vacation.

the corral...

i happened to be driving shields the other day and i believe that this has closed... the sign's been replaced and i think it's a mexican food joint now.

-M

[warreng88]

afaik, it is... however, they do tend to close down for extended periods each year when they go on vacation.

-M

I had some friends come into town that wanted just good homecooked Italian food so my wife and I went by Bella Vista and it was closed. They were closed. Apparently, they close for about two months a year in the summer to do renovations and go back to Greece. I think that is understandable because most people don't want scorching hot Italian food when it is 100 degrees outside.

[MsDarkstar]

Bella Vista is great. Everything is homemade and when they run out, they're out. Same with the desserts.

Cafe Bella is really good too, I go there fairly often. Love their boba tea. Their menu is a little fusion too of Italian & Vietnamese. They've also got free wi-fi.

Ol' Time Diner is good but their hours are funky...I've been by several times only to find that they're closed for no apparent reason.

Also, don't forget Tacoville on 29th & Newcastle Rd. I am guessing that they're locally owned, but they have been there forever.

[kevinpate]

...i happened to be driving shields the other day and i believe [The Corral] has closed... the sign's been replaced and i think it's a mexican food joint now.

-M

Bummer. They were nice peeps.

It wasn't really the same caliber as either Choice Cafe or Friendly's, but it made for a very acceptable change of scenery.

I'll have to pop by and see if the new format tickles the tastebuds or not. Then again, being that close to Chelino's, I may just keep going north, park myself across the street from ho-mart, wave to BBates if he's in the area filming and then go enjoy the food and folks at Chelino's. I already knows I like it.

[gen70]

The mention of Tacoville brought back memories for me. I used to eat there in the late 60's and early 70's. I probably haven't thought about the place since then until seeing the post. I'am surprised it's been there so long.

[MsDarkstar]

Oh yeah, Gen70...Tacoville is alive & kickin, I get a burrito from there a few times a month. I'm pretty sure that the grease hasn't been changed since the last time you were there.

[gen70]

Oh yeah, Gen70...Tacoville is alive & kickin, I get a burrito from there a few times a month. I'm pretty sure that the grease hasn't been changed since the last time you were there.

Excellent! He!He!...I always liked the place.

[oneforone]

Pickles
(a hair outside OKC, at I-35 and N 27th in Moore, mile south of 89th/I-45)
Excellent food. A slightly outdated, but very clean, dining space

You have to give Pickles's credit, They actually made something halfway descent out of an old Burger King.

[kevinpate]

You have to give Pickles's credit, They actually made something halfway descent out of an old Burger King.

Yeppers. Tis why I added a Moore dining haus to a list of south OKC dining options. I'm many things, but a border snob ain't one of those.