You may remember that last years vacation included a stop in Brussels Belgium where we met Christie. Christie who originally hails from Norman, Oklahoma suggested we give Norman a visit on our most recent American road trip. Home of Oklahoma University, and the Sooners (meaning settlers). It's also home to a 110 year old restaurant called The Diner.
Norman is just outside of Oklahoma City and just a few short hours north of Dallas. We ended up staying at the Holiday Inn with its salt-water indoor pool, just three miles from the casinos, and about five minutes from downtown Norman where there's a place called 'The Diner'. The Diner was featured on Guy Fieri's Food Network Show, Diners Drive-Ins & Dives a few years back. In 2010, the owner passed away, but the award winning recipes continue to get dished out for locals and fans to this day. Mark Amspacher's legacy continues to live on, not only in Norman but in kitchens across America with his two-times state championship chili. Considering Mark passed in his mid-50's, perhaps his food should come with a regulatory warning. It's amazing food, but likely isn't the healthiest thing in the world. It's soul food, it's comfort food. It's darn good food.
So we pulled into downtown Norman, and found a parking spot down in front of the police department. Walked a block and entered the Diner. It's a neon-diner, with an aroma of goodness that leaks out on to the street with each door opening. Hungry as could be, we arrived about 11 AM and sat right down. I ordered the chicken fried steak and scrambled eggs with hashbrowns, and Shannon ordered the grilled tamales with ranchero sauce and fried onions. Let's not forget the biscuits and gravy. Needless to say, it's more than enough food to fill you up and mounds of cheese and sauce, with deliciousness everywhere, we finally had an answer to our question. Does Guy really like the food he eats, or is it all show? Considering the food was awesome and the wait staff was too, the answer was clear.
Norman is the center of America, it literally is the Main Street of America. It's a college town, that takes a bit of everything in America, and fits it into its mid-west self. Indeed, all roads lead to The Diner, where the food mirrors the charm of corn fields and red barns with it's tex-mex chili and southern style breakfasts.
If you're anywhere near Oklahoma, I highly recommend visiting The Diner.
 
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