PAST FOOD

BY GREG ELWELL

Oklahoma’s historic restaurants only reach back a century or so, but these eateries are still serving tasty favorites to customers all these years later.

of Mercy, one of Oklahoma’s first air ambulances, in the 1930s. His flights are memorialized at the Old Greer County Museum & Hall of Fame in his hometown. » oldgreercountymuseum.org

HE PILOTED THE Apollo 10 spacecraft that met the Soviets in lunar orbit, and in his hometown of Weatherford, Thomas P. Stafford’s legacy lives at the Stafford Air & Space Museum » staffordmuseum.org

THE ONLY MAN ever fashionable enough to pair a white eye patch with a white suit, Wiley Post was the first pilot to fly solo around the world. Learn about him by visiting Science Museum Oklahoma. » sciencemuseumok.org

IN OKLAHOMA CITY, The NinetyNines Museum of Women Pilots celebrates the considerable number of women in flight and serves as headquarters of The Ninety-Nines, a women’s pilot association founded in part by Amelia Earhart. » museumofwomenpilots.org

GO BOLDLY IN the planetarium, learn about the Tuskegee Airmen, and be a pilot in the Ray Booker Flight Lab at the Tulsa Air and Space Museum & Planetarium, the state’s flagship for all things aviation. » tulsamuseum.org

JOSEPH BARTLES FORMED the Dewey Aeroplane Company to build Curtiss JN-4D “Jennies," for the government, marking the beginning of aircraft manufacturing in Oklahoma. Learn all about it at the Bartlesville Area History Museum » bartlesvillehistory.com

PERRY’S KUMBACK LUNCH has been a local favorite since 1926, serving café classics including smothered meatloaf, homemade chicken and noodles, and coconut cream pie. Outlaw Pretty Boy Floyd reportedly once entered the restaurant with his gun, sent all the customers packing, and demanded the owner make him the biggest steak in the place. » 625 Delaware in Perry, (580) 336-4646

THE TOWN OF Okarche has a big claim to fame with Eischen’s Bar, which proclaims itself the oldest still-operating bar in Oklahoma. Despite the name, Eischen’s is more an eatery than a bar these days, though pitchers of freshly tapped beer pair nicely with that fa- mous fried chicken. » 109 South 2nd Street in Okarche, (405) 263-9939 or eischensbar.com

OKLAHOMA CITY’S CATTLEMEN’S Steakhouse is the place to take out-oftown guests for an old-school dining experience. It’s famed for its Presidential Choice T-bone Steak, which was a favorite of President George H.W. Bush during his visit to the Sooner State. » 1309 South Agnew Avenue in Oklahoma City, (405) 2360416 or cattlemensrestaurant.com

SITTING HALFWAY BETWEEN Oklahoma City and Tulsa on Route 66, Stroud’s Rock Cafe has been feeding hungry travelers since 1939. This classic eatery nearly disappeared in a fire in 2008, but renovations brought it back bigger than ever, ensuring future generations of road-trippers will get to taste a bevy of Oklahoman and German fare, including chicken-fried steaks, spaetzle, and unforgettable peach cobbler. » 114 West Main Street in Stroud, rockcafert66.com

MOVIE STAR, NEWSPAPER columnist, and trick roping expert Will Rogers was a frequent patron of Ike’s Chili in Tulsa, which has been serving Green Country diners since 1908. In addition to chili served straight, on spaghetti, in a Frito chili pie, or atop a cheese coney, the restaurant makes burgers, salads, and wraps for its still-loyal clientele.

» 1503 East 11th Street in Tulsa, (918) 838-9410 or ikeschilius.com

OKLAHOMA ISN’T THE first place people think of when they want fresh fish, but Tulsa’s White River Fish Market is a whole other matter. Since 1932, the market has been bringing in fresh fish from the East Coast for sale. In 1942, the market added a restaurant serving fresh seafood grilled, broiled, and fried. » 1708 North Sheridan Road in Tulsa, (918) 835-1910 or whiteriverfishmarket.com