Johnnie’s Grill

The atmosphere is good and it’s clean. Service was good… but the hamburger meat had no flavor and the onions are cooked to almost burnt which gives the hamburger a strange taste. When my hamburger arrived it looked like someone had stepped on it. It’s not very appealing. Side dishes were good.

To say my FIL is a regular is an understatement. He knows we are burger dive kinda people and said this was a premier dive. Yes, in respects to location, building, décor, and the fact that the owner paid cash out of his wallet to the guy delivering meat.
While it fulfilled at the elements of a great burger joint, it fell short a bit. The patties were thin and lacking flavor… the onions did their job damn it… meat do yours! A bit of pepper would have gone a long way. At least the bun was super fresh and sopped up that yummy grease. The sides were good, too.
I imagine we will go back when we visit family again. There’s a difference between a greasy spoon burger and a plain nasty greasy burger. Luckily, this place is not the latter.

Barato y muy económico.
Las hamburguesas están buenísimas y la carne picada esta aliñada con cebolla. Muy recomendable.
Bebida refill, unos machos bien servidos y una bebida bien fría…
No aceptan tarjeta de crédito

If I was giving a rating based solely on the burger, I’d give 4 stars. But, I’ve got to consider the side dishes, which bring it down a star. We had lunch at Johnnie’s on Memorial Day around 1. It was nearly full, but we got a table without a wait. Our server approached us quickly for drink orders. We perused the menu, and all decided on onion burgers (of course). We also decided on getting an array of sides to share as a table: fries, onion rings, and cheesy tots. The problem was the sides came out nearly 10 minutes before the burgers. We were hungry, so we began eating, but we wanted it all at once. I don’t know if this is typical at Johnnie’s, but I heard another table near us complain about the same issue.
In addition to arriving too early, the sides just weren’t that good. They all lacked salt. The onion rings were fried too long, so they were a dark brown and too crispy. The fries and tater tots seemed like they were frozen from a restaurant supply. I suppose they could have been made fresh, but they didn’t taste like it. Both were fine, but you can get similar (if not the same) sides at a lot of places.
I’m not too concerned about the sides, because El Reno isn’t known for tots and fries. It’s known for onion burgers. And, Johnnie’s delivered on the onion burger. It’s a standard hamburger bun with a patty that’s between thin and thick, coated with the requisite smashed onions. Johnnie’s offers bacon. Of my pieces, one was cooked well and the other was too limp. The jalapenos, pickles, and lettuce are standard. The burger is juicy, and they get a nice char on the entire exterior. As with all (good) onion burgers, the onions get a little charred on the flat top. So, be advised. This is a classic onion burger in the traditional style. What is not so traditional is that they offer up to a triple meat/​cheese burger, if you’re famished.
If you’re passing through El Reno, you really should stop and have an onion burger. Johnnie’s is a nice spot to do so. Be advised: CASH ONLY.

If you like lots of onions, then this is your burger. Pretty good, but wouldnt call it the best like people said. I do like the informal and personal service. Everyone from staff to customers are really cool. One plus, they got tots! Yummy yummy tater tots!

This is a country restaurant for country people. Expect no frills and simple, cheap, and tasty food. I am no doubt a prissy foodie. I like my Sunchokes with rosemary and my my Tuna tar-​tar. But sometimes, I just want a simple onion burger maybe some fresh cut French fries. I come to Johnnie’s Grill for these offerings. True, spending one day a week in El Reno limits my variety in dining establishments but if I’m going to have an onion burger, I come here. What makes this better than Sid’s is the friendly staff, plenty of seating, and a few other offerings besides burgers. Chili cheese dogs are another specialty and often have a daily special like beef stew or chicken and dumplings. They have homemade pies made by some dude in town in his kitchen. It doesn’t get much more local than that. As long as you have realistic expectations for this place I’m sure you will enjoy it!

My favorite burger ever. You can’t find fried onion burgers anywhere else in the country as far as I know. Always a stop for me when in ElReno!

While traveling through town on a storm chasing trip we stopped in for the coneys that Unilocal users raved about. When the order came to the table the hot dogs were reddish pink. Apparently the distributor injects the wieners with artificial colors. Since neither one of us can have food coloring, we had to find a new place to go. It was not handled well at all. Food establishments need to be aware that some people are allergic to those types of additives. Train the staff to handle those situations with grace and hospitality. Also, make sure to bring cash. They don’t accept credit or debit cards either. Won’t be visiting there again after the unpleasant experience we encountered.

I’ve eaten here many times and have always enjoyed my burgers. Fries are plain jane so you might want a different side. I love burgers and these are above average. A little seasoning of the meat at the grill would make them much better.

You really can’t beat the value of this place. $ 38 for 6 people, sides, drinks, sandwiches and all? Nope. Their CHEESEBURGER is solid! Fresh meat patties with just the right ratio of lettuce, tomato, meat and cheap white enriched bun. The meat just crumbles it’s awesome! And tots. Tater tots are on menu. Any establishment with tater tots on the menu is awesome in my book.
I really afraid that this place wouldn’t serve us considering we walked in a 8:45pm with a party of 6 and their sign said they close at 9. But thankful it wasn’t the case. And if it was I think our Road Trip gang would have been crankier. The owners were really nice and told us to take a seat anywhere in the house. Really nice people. A really cute stop with handpainted road and sports signs.

Great onion burger, fried okra — double meat coney — fun route 66 atmosphere worth a stop — it’s in a lot of travel books and you can find it in a non-​descript plaza downtown El Reno

I walked in to Johnnie’s just at noon and saddled up to the bar. I’m glad I came when I did because shortly after it got packed, and I mean packed. I thought it was a bit empty when I walked in but my fears were eased quickly. The phone was ringing off the hook and the drive thru was constantly going too. You can tell the locals really love this place.
Of course I ordered their famous Fried Onion Burger. I got mine with cheese, tomato and lettuce ($.40 extra), with ½ onion rings ½ french fries and chili on the side. The burger was great. It wasn’t the best I’d ever had but it was something a little different than usual. I enjoyed watching them grill the onions right on the griddle in front of me, and smash them into the patty. The grilled (fried) onions give the burger a nice distinct flavor. The only difference next time I’d make is to get it a double, as it was not quite enough meat for me, and skip the onion rings & fries. They were okay but fried a bit much. The fries were pretty thin and real crispy. The onion rings were super crispy and super salty. The chili, however, was really good. Maybe I should have made it a chili burger.
The staff was super friendly and a very funny mix of all demographics, from the old diner waitress to the teenage fast food employee, it was fun to see them all interacting so well. The atmosphere was great and the patrons were all having a great time. I love that they had SportsCenter on the TVs. If you’d headed down I-​40 make sure you stop here.
I have a more in-​depth review and pictures on my personal blog.

I use to come here with my grandma when I was younger. They have amazing coney dogs as well as onion burgers. It’s all made right in front of you and smells oh so good.
Nothing beats splitting an onion burger, coney, & fries with grandma at Johnnies.