A general store and "Berger's Burgers" located in NW Oklahoma County c. 1994

[Joe Kimball]

I thought again about the time I went on a ride with my family in "the country" one Saturday in 1994 or so. There was a general store, in the middle of nowhere to my vantage then, of old construction and notably warped floors. Out of a grill in the back came some of the best burgers I've had in my life. Where was this? A search reveals a record and its custodian down at 50 Penn, but I don't want to bother them unless really needed. Anyone remember this place?

[OKCRT]

Are you talking about the old place that used to be on N Portland around 172nd on SE corner? Had old wooden floors and they did have an outdoor cooker I believe.

[Joe Kimball]

Very probably, yes. And I remember the kitchen being sort of half in and outside!

[OKCRT]

That old place had been there a long time and it was out in the boonies at one time as there was not much else around there. They would cater to a lot of the oil field workers back in the day driving in and out of the city.

[d-usa]

Some of those old stores are pretty interesting.

I'm always a bit surprised that the Okie Express gas station on NW 176th & May manages to stick around. It feels like the kind of gas station I would see out in the sticks when I lived in western Oklahoma, a quaint little country gas station. But Oklahoma City has just grown and surrounded it. It's amazing how much this area has grown just since 2010 when we moved out here. Their gas prices are quite a bit higher than the 7-11 just a mile down the road, and they don't have any pay-at-the-pump options (and I don't think they have made any efforts to put them in ). The place always seems packed during lunch though, so I wonder if food sales to construction workers are keeping them alive.

[OKCRT]

Some of those old stores are pretty interesting.

I'm always a bit surprised that the Okie Express gas station on NW 176th & May manages to stick around. It feels like the kind of gas station I would see out in the sticks when I lived in western Oklahoma, a quaint little country gas station. But Oklahoma City has just grown and surrounded it. It's amazing how much this area has grown just since 2010 when we moved out here. Their gas prices are quite a bit higher than the 7-11 just a mile down the road, and they don't have any pay-at-the-pump options (and I don't think they have made any efforts to put them in ). The place always seems packed during lunch though, so I wonder if food sales to construction workers are keeping them alive.

I stop in there every once in a while and see mostly lawn care , outdoor workers going in there for food.

[rezman]

That Okie Express has been there for years. When nothing else was around there, and 178th & May was a two lane intersection and the old Hwy 74 curve came from the west and swung around to the south, just north of the store. If you look closely. you can still see where the curve was.

[Joe Kimball]

Right on! And yes, it was definitely boonies then. Oil field workers, of course. I wondered what that was doing out there.

I'm going to swing by 176 and May later. I love stuff like that; old stores and remains of infrastructure.

[d-usa]

It definitely seems to cater to the "working man" crowd out there. They have the food and an area to sit, and a lot of Hispanic brands in the snack and chip aisles. I'm guessing that selling gas is their lowest priority, especially since they still have the old pumps out front. But it seems to be working out for them, they always seem pretty crowded during the daytime hours. I've been in there a couple of times, but I usually just end up heading to either the 7/11 a mile south on May if I need gas as well, or the Daily Stop at Portland and NW 192nd if I'm just getting a snack.

I really don't like the Conoco at 178th and Portland, and the Okie Express is just never really on my radar despite driving past it almost daily.

[jompster]

Most convenience stores make their profit on markup from food, etc., inside the store. There isn't a ton of profit on the gas itself, although having a lower price gets people in the door. I just drove by there today and almost stopped just to check it out from seeing this thread.

[OKCRT]

They must sell a lot of mexican food items and it must be pretty decent and cheap. 90% of the people I see going in there are Hispanic and they do get a lot of business.