Take it away! Brisket burgers, fries, BBQ, other great Fort Worth drive-through dining
North Texas is the home of the first drive-in restaurant, and now’s the time to visit one.
A century has passed since the Kirby family opened the first drive-in in America, the Pig Stand in west Dallas.
(They eventually founded a restaurant you might know: Kirby’s Steakhouse.)
Some of Fort Worth’s all-time favorite restaurants have a little-known drive-up window. And some of the city’s busiest restaurants are chain drive-throughs like Whataburger and Georgia-based Chick-fil-A.
if you’re distancing from regular dining, here’s a look at drive-in dishes to wheel in and try:
▪ Zeke’s Fish & Chips, 5920 Curzon Ave., is a 1970s throwback known for fried cod and cornmeal-dusted fried veggies (okra, mushrooms, eggplant, zucchini).
The drive-in window can be slow, because everything is made to order. But but it’s worth the wait for a fish combo with okra and eggplant, and for the bargain under-$1 desserts like Magic Bars and Tugboat Annie Bars; 817-731-3321, zekesfishandchips.net.
▪ The Railhead Smokehouse, 2900 Montgomery St. at Interstate 30, remains the home of some of the city’s best pork ribs and the all-time winner for “Best French fries.”
If you can, go Tuesday or Saturday for the smoked chicken special. (That’s one menu item where Railhead still outsmokes the new craft barbecue upstarts.) There’s chili, too, and the other menu items are reliable; 817-738-9808, railheadsmokehouse.com.
▪ Hurley House, a little-known drive-through at 5512 Bellaire Drive South (along Bryant Irvin Road), is open only weekdays at midday.
But Hurley House is worth finding for the surprises, from chicken salad or pimiento to the family-style casseroles, and side dishes with baked goods for dessert; 817-349-8934, hurley-house.com.
▪ Boo-Ray’s of New Orleans, the best little Cajun restaurant in the West, has a drive-through window that’s sort of an insiders’ secret for the neighbors near 5728 Boat Club Road.
Try the “swamp fries” with cheese, bacon and Andouille gravy, and blackened catfish or tilapia with the creamy jalapeno sauce. Or just order a cup of the midnight-dark gumbo and a po-boy on Gambinos Bakery bread; 817-236-6149. booraysofneworleans.com.
▪ The Dive Burger Bar has the best burger available from a drive-through window.
The burgers-and-seafood grill at 3520 Alta Mere Drive on the Benbrook Traffic Circle serves a classic chargrilled, brisket-blend burger with prime steakhouse flavor — but sold out the window of an old KFC with a notorious past.
Whether you get the regular burger with fries or the very good salmon burger, leave room for the Dive’s stellar Key lime pie; 817-560-3483, thediveoysterbartx.com.
▪ Curly’s Frozen Custard, 4017 Camp Bowie Blvd., also serves hot dogs regular, German- or Chicago-style, and Frito pie topped with chili from Fort Worth-based Deen Meat.
Curly’s is offering 20% off this week, with two monthly custard flavors, mint-chocolate chip and Key lime pie. I’d try the Key lime as a swirl with blueberries; 817-763-8700, curlysfrozencustard.com.
▪ Panera Bread is the most complete menu you can order through a drive-through window, and also one of the most efficient chain restaurants.
Luxembourg-owned Panera, founded as St. Louis Bread, has expanded to serve sandwiches on a choice of 10 breads, 11 daily soups and 10 salads, plus bottomless coffee for $8.99 per month.
On a trip to the Westworth Village location, Panera surprised with a chipotle-chicken-avocado-gouda melt with chipotle mayo, and also with a turkey-avocado-BLT sandwich on sourdough.
The chicken noodle soup is also above average, but the most popular soup is broccoli cheddar.
Locations in north Fort Worth, Lake Worth, Westworth Village, Hurst, Euless, Arlington and Mansfield have drive-through windows; http://www.panerabread.com.
▪ Chick-fil-A: Sure, you know about the sandwiches with pickles and addictive pickle-juice chicken.
But did you know Chick-fil-A also offers a very reputable chicken tortilla soup? Worth a try; chick-fil-a.com
▪ Whataburger: You don’t need my help here.
But the Monterey Melt with Jack-American cheeses, fajita peppers and jalapeno ranch sauce is the all-time absolute best fast-food burger.
It’s always an off-menu item when it’s not a promoted special; whataburger.com.
This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 5:45 AM.
