When it came to eating at restaurants, it was never about seeking out new and unique tastes whenever I was dining with my parents—it was always about how much food can they get and how much does it cost. It’s a very Oklahoman Texan way to go about your eating habits, one filled with burger deals and buffet lines, a manner of consuming that I fully believe killed my father.
But, for a brief rotund second in early 1990, I thought that was all going to change when we ate at a real restaurant here in Oklahoma City—well, about as real as I could ever get my parents to go to—but still, with not a tray-warmer or greasy pair of tongs in sight, I counted it as somewhat of a decrepit win at my young age.