Look whos so fancy with their groups of acquaintances. Dont worry. Someday, youll meet a bunch of people and panic when you try to go to dinner somewhere. Two or three is easy, but where do you go when you have a crowd to feed? Luckily, Oklahoma City isnt the one-horse, two-cup town it used to be. Here are a few of our favorite spaces when dining with a big group.
by Greg Elwell,
photos by Mark Hancock, Garett Fisbeck and Keaton Draper
Fassler Hall
421 NW 10th St.
609-3300
Germans love to party, which is why they invented giant glasses and enormous tables. At Fassler Hall, youll find plenty of space to eat, drink and be merry. Or play with Legos. Or play Cards Against Humanity. People do all sorts of things there. Be sure to order a few sausages and pretzels to soak up those towering beers, freunde!
The Wedge Pizzeria
4709 N. Western Ave.
602-3477
If youve got a lot of mouths to feed, there are two great options: pizza and worms. (The latter is mostly appropriate only if youre a bird.) Grab a couple of pies at The Wedge it even has gluten-free vegan options and head out to its beautiful back patio. Theres room for kids to run around and a nice selection of craft beers for the adults. Grab a Truffle Shuffle with chicken if you want to make it clear that youre not a bird.
Bellinis Ristorante
6305 Waterford Blvd., Suite 100
848-1065
The Italian word mangia and the English word mange might look similar, but one means eat and the other is a canine skin condition. Leave your dog at home when you head to Bellinis for a night of ultra-delicious mangia-ing. Best of all, it has plenty of room for big, boisterous parties of stereotypically Italian diners slurping fettuccine and dipping bread in zuppa.
Cafe Antigua
1903 N. Classen Blvd.
602-8984
Cafe Antigua is the perfect place for a big Guatemalan breakfast and a family reunion, or even a good place for a loner to pretend hes part of a family reunion. Whore you again? Aunt Kenneths sisters boys half-cousin Berf? Get over here, Berf! Have some of this motuleño! Did you try the machaca? Hey everybody, have you met Berf?! Berf is so lucky.
Koto Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi
2203 W. Main St., Norman
321-5555
The worst part about big tables is all that room in the middle where nobody sits. Thats whats great about Koto Japanese Steakhouse; when you have a seat at these tables with your friends, theres already a guy right in the center, cooking your food and playfully tossing shrimp tails into his hat. Will there be an onion volcano? Of course. It might as well be against the law not to have an onion volcano at a Japanese steakhouse.
Louies Grill & Bar
412 S. Meridian Ave.
942-1141
Long before it became a popular destination for big parties looking for fast-casual food, Louies was known as Louis. Louis was strict and didnt allow beer or laughter until a heart scare (turned out to be gas) convinced him to change, paving the way for the fun-loving and laid-back Louies we love. Is any of this true? Nope. It has always been a fun place for great service and delicious eats for groups large and small.
Zarates Latin & Mexican Grill
706 S. Broadway, Edmond
330-6400
Is it illegal in Oklahoma for somebody else to take a bite out of your hamburger? Finding an actual law forbidding it has proven difficult. But theres one thing we know for sure: There are no laws protecting your nachos. And when youve got a big group like the kind that regularly pack into Zarates, you know someone is going to try to eat those tasty nachos. So order more. Remember, its never just one chip.
Print headline: Crowds welcome