El Reno has the fried onion burger. Bartlesville is home of the Hot Hamburger. But there’s another beefy beauty native to the Sooner State with a surprisingly complex origin story: the Theta burger.

For the uninitiated, a Theta burger itself is not a terribly complicated affair. It’s a burger with pickle chips and mayonnaise topped with a splash of hickory sauce and lots of shredded American cheese.

It’s an undeniably delicious combination, but finding out where it began is less certain. A number of sources online, including the website
TasteAtlas.com, credit its creation to the Split-T restaurant in Oklahoma City in 1953. The manager when it opened was Johnnie Haynes, who continued guiding the ship at the Split-T for eighteen years before he opened his own iconic Oklahoma eatery, Johnnie’s Charcoal Broiler.

Split-T sells bottles of its Theta Hickory sauce on its website and at Oklahoma City metro stores including Bill Kamp’s Meat Market. Photo courtesy Oklahoma Historical Society

But that doesn’t mean the Split-T originated the Theta, says Rick Haynes, who co-owns his father’s restaurant group with his brother David.

“Here’s the story I have been told, though I’m not sure if it’s correct,” Haynes says. “There was a sorority in Norman that was close to this restaurant, and these girls would always order burgers with sauce, mayo, cheese, and pickles.”

They ordered it so often that the invention of a shorthand title was necessary, so it became the Theta burger.

“The Split-T was the one that really brought it to the forefront in Oklahoma City, but everything I’ve heard says it came from Norman,” Haynes says.
And that burger still can be found on the menu at Johnnie’s, along with bottles of Johnnie’s Sauce for those who want to make their own.

A different version of the Theta is available on the menu at Sun Cattle Co. in Oklahoma City, where owner Russ Johnson has remixed the original with a little fried onion burger added in.

“I’ve always loved a Theta burger,” he says. “I grew up eating them with my dad. So when we were putting together the menu, I thought we could cross the streams of these two uniquely Oklahoman burgers. Having access to the Split-T sauce makes all the difference. It’s not barbecue sauce.”

Sun Cattle Co. uses Split-T Theta Hickory Sauce. It’s not as sweet as barbecue sauce, and it has a different texture that’s more voluminous thanks to the inclusion of grated onion.

As for where it started? Johnson heard it was a small grocery store in Norman, but he admits the story likely morphed and changed through the years of retelling.

Patrons Benny Pain and Mark Reed wait for a burger at Norman's Town Tavern. Photo courtesy Oklahoma Historical Society

Noted hamburger historian George Motz, author of Hamburger America and The Great American Burger Book, gives credit to Ralph Geist, owner of Town Tavern at the corner of Boyd Street and Asp Avenue in Norman. In his version, Town Tavern was beset by a multitude of late-night orders coming from the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority at the University of Oklahoma. And each order was unique.

“All different types of burgers, and it was making Ralph crazy,” Motz explains on his Burger Scholar Sessions YouTube show. “So he went to the sorority and said, ‘Girls! Come up with one burger; I’ll call it your burger,’ and the Theta special was born.”

While the true history of the Theta burger is unconfirmed, the existence of the delicacy is a fact. Hamburger enthusiasts visiting Norman won’t have to look too hard to find one. Theta burgers are on the menu at The Diner, O’Connell’s Irish Pub & Grille, The Mont, Classic 50s Drive-in, and The Garage Burgers & Beer—with a little bacon for some extra savory goodness.

Johnnie’s Charcoal Broiler has six locations around the state.

• johnniesburgers.com

Written By

Greg Elwell

Greg Elwell served as research editor and web editor of Oklahoma Today from 2018-2023. He also has worked for newspapers, medical research organizations, and government institutions.