Some Tips for Introducing First-Time Visitors to OKC

I consider myself very lucky to have friends all over the map. Whether I know them from my college days on the East Coast or they’re Okies who’ve found opportunities and built lives elsewhere, it’s nice to connect with those in other parts of the country.

Given my job, it’s always especially nice when those people turn up in Oklahoma City, whether to visit me or just because sometimes, the Universe cooks up conferences, work trips, or large-scale sporting events to bring our orbits within one another’s eyeline.

My friend Woody of more than 25 years came to Oklahoma City in November for work, and we took an awkwardly posed selfie at Tellers in First National Center. Photo by Nathan Gunter

It’s been happening a lot lately. It seems the last couple of years, a whole lot of far-flung friends have found themselves in Oklahoma City, and it’s always such a blast to get to show them around. And while we know our state’s capitol city has much to recommend to anyone with any interest in any subject (or any type of food), I find that information hasn’t made it out into the United States’ general populace to my satisfaction. This leaves me doing a bit of curating, a bit of gently guiding away from AI-generated internet listicles (or ones that are written like they are, anyway), and a good bit of pulling the curtain back on this, one of the most entertaining towns around for those in the know. So here are some of the ways I think about taking guests around the city—and some of the places we go.

It’s the rare out-of-town visitor who hasn’t heard of Cattlemen’s Steakhouse—and everyone I’ve ever taken there has loved it. There’s a reason it’s been open since 1910. Photo by Lori Duckworth

There’s just something about Cattlemen’s Steakhouse. It’s a bit like Saturday Night Live or The Simpsons in that there always will be people who think it makes them sound interesting to rag on it or say “It used to be good.” The truth is, Cattlemen’s is not only good—it’s special. Every out-of-town visitor I’ve entertained has heard of it, been dying to go, and had a truly excellent time.

Honestly, when it comes to visitors, sometimes, it’s tempting to show off your insider, I-live-here knowledge, but there’s a reason the hits are the hits. That’s why I always make sure to take visitors to the Oklahoma City National Memorial, the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, and the First Americans Museum, to name a few musts. I find visitors have heard of them and are excited to see them for themselves—and honestly, I always am too. Cred can get stuffed.

The best day of summer 2024 included a truly epic hang with friends Laurie, left, and Todd at Ma Der Lao Kitchen in Oklahoma City’s Plaza District. Photo by Nathan Gunter

That said, travel is its most boring and pointless when it presents nothing unexpected. So though I make sure everyone gets an eyeful of the big-ticket items, I like to take them through the little jewel cases you have to look twice to see. That’s why I make sure we have a meal either in the Asian District or at Ma Der Lao Kitchen (or often both), because Oklahoma City’s food scene is brilliant, and Asian food—like the Vietnamese cuisine at Pho Cuong or the Lao dishes at Ma Der—is one of the places it really shines. Then we might go thrifting at Bad Granny’s, browsing for music at Guestroom Records, chatting over breakfast at Toast & Coffee, or sidling up to some randomness at the American Pigeon Museum & Library or Factory Obscura.

Gorgeous skies over the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark in summer 2024. Photo by Nathan Gunter

At the end of the day, you know your friends, and they’re here to see you just as much as they are to see the city (we hope). Every city has one, but not every city has a zoo as good as the Oklahoma City Zoo, which is always a good place to take friends with littles—especially when it’s accompanied by a trip next door to Science Museum Oklahoma. Are you and your friends constantly swapping books back and forth? Wander around Full Circle Bookstore or Commonplace Books for an afternoon. Are you sports fans? Oklahoma City is a must-visit sports town, with the Oklahoma City Thunder, USA Softball, Oklahoma City Comets, Riversport OKC, and so much college athletics everywhere you look. And if you want to cut a little loose, areas like Bricktown, the 39th Street District, and The Paseo offer excellent late-night hangouts with variable noise levels based on your guests’ preferences.

If you’ve got a good friend from out of town who’s never been here, I say invite them to come for a weekend this spring. We’re entering one of the state’s best weather seasons, and there are events galore the next few months—from the OKC Arts Festival and Norman Music Fest to the deadCenter Film Festival and more, OKC in the spring is the place to be. When you drop your friend off at the airport and head back toward the city, you’ll see that view of downtown from I-44, and maybe you’ll be looking at your hometown a little differently. I’ve found it never fails that showing a newbie around my home makes me love it a little more.

Written By

Nathan Gunter

A sixth-generation Oklahoman, Weatherford native, and Westmoore High School graduate, Nathan Gunter is the magazine's editor-in-chief. When he's not editor-in-chiefing, Nate enjoys live music, running, working out, gaming, cooking, and random road trips with no particular destination in mind. He holds degrees from Wake Forest University and the University of Oklahoma. He learned how to perform poetry from Maya Angelou; how to appreciate Italian art from Terisio Pignatti; comedy writing from Doug Marlette; how to make coconut cream pie from his great-grandma; and how not to approach farm dogs from trial and error. A seminary dropout, he lives just off Route 66 in Oklahoma City.