Keller's Hamburgers is Dallas' oldest drive-in, established in 1950, beating out Sonic by three years. Sonic doesn't count anyway, as its roots are in somewhere in the butcher knife state of Oklahoma. There are three locations in Dallas, and all three have remained unmoved since their construction. The first is still at I-30 and Samuel, the second is on the corner of Northwest Highway and Abrams, the third's on Northwest Highway and Harry Hines.
Not a thing has changed since the 50s, so say the regulars. You can still get the huge, greasy burger with or without cheese, and you can (here's what sets Keller's apart from the A & Ws and Sonics of the world) still get a longneck with it. You might even get the same Rosie, the same chainsmoker transplant from Jersey, to take your order...though by now, she might have to wheel your food out to you.
What's better on a Saturday night than snuggling with your betty in the front seat of your shag wagon, chowing down some meat, and washing it all down with a cold beer?
Saturday evenings, sitting in the back lot of Keller's is when the local car buffs and their sweethearts can eat and get a show. It seems that all the world's old coupes, and hotrods, pickups, and muscle cars come out to show off their blue flames and fuzzy dice. Shiny '68 Mustangs and '57 Belairs get mixed up with souped-up '94 Accords and Jettas. The fun starts when the veterans, who have haunted this burger joint since their teens, since they rolled up packs in their sleeves, and skipped out on the school dance mingle with the modern rabble-rousers, who are either too cool to loiter at the AMC, or too chicken to actually race their rides.