In this time when an “anxious, troubled nation huddles in tight clusters of fear and uncertainty, shot through with far too much war, economic grief, Tea Party idiocy, iffy cell phone reception and low-level karmic doom,”* I, too, tire of all the negatives associated with our economy and our real estate market here in Bend (Foreclosures . . . . Bend as a Death-Defying City . . . Mortgage Rates Rising, etc.). I find it necessary to shift focus, look at the positive, and write about hamburgers.
Pilot Butte Drive-In to move west
The iconic Pilot Butte Drive-In, home to the fabulous 18 oz. “Pilot Butte Burger” (“The biggest I’ve seen and tried to eat! Park the car and eat inside; trying to wrestle with one of these monsters will really mess up your ride.”) has announced plans to open a new location on 14th. Street on Bend’s west side.
History
The Pilot Butte Drive-In opened in 1983 at the site which had previously housed an A and W Restaurant. Owners, Jack and Dee Mangin built on the theme that a good burger should be “gooey and drippy’ and served by “family.” That theme served them well until 2007, when the restaurant was sold to current owners, Bill and Tammy Falconer.
Expansion a Goal
Expansion has always been a goal, even if the new location may lack some of the original’s ambiance with its “car hop stations and retro signs.”
The new lease is still being negotiated, so the exact location of the restaurant is still a secret . . . though insiders hint that it will open in the site that previously housed “Tony’s Deli.” Regardless, the time is right with “the Bend economy starting to improve, and leasing rates remaining low.”
The Menu
The menu hasn’t changed much in years. The burgers are still generally rated in the top 10 in the state. This from the sage at the “Oregon Hamburger Review” . . . ” a very good hamburger that was #1 for years. This place is home to the famous Pilot Butte Burger (18oz burger)
and the wager winner burger for me, the “64oz. burger” – the menu says that it feeds a family of 4! I have won several hundred dollars making bets with friends who have never seen this burger before, yet still claim (and bet big) that they can eat it. Its big!”
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*Mark Morford in the SF Chronicle
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