By Matt Zerr
Don Shull has been making burgers since the ‘50s and he hasn’t changed his methods in more than half a century. Tucked away in the northwest corner of the state in the town of Oakley, resides a restaurant simply called Don’s Drive-In. In operation since 1982, Don’s, has been offering great drive-in food reminiscent of the 1950’s, which is exactly what they advertise.
Shull, owner and operator of Don’s, started his restaurant career in 1959 with his brother Glenn in Colby. The Rainbow Drive-In was originally a detached garage converted into a drive-in on a lot of land where the two grew up.
Since its stalls opened in 1959, it was hailed by locals as the “hot spot” in Colby. Shull stayed with Rainbow until 1969 when he decided to try his hand at other trades. Holding various jobs and moving around, he soon found himself back in Kansas.
Shull decided to go back to his roots and the drive-in business was a big part of his heritage, thus, Don’s Drive-In was born.
Never forgetting the cooking methods he learned, Shull sought to give the local people something they hadn’t experienced for awhile, that classic drive-in taste.
Sticking with ‘50s themed menu items and food containers, Don’s offers a glimpse into the past; from the old Order-Matic call system at each stall, to the bowtie and paper hat that he wears every day.
“Find a need and fill it,” the 79 year old Shull advises. He believes his restaurant’s distinctive characteristics appeals to the baby-boomer generation that grew up during the drive-in era. It’s the trips down memory lane offered by Don’s and its crew that keep customers coming back for more.
Another key to Don’s success is the food itself.
Staying local with most of the food purchasing, Shull feels it keeps the food fresh and more palatable for the customers, which is important since the curly fries and onion rings are homemade. They also get all their beef from the local grocery store and ask them use special plates for “stamping out” the meat patties in order to keep to the drive-in traditions.
Doing local purchasing keeps his business running. “Its businesses helping businesses. You have to do that in small towns to stay alive,” Shull claims. Most of the Don’s Drive-In customers are, in fact, local.
“About two thirds our sales come from Oakley and the surrounding areas,” Shull states. This is big for them since they are located a few miles off of I-70, on the corner of Highway Junction 40 and 83, not catching much highway traffic.
However, this has not stopped a few people from discovering this unique restaurant. Shull claims that vacationers as far away as California, and even Hawaii, have stopped at his drive-in and loved the experience so much that they have called ahead to plan their trips around his hours of operation.
Only operating Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. means that Shull will take all the business he can get. Add to that the size of the drive-in itself, only 13 stalls big with two other employees, and Shull will tell you that one thing is key: efficiency.
“Efficiency is the key to running any business, especially a restaurant,” Shull believes. Which is crucial because they never pre-make items; all food is made fresh to order.
This is a policy that Shull vows to never change and recalls a local customer’s remarks one day regarding this: “I don’t mind waiting 45 minutes for food, so long as it burns my fingers when I get it.”
With all these factors working against Don’s, one would think they barely mange to stay open when it’s actually the complete opposite.
Shull claims his business has maintained steady growth every year since the opening back in 1982. He contributes much of this to his great staff over the years and dedicated customer base.
“I owe it all to them. They’re the reason I’m still in business,” Shull says. With such a one of a kind drive-in, the state should hope to keep Don’s open as well.
