Editor's note: This story is featured in OU Daily's Best of Norman Guide, which will be available in print beginning Sept. 10. Racks can be found around Norman and campus. Check out the other featured stories at the bottom of this article.
Nestled between Classen Boulevard and Boyd Street lies The Mont, a Norman staple for nearly 50 years.
The historic 1930s building housed The Monterey Restaurant, commonly known as “The Mont,” from 1943 to 1969. A few short-lived restaurants opened and closed until 1976, when OU alumni John Krattiger, Bill Hammons and Dick Talley opened the restaurant beloved in Norman today. It was named The Mont as an homage to The Monterey Restaurant.
OU drama student Spencer-Shane Cartwright has worked at The Mont since June 2023 and said the restaurant may not appear to be anything special on the outside, but there is a magic and energy to the restaurant.
“I tell people all the time, it's a place that shouldn't work, but it does work,” Cartwright said.
Inside the small building the lighting is dim, with booths along a wall, a few tables and a large round blue couch tucked in a corner for groups. The patio is full of tables covered by umbrellas while misters continuously spray, cooling off customers on hot days. At any given time, the place is most likely packed.
The Mont’s menu offers classic appetizers, burgers, sandwiches and Mexican specialties. They also serve a full bar which features the Sooner Swirl, The Mont’s signature drink that is a blend of a frozen margarita and sangria.
Sooner Swirl at The Mont on Aug. 19.
“We try to give the same experience to every customer every day, which is good quality food and good quality drink in a fun and enticing environment,” said general manager Patrick Kallin.
An average day at The Mont will bring a range of Normanites, families, students celebrating their 21st birthday with their first Sooner Swirl, couples young and old sitting at the bar and friends chatting about their weeks. The restaurant has established itself as the go-to place for a good meal and affordable drinks, usually accompanied by hours of quality time with loved ones.
“I feel like it's a place where anyone is welcome,” Cartwright said. “There's so many people from so many different walks of life that walk into that place.”
Kallin moved to Norman in 1997 to attend OU and started working at The Mont as a dishwasher in 1998, becoming general manager in 2012. He said he used to think of The Mont as just another restaurant but over the years realized it was much more.
“It’s an establishment and a tradition, and it means so much to so many people,” Kallin said.
Cartwright described his fellow staff as a family and said he even has connections with people that worked at The Mont 10 to 15 years ago. He said the restaurant’s regular customers also make his experience at work worth it.
“I know for a fact that the next day going to work, I will see at least 10 people that know me by name,” Cartwright said.
Due mostly to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cartwright said he has been in and out of classes at OU since 2019. He is now going back to school full time and said The Mont is the reason.
“I would not be able to afford (school) without working at The Mont, and all the people there pushed me to go for it,” Cartwright said.
Kallin is close with several customers and has made many friendships at The Mont since his days as a dishwasher. He said he has gone on trips with some regulars, even traveling as far as Boston.
Boomer Sooner sign in the blue room at The Mont on Aug. 19.
“My friend group is so huge from all the people that I know here that it kind of irritates my girlfriend when we travel,” Kallin said. “Because without fail, wherever I go, I see somebody who knows me from The Mont.”
Given its proximity to campus and its history with the university, OU game days are especially packed at The Mont. Ticket holders flood in before and after football games, and others tune in on the restaurant’s television. Inside, The Mont displays historic “Town Tavern” 1947 OU football scoreboards.
Cartwright said The Mont has become iconic. He said people who graduated from OU decades ago have stories from the restaurant and pretty much every Sooner fan has visited.
“It has stayed strong and going for almost 50 years, and that's a pretty big accomplishment for a mom-and-pop type place,” Cartwright said. “With the way that it's growing and the way that it continues to grow, I don’t think it will ever shut down.”
Found at 1300 Classen Blvd., The Mont is open every day from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
“At this point, it’s part of the Norman and Sooner magic DNA,” Cartwright said. “It’s part of the OU story.”
This story was edited by Shelby Emery and Peggy Dodd. Natalie Armour, Avery Avery, Grace Rhodes and Mary Ann Livingood copy edited this story.
