Burgers on the left. Ice cream on the right. Pulling into the little red buildings on Northeast 23rd, I felt like whoever arranged this place understood the assignment. The burger half is Just Burgers; the sweet half is Kool Cafe, spelled with a K. We came for the frozen treats, and the choice board immediately brought back that after-school ice-cream-truck problem: too many options and absolutely no ability to decide quickly.
Burgers on one side, frozen treats on the other
The two stands share a compact roadside setting at 7821 NE 23rd Street in Oklahoma City. Just Burgers has its own red building, while Kool Cafe operates from the neighboring red window. You can see both names from the parking area. There is something charmingly direct about the setup: get a burger and fries, then take a few steps for dessert.
We didn't order burgers during this visit, so I'm not going to pretend this is a burger review. But the arrangement makes it awfully likely that we'll be back for one. If you've eaten at Just Burgers, tell me what I should order next time.
Just Burgers began with years of backyard cookouts
There's a real story behind the burger stand. In a 2026 KFOR Great State report, owners Karl and Amanda Willett described years of feeding friends and family at cookouts while working on their seasonings and sauce. The report says they took over a small barbecue shack on NE 23rd in 2023 and opened Just Burgers with a deliberately short menu: burgers and fries.
Karl also told KFOR that a 3-Way Cafe in Missouri's Bootheel influenced the *feeling* he wanted to create. That's the kind of small-town-food memory I can get behind. The business's current website lists the original NE 23rd location and a second Just Burgers West on NW 23rd; this visit is to the northeast location, not the newer west-side one.
The old smoke shack got a second act as Kool Cafe
The ice-cream side has its own little bit of history, though I couldn't verify a separate founding date for the Kool Cafe name. KFOR reported in 2026 that Just Burgers had turned the former barbecue smoke shack into an ice-cream and milkshake shop. The Kool Cafe sign and treat window in our photos show what that neighboring dessert stop looks like now.
It's a fun reuse of the space: a place once associated with barbecue smoke now covered in milkshake, snow-cone, and sundae choices. I wouldn't call it a historic 1990s shop—the throwback feeling is *my* reaction to the treats and the visit, not a claim about when Kool Cafe opened.
Picking a treat took me straight back to the ice-cream truck
Kool Cafe had the sort of selection that makes everyone pause at the window. I saw snow cones, milkshakes, ice cream, sundaes, and frozen candy bars. The boards in my photos are a snapshot of what was offered when we visited, not a promise that every item or price will always be there.
What got me was the familiar feeling of standing there with a little allowance money, trying to choose before the ice-cream truck drove away. Even as an adult, the decision somehow isn't easier. You want the thing you came for, and then you spot three other things you forgot existed.
The freezer case is pure after-school nostalgia
The novelty bars pushed that feeling further. There were colorful frozen candy and ice-pop options alongside the shakes and cones. None of this needs a long speech about culinary innovation; sometimes the whole appeal is opening a wrapper and tasting something that reminds you of being a kid.
That mood is why I made the video feel like a Saturday-morning-TV stop. It isn't because the café claims to date back to the '90s. It's because the treat selection sent my brain there immediately.
We landed on three different sweets
Our final lineup was a cherry-lemon pop, a Nutella treat, and a cookie ice-cream sandwich. It was a pretty righteous spread: something fruity, something chocolate-hazelnut, and the classic sandwich option I can never fully talk myself out of. Madeline and Reagan got their sweet treats too, so everybody left with something.
The cookie sandwich is the kind of choice you make after spending far too long looking at the board and realizing you would have been happy with it from the start.
A quick sweet stop worth remembering
Kool Cafe is a small stop, but the burger-and-ice-cream pairing gives it an easy identity. The red roadside buildings are hard to miss, and the dessert choices make it a good detour when you're on this stretch of NE 23rd. For current hours or burger details, check Just Burgers' official site; I couldn't confirm separate Kool Cafe hours online.
Next time I'll do the left side of the property too. What should my first Just Burgers order be?
Visit details: Kool Cafe is beside the original Just Burgers at 7821 NE 23rd St, Oklahoma City, OK 73141. Just Burgers' official site lists this location; separate Kool Cafe hours were not verified. The west-side Just Burgers at 3409 NW 23rd is a different location.
