Johnnie’s Drive In

Johnnie’s Drive-​in is not only a Tupelo favorite but a must stop for Elvis fans the world over, including myself! I’ve frequented Johnnie’s more times than I can count, but today I wanted to experience it with a fresh perspective as that of a tourist in our own backyard… and it was FANTASTIC! I started out taking plenty of photos outside and reading the Elvis landmark. You can park and they will come out and take your order, but for the full package you gotta go inside. So after entering, I requested the Elvis booth, but it was already taken, oh well. But while I was waiting for my food, the booth became available and I was ask if I would like to sit there instead… well yah! I was super impressed by this cause they understand the connection their patrons, new and old-​timers (today I qualify as both) have with the total Johnnie’s /​Elvis experience.
Now for the food. For my sides, I ordered the onion rings which was large, crisp and tasty. The kind when you bite into them and the whole onion slice doesn’t follow suit. I also noticed they started offering fried green beans! Now, I’ll eat green beans when my wife cooks them, but I’m NOT ordering them off a menu (just not how I roll). But this intrigued me so I decided to give it a try… Let’s just say that I can’t imagine eating green beans any other way! Give-​um to me battered, deep fried, with a side of ranch any day!
Now for what I came here for… the Johnnie’s burger. You’ve probably already noticed I’ve got 2 burgers. Y’all may not have known this cause it’s NOT on the menu, but if your «in-​the-​know», you can order a JUMBO Johnnie’s burger for $ 2.50! And it’s huge! Made the same as the original with mustard, pickles, and onions but super-​sized. It was a wonderful experience and not one that should be enjoyed just by excited visitors. So put on a fresh pair of eyes and give them another try for the first time!
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I went to see Elvis’ birth place and the lady in the shop told me that I had to come here and try it out, that it was Elvis’ favorite place to eat in town. Well, maybe this was the only place to eat in town back in the day, oh, and Elvis’ taste buds must have been dull after all the drugs he ingested because this place is CRAP! The people are VERY nice, but thats all the charm this place has. I saw the guy in back making these things, and there was pre-​cooked meat just sitting on a plate, and he put the meat in between 2 buns and put it in a grill press. They call it a dough burger because back in the day they were poor and put flour in with the meat to stretch out the meat to make it appear to be more of it for people to eat. Well, Elvis must have gotten bloated from eating all those dough burgers. I had one bite and spit it out, PUKE, PUKE, PUKE!!!

Super friendly service. I walked in a bit confused about how to order and was greeted with a kind welcome. Small place that is charming and quaint, and reminds me of days gone by. Had to try the Johnnie burger which has dough mixed in. Tasty to me, and unique.

l wanted to eat here after I found out that Elvis had eaten here on occasion. I was hoping it would not be too crowded so I could sit in the booth Elvis sat in. There is a picture above the booth of him sitting in the same booth. An article below tells the story of the picture. When I arrived I saw that it was empty and was able to sit in it. The owner and the staff were so welcoming and friendly. I decide to try a dough burger and it was great. If you are an Elvis fan or if you just want some good food from some good people this is the place. I highly recommend a dough burger. I will be back next time I am in town.

Quaint, cute, fast and good food. Great small town dive vibe.

Locals love this place, but if I were looking for good food and not nostalgia, I’d go elsewhere. It’s old, dirty, smells like old grease and virtually all the food came frozen off a Sysco truck. Not impressed and not a huge Elvis fan, so won’t be back. Supposedly they have good doughburgers which is some nasty concoction from the depression where they didn’t have a whole lot of meat, so they stretched it with dough. I know I shouldn’t knock it till I try it, but I ain’t try in’ that.

This is the real deal, and there aren’t too many like this left.
It’s not gourmet, but it isn’t supposed to be. The service is a little slow, but once the food comes out you know why. They’re taking the time to be sure everything is right.
This means hand packed burgers on a flame grill. It means fries with the right amount if crisp and salt. It means lemonade that tastes refreshing but not like liquid diabetes.
The staff is very cordial, as are the regulars. Within 10 minutes I felt like is been going there for years.
On top of all this there is the very real, very cool Elvis connection.
Be sure to stop by, you’ll be glad you did.

OK food quality. Small restaurant and small booths. Large people would probably have issues being able to sit in the small homemade booths. You also have the seasonal threat of being flooded by an Elvis tour group who’s there to take pictures. Locals tend to eat in their cars, and they do have car service.
If you’re an Elvis fan, come for the nostalgia and enjoy a burger meal that won’t break the budget.

This is the oldest restaurant in Tupelo, MS and it is almost right across the street from where Elvis Presley was born. Elvis frequented this restaurant during his time in Tupelo and came to eat here on his trips back to Tupelo after becoming famous. As such they have a booth called «The Elvis Booth». Be sure to get a picture in that booth before you leave.
As a local who recommended the place to me said: «The place hasn’t changed a bit since the 1950s.» The place is very small and simple as is their menu. Burgers, fries, tater tots, shakes, soft drinks. That’s about the extent of what you’ll get here. The walls are adorned with Elvis memorabilia and other historic photos and newspaper clippings.
They have one menu specialty here, the dough burger, which you should consider trying to make the experience more unique. In case you’re wondering, dough burger is a depression style burger that mixes the ground meat with dough to save on meat costs and still maintain the size of the hamburger. A lot of people complain that its bland. I honestly did not notice any difference between my dough burger and a regular burger. Be sure to get your dough burger with onion and mustard. Also, the tater tots here are awesome!
I can’t believe people have complained that the servers here are unfriendly. The staff here could not have been more welcoming and friendly. When I first arrived at the restaurant the Elvis Booth was occupied. As soon as the people eating there left, one lady rushed over to clear it off as fast as she could so my family could take pictures there. That was really nice! Another younger woman working there offered to take our pictures at the booth without us even asking her. She joked about how she has taken more pictures of people in that booth than her own kids! The workers could not have been more awesome!
If you’re in Tupelo, MS to see all of the Elvis spots this is one you must be sure to stop at.

This was one of places in Tupelo that Elvis «The King» loved to eat. Legend says the Beatles also liked the BBQ here. I think the BBQ quite frankly sort of sucks here and the burgers are decently mediocre. I think the best things to eat here are the entrée type items. They have some nice history posted inside this joint so its definitely worth a stop just to see this place and it certainly appears as if it hasn’t changed in many years. The ambiance is throwback cool while the food is mostly underwhelming some of the entrée items are good Southern cooking.

Color me confused by these two negative reviews. I don’t doubt the experience of those folks, but I can say we had a fantastic breakfast Johnnie’s.
I coach a high school debate team and the kids and I were in Alabama for the National tournament. After their all too early exit from the tournament, we decided to spend a day road tripping around, seeing fun things. On our way to Memphis (and Graceland!), I figured Tupelo would be a great place to stop– hey, why not see where Elvis was born if we were going to see where he died, right?
When I heard that Johnnie’s had some more Elvis history, it was a no brainer that we’d pop in for breakfast. There were a few locals milling about, as well as a waitress or two and the matriarch of the restaurant (who was clearly running the show). When the matriarch heard we were from California, she insisted we sign her guest book (no, but seriously: take a look at the guestbook if you get a chance. Hoooo boy, there are some *crazy* rantings in there about guns and Amurica etc etc).
Anyway, I got the chicken fried steak, along with some biscuits, gravy, and sweet tea. The sweet tea was easily the sweetest tea this native Californian has ever tasted, but despite the early on set diabetes, it was delish. The gravy was crazy good, reminding me of the white gravy my step grandmother from Arkansas used to make by the bucketload. Biscuits were flakey and great. And the chicken fried steak was fried perfectly– it wasn’t overly greasy and you didn’t even need a knife to cut it. Flavorful and delicious.
Everyone in our group enjoyed their meals, but everybody got breakfast. So, I can’t speak to other meals. Still, I would definitely stop by Johnnie’s if I ever find myself in Tupelo again– and so should you.

Friendly people and some real music history make this a great roadside pit stop. I do caution though that if you have not had dough burgers and are planning a long drive to go try one it’s not really worth the drive: they are quite bland. Ask for the hot sauce.

Best old time burgers in town. i’ve been going here since i was a little kid and i’m 30 now. Go get a dough burger light on onions xtra mustard. They only take cash so hit the atm first. and its a drive-​in too! or u can go in and sit down.