Flavor Of Oklahoma: Coweta’s 1843 On Broadway Masters From-Scratch Staples

A Coweta restaurant is bringing scratch-made, upscale dining to its downtown, showing residents that they don’t have to go far to get a great meal.

1843 on Broadway offers everything from burgers and tacos to steaks and fresh seafood, and the owners are always keeping things fresh.

Inside 1843 on Broadway, dark walls and funky lighting showcase the full bar and lead you up to the second floor, where live music and special events are held.

The owner, Kellie Howard, and her husband, Joe, wanted to bring something new to the town.

“They wanted something different, brought everything to the table. They wanted a good steak, a good salmon, some salads. Pop in for lunch,” said Kellie.

They named it 1843 in honor of the year the Koweta Mission Site opened, a school for Creek Indian children. But after COVID, the restaurant struggled, and their friend Kevin Dang swooped in to revamp the menu.

“I came here and saw a lot of things that could change and help the restaurant recover,” said Dang.

Kevin has decades of restaurant knowledge and experience in hospitality.

“We started making all the food from scratch,” he said. “90% of the food is all from scratch.”

He recruited Chef Danny Widener, a Claremore native with a passion for cooking and years of experience.

“This is what I knew what I wanted to do since I was 12 years old. I take pride in what we do,” Widener said.

Chef Danny is starting off with some of his mozzarella sticks.

“We hand bread them to order,” he said.

The cheese gets an egg wash, dip and flour.

“We finish with our seasoned breadcrumbs: oregano, garlic, salt, pepper,” said Chef Danny.

Those motz sticks are fried until golden and bursting with cheese.

“We serve that with a side of marinara sauce.”

Once hot and crispy, the sticks are garnished, and an irresistible dip and a bite of that melty, cheesy goodness.

For the first entree, Chef Danny is making blackened salmon. The salmon is grilled with a special seasoning. This dish is served with asparagus and seasoned wild rice, and you can’t forget the Creole sauce.

“That's going to be our nice little shrimp sauce,” he said. “Lay that right here across the top.”

It’s decadent, tender and perfectly cooked, and the buttery shrimp sauce takes it to the next level.

You don’t have to go too fancy at 1843 if you don't want to. Some of the most popular menu items are the burgers, which are $5 on Wednesdays.

The Reuben sandwich is another popular item. The toasted rye bread is a blanket for sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and thick smoked pastrami.

“We also do specials every day,” said Dang. “We have our core menu and things not on the menu, so my chef can still be creative.”

If you are feeling classy, the chefs recommend the filet, which is placed on the grill with a lot of butter.

“We baste it as we go.”

It’s cooked medium-rare and served with steamed green beans.

“We steam these with garlic, white wine, salt, pepper,” he said.

It is crowned on top of garlic mashed potatoes with a red wine demi glaze and microgreens.

Save some room for dessert. The bananas foster starts with butter and brown sugar, and then the magic happens.

“Hit it with a little liquor,” the chef said. “Little flambé.”

The sauce goes on top of banana nut bread and ice cream and is a showstopper!

“We take pride in what we do here,” Chef Danny said. “We like to keep it local, fresh and put out a good product.”

Kellie and Kevin take pride in 1843, too. They like to keep things fun for visitors by hosting wine dinners and themed events along with live music.

And soon, they'll be expanding.

“Next door, we’ll double our size,” said Kellie.

By making customers feel appreciated, they hope to continue to be supported by their wonderful community and town.

“We made it feel homey; we’ve just been blossoming and moving forward ever since,” Dang said.

1843 on Broadway is located at 124 S Broadway, Coweta, OK 74429.

Email Kristen.Weaver@griffin.news for recommendations, or follow @kristeats on Instagram for behind-the-scenes.