Review: Dudes Drive-In serves up good food, nostalgia 

There are dudes and then there is Dudes.

Dudes Drive-In sits on Roanoke Street in the heart of Christiansburg and boasts a nostalgic look reminding folks of days gone by. P.L. “Dude” Griffith has owned the joint for decades, and he refers to his drive-in lot as his “dining room.”

I arrived at Dudes in what I thought to be dude-like fashion, on an empty stomach, blaring a 1980s jam with my windows down. The Dudes wait staff frenetically swarms the dining room, and I had a waitress at the door of my Subaru as soon as I pulled up to the curb. She was upbeat and patient as I deliberated the age-old dilemma of fries vs. tater tots .

Dudes' menu boasts the traditional drive-in staples such as hamburgers, hot dogs and chili dogs . But it also offers classic down-home dishes such as chuckwagons, hamburger steak sandwiches, sausage on a bun, and ham and egg on a bun. The list of favorites is seemingly endless, with no regard for the heart-healthy crowd.

The ordering process is executed with military precision, with Dudes ladies transmitting orders in real time to the kitchen through their shoulder-mounted radio gear. While the operations are swift, the waitresses are no drill sergeants; they are approachable and charming, referring to diners as “honey ” and “sweetie.”

I ended up ordering five items because I was torn among so many classic choices. Given the economy pricing of Dude’s menu, I felt OK with the large order. The classic Dude Burger starts at the nice price of $2.85; the most expensive meal is the oyster dinner, complete with french fries, tater tots, onions rings, slaw and rolls for just $10.

The food came faster than I could load my latest Instagram feed. Crammed tightly into a small, white paper bag were my treats: a Dude Burger with cheese, tater tots, coleslaw and a midget burger (a tiny burger topped with mustard, onion and chili, $1.45). I was able to pay with plastic, curbside.

As soon as the paper bag crossed the threshold of my car window, the smells of deep-fried goodness and cheesy hamburgers made my mouth water. I tore open the wax paper packaging, going straight for the tater tots. They are round with the right balance of golden crispy crunch and soft inside. The flavor of the tots was so perfect I didn’t even remember to open a packet of ketchup.

The Dude Burger with cheese ($3.30) was also topped with lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, pickle and onion, and it was a home run. The beef was fresh and my waitress explained that Dude and his son, Blake, purchase fresh beef from Wades Foods every morning. The white bun was soft and held everything together, and the warm burger melted the cheese to a perfectly gooey consistency. While I usually think of iceberg lettuce as a shortcut, Dude’s burgers require it to stay true to it’s drive-in roots.

The slaw ($1.30) was the only item in my bag that left me wanting. The finely diced cabbage, carrots and a few onions were a bit sour for my taste. Perhaps the burger was so superior that the slaw just fell flat in comparison, but in the future I’ll skip the slaw and simply enjoy the cheeseburger ($1.90) instead.

For my second visit to Dudes, I rolled in blasting a country anthem and ready to order something different from Dudes' lengthy menu. I settled on a sausage and egg sandwich (with the tater tots again, which I could not resist). My food arrived with lightning speed, validating Dude’s reputation for efficiency. The egg came piled on the sandwich with a thin fold that enclosed a flavorful sausage patty. The eggs tasted as if they had been cooked fresh — they passed the rubbery egg test with flying colors. I found the sausage to have a nice flavor and it seemed far removed from filler-mystery-meat sausage that I’ve come to expect from run-of-the-mill fast-food joints.

In short, Dudes is awesome, dude. Cheap food with full flavor doesn’t get any better than this place. Sure, you’re not going to win any bikini contests eating this food, but you will be quite satisfied and you may get nostalgic about the glory days as you inhale your Dude Burger.

Note: Dudes is situated directly below the Starlite drive-in theater, another truly nostalgic and perfect experience. For a fantastic cheap date, I recommend Dude’s and a late night movie. You’ll thank me.

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