In the Tulsa World on Friday, restaurant reviewer Scott Cherry visited the Wings Hamburgers & Brother Arthur's Balilian Fish restaurant at 3409 E. Admiral Place in Tulsa, which is on an older alignment of Route 66.

Wings was an old hamburger stand that dated to the 1940s or '50s. Arthur Farahkhan bought the business a little less than a year ago and kept at least part of the name.

The restaurant purchase, thankfully, included the hamburger recipe, which is excellent. But what's really impressive is the fish sandwich, which an impossible-looking amount of fried fish on a bun and homemade tartar sauce. I've been to Wings a few times, and whoever eats the fish sandwich had better bring a big appetite.

One time when we were there, Farahkhan kindly gave us two free miniature sweet-potato pies. He wanted to make sure we enjoyed ourselves. We did.

We think that Wings epitomizes the best of hospitality and unique roadside cuisine on the Mother Road. It's yet another reason why we love this road so much.

Dennis Kinch, the man who's walking Route 66 for the National Pain Foundation, has made it to Kingman, Ariz., after a few eventful weeks. He nearly bled to death from an ulcer near Sanders. He's OK now, but he won't be able to take ibuprofin for the rest of his walk. You can catch up with the rest of his adventures on his Notes from the Road.

• The San Jose Mercury News has an extensive "Cars" story, including an interview with Route 66 author and expert Michael Wallis.
• Jim Conkle reported yesterday on the Route 66 yahoogroup that a few people from Pixar will attend the Route 66 Festival in Albuquerque later this month, although he isn't yet sure who. A few cast members from "Cars" also have been invited, Conkle said. Disney hasn't said yes to this request, but it hasn't turned it down, either.
• The "Cars" Web site now has links in which you can buy apparel and toys through a Disney online site.

Anyone who's driven the eastern part of 11th Street, aka Route 66, in Tulsa in the past few months knows it's been a less-than-ideal experience because of road construction, serpentine lane changes and even some detours. 

Well, the road construction is done. To celebrate, the Route 66 Business League of Tulsa and the East Alliance of Tulsa are sponsoring the "11th Street Reopening and Roadshow: East Tulsa Kicks on Route 66" on Saturday, June 10.

Theresa Buchert, president of the Business League, e-mailed me this information about the event:

This is a six-mile activity that will include car shows, motorcycle exhibits, free entertainment all day, the dedication of Mingo Route 66 Greenway, discounts from business located along Route 66 form 145th East Avenue through Yale, open houses hosted by five neighborhood associations, displays from community service groups including the Tulsa Police Department, Fire Department, American Red Cross, Citizen Corps, Citizens Crime Commission, SPCA and others; an orange barrel bash at high noon with Elvis in person performing, a pickle-eating contest, hula hoop contest, scavenger hunt, biggest hair contest and best legs in bobbi socks contest, pet contest, as well as many other activities.

Events start at 9 a.m. and continue all day until 5 p.m. up and down this stretch of the highway; just find the participants by looking for yellow and red balloons on their property.

Scheduled events of note include the Mingo park dedication between 11th and Admiral Place at 10 a.m.; pickle-eating contest at Cache River restaurant at 11 a.m.; Elvis live and the construction barrel east of the QuikTrip at 11th and Highway 169 at noon; hula hoop contest at Big Daddy's BBQ at 1 p.m.; and the best legs in bobbi socks at Tally's Cafe at 2 p.m..

Vintage cars and motorcycles will be on display at East Central High School.  

You can find out more about the gala from this flier here. Also, you can e-mail Tneresa Buchert at tjbuchert@aol.com .

A reader, Jimmy J. Pack Jr., told me today that he's started a Web site of his photographs on Route 66. You can buy the photos, or just surf around on the site to check out the Mother Road sights.

You can check out his site here.

Pack's personal Web site is here, which contains links to his blog, a movies and podcasts site, and writings.