We love roadside attractions and today we’re looking at the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo, Texas. This place has been a landmark in Texas since 1960. The thing that has made the place famous is the free 72 ounce steak. But how do they do that?

Free 72 ounce steak

The free 72 ounce steak is sort of a gimmick, but no roadside attraction would be a roadside attraction without some sort of gimmick. The way it works is that if you can eat this huge steak within an hours’ time, you don’t pay. Simple.

Standing in front of the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo, Texas

But wait. There’s more. You also have to eat all the side dishes that come with this monster meal and those include salad, baked potato, roll and butter and a shrimp cocktail.

Further, you are up on a raised platform with a timer behind you so you’re also on stage, though that could be part of the fun.

The first time I went here there were no takers on the challenge but this last time there was one. And, like many who go for this huge meal, he didn’t complete it. Wah, wah.

Know that he had already paid his $72 for the meal as that’s also part of the deal - pay in advance. You do get to take a bite out of the steak before the timer starts just to make sure it’s cooked the way you like it. Then, you tell them to start the timer and they do - one hour to complete the challenge.

And sweat. And eat. Don’t forget the roll and butter or it’s no dice.

During that time you can not get up nor leave the table. Of course others can’t help you - they can’t even cut the steak for you. As they say, it’s your challenge.

If things really go badly and you can’t keep it down, there’s a place for that too. Ew.

What I did

I was able to finish an entire meal, but not that one. I ordered a nine ounce ribeye steak which is on the lunch menu. This comes with two sides - I got a baked potato and green Chile corn. Peggy got the same thing but chose Mac and cheese instead of the corn.

The food here is very good. The steak was cooked perfectly, the sides are quite good. I really liked that green Chile corn quite a bit. The sweetness of the creamed corn really goes well with the bite of the chile.

Their menu is pretty diverse but steaks and barbecue, as you would expect in Texas, are the core. But they have much of what you’d expect in a restaurant - burgers, fish, chicken all of those things.

There are also things that might be a surprise. Such as mountain oysters. Nope, these don’t come from the sea but let’s just say that bull’s voice is a bit higher after he donates to this dish.

There are also 80 ounce steaks, a 50 ounce steak sandwich and much more. A huge number of desserts also have a home on the menu but, just in case, they’re also in full display on the way out.

Decor

I can’t imagine who’s in charge of dusting this place but they certainly have their work cut out for them. There are all sorts of animal heads, skulls, knickknacks and more. The place is actually two stories with an upper deck that’s much like a patio overlooking the lower restaurant.

A musician provides table-side entertainment.

I like that the seating is on long tables so, if you find a kindred spirit, you can talk about the person up on stage doing their best to eat that much of a meal.

When we were there there was also a gentleman with a guitar who made his way around to the tables taking requests. Since we had mentioned that we were here last on our Route 66 trip he performed Route 66 as sung by Nat “King” Cole.

He also fully serenaded another diner who was there celebrating their birthday and really did it up right with accompanying yahoos and yeehaws.

All the team on hand wears jeans, cowboy hats and western shirts so you feel like you’re in Texas at a steak house.

But wait, there’s more

In addition to the restaurant there’s a gift shop and bakery, of course. But there’s also a bar and a brewery.

You can be a guest of the Big Texan Steak Ranch as well by either staying in their motel or in their RV park. In fact we found that we had no issues with parking on our last trip through here when we had the trailer. On this journey, we didn’t have a trailer as we’re heading to Indiana to pick ours up.

The Big Texan Steak House main dining room

Not really Route 66

The Big Texan started life on Route 66 but, as with so many historic places, it has since changed locations. In 1970 the restaurant moved from it’s original location to the present one. Fire ravaged this location in 1974 destroying an estimated $100,000 worth of antiques and collectibles.

Driving into Amarillo from the west there is a lot of desert and farm land. Suddenly you’re in Amarillo and it’s clear that this is a boom town today. The vintage yellow Big Texan Steak Ranch is unique among all the very modern buildings around it. There are also a lot of other choices - just about every restaurant chain in the US beckons with flashing lights and bland familiarity.

Still, the Big Texan Steak Ranch is there as it has been for all these decades serving really good meals and some entertainment on the side. There’s a shooting gallery, a bar and that kind of Kitsch that befits a landmark of Americana.

Try as he might, this patron couldn’t finish the big steak. But he’s in good company - only about one in seven can.

More on that big steak

This information comes directly from Wikipedia and I found it quite interesting.

According to the restaurant, when featured on the TV show Man v. Food, the 72 ounce steak challenge started in 1960, when founder Bob Lee decided to hold a contest over which of the cowboys working in the stockyards could eat the most steaks in one hour, with a prize of $5 (equivalent to $46 in 2021) at stake.

One cowboy ate four and a half 1-pound steaks, a shrimp cocktail, a baked potato, a dinner roll, and a salad in the hour's time to win the $5. Lee was so impressed with the achievement that he declared, "Whoever eats that much again in my restaurant, he gets it for free."

The steak is cooked to the participant's preference, and the challenge takes place at a table for six on a raised platform in the middle of the main dining room.

The record for the shortest time to finish the entire 72oz steak challenge had been held by competitive eating champion Joey Chestnut (at 8 minutes and 52 seconds), breaking Frank Pastore's 1987 record (of 9 minutes 30 seconds, which stood for 21 years) on his March 24, 2008 visit.

On May 26, 2014, he was bested by 125-pound competitive eater Molly Schuyler, who polished off the meal in just 4 minutes 58 seconds, and came back for seconds (14 minutes and 57 seconds for two meals).

Schuyler returned on April 19, 2015 and would finish her first meal in 4 minutes 18 seconds, beating her own record by 40 seconds. She had defeated four other teams of competitors in the challenge, devouring two more meals in twenty minutes.

Tony Barthel wearing steer horns from the gift shop

If you’re asking, the unofficial record (for all animals, including humans) was held by a 500-pound Siberian tiger who ate the steak in 90 seconds in 1999, until bested by a lioness in 2012 clocking in at 80 seconds.

There are some roadside attractions that disappoint, but this one doesn’t. The food is good and the entertainment is there too. You’re especially in luck if you’re there when someone is attempting the 72 ounce steak challenge.

Know that you have about a one-in-seven chance of completing the challenge. Not doing so could be a big missed steak.