Sterling Terrell

smart ideas from books

Ranchman’s, Ponder Steakhouse

Ranchman’s, Ponder Steakhouse

Ok, I have got to go and check out Ranchman’s Ponder Steakhouse sometime then.

I mean, if it’s frequented by Larry McMurtry – it’s at least worth a look!

For years I would always opt for a chicken-fried steak when at a steakhouse. But the older I get the more I appreciate a good classic steak.

Right now, a flat-iron steak is my standard order. Maybe a bake potato, salad, side of bread..

Alright, I’m about to make my self hungry.

I wonder if McMurtry ever made it to Mary’s Cafe?

There is a fine steakhouse called the Ranchman’s, in a tiny town called Ponder, Texas, near Denton and not far from Fort Worth. I have eaten at the Ranchman’s with some regularity for about fifty-five years. It was summer and I happened to be in the neighborhood, so I ate there again, emerging, well fed, at about dusk.

-Larry McMurtry, Literary Life (Amazon)

The Adolphus

The Adolphus

The Adolphus – in downtown Dallas – is the most “elegant” hotel that writer Larry McMurtry ever stayed in.

I have not yet been there.

I did once stay in the Dallas Marriott Downtown – about a mile away from the The Adolphus – where I met a potential partner for a late dinner and early breakfast.

Reading this, of course, made me reflect on the best hotels I have ever been in.

My list would have to include:

  • Park Hyatt Beaver Creek
  • Hyatt Regncy Tamaya Resort And Spa
  • Jeddah Marriott Hotel

Of course, I hope to greatly expand this list as time and finances allow.

Time will tell, but I was always a sucker for nice hotels…

By some miracle, while right downtown, I managed to spot the Hotel Adolphus, where I took a room for the night. The Adolphus—where, later, I would make a speech or two—was the most elegant hotel I had ever stayed in, although the famous Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells, where my rich Panhandle uncles wintered, ran a close second.

-Larry McMurtry, Literary Life