We stopped at a town named Amarillo which was along our route. This town has an airport and a rodeo. We ate at the Big Texan Steak Ranch which was interesting for the atmosphere but disappointing in terms of food. The outside had a huge sign, bright lightbulbs outlining the building (tacky but maybe it draws unsuspecting tourists). When we walked in we heard loud yee-hawing and a trio playing "You Are My Sunshine" on the guitar, fiddle, and bass. We saw cowboy hats and a plethora of mounted animal heads on all the walls. The restaurant's claim to fame is a 72 oz. steak that is free if you eat it within 1 hour. That's 4 pounds of meat. (Kobayashi where are you.) A newsarticle on the wall reported the record time as several seconds above 9 minutes.

We ate some steak, but taste was lacking. "Steak tomatoes" were just tomatoes cut in half with black pepper sprinkled on it. "Steak onions" were raw rings of red onion. "Steak fries" were fried from processed frozen stuff. My ribeye steak was decently grilled but my friends were quite disappointed with their sirloins. "You Are My Sunshine" played a few more times in the background. Overall: limited effort in preparation. (For the same price, Chicago steakhouses far surpass this place in taste.)

Near the end of our meal a couple got up and started dancing while the trio played away. The waiter was a nice fellow who sat down and chatted with us. We commented to ourselves that this is part of the southern hospitality where strangers readily strike up conversations with you.