A Texas legend is firing up the grill once again. Ranchman’s Ponder Steakhouse, the 75-year-old North Texas institution that reportedly helped inspire Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove, is reopening under new ownership, and longtime fans are already celebrating.
Located in the tiny town of Ponder, about 40 miles north of Fort Worth, Ranchman’s has been a destination for steak lovers and literary buffs alike since 1948, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.
The restaurant is housed in a 1903-era building and earned its reputation by serving up Texas-sized portions of porterhouse steaks, chicken fried steak, and even grilled or fried quail. It’s a no-frills, all-flavor kind of place, the kind where the walls tell stories and the meat does the talking…