M - Centennial Celebration at Cattlemen's

We celebrated the Oklahoma Centennial in part by heading on over to Cattlemen's Restaurant for a right tasty dinner with some of the family. It was BUSY but I really love going there. It opened in 1910, juast a few years after statehood. It's one of the few 'authentic' (whatever that means) cafes you can still find around town. The story of how the restaurant was lost and won around a deck of cards is a great piece of history. Here's an excerpt from the menu:

In 1945, Cattlemen's was owned by Hank Fry, a gambler of sorts. In a smoke-filled room at the old Biltmore Hotel in downtown Oklahoma City, Fry was running out of luck and money in dice game attended by a local rancher, Mr. Gene Wade. Fry put up Cattlemen's as the pot if Wade could roll a 'hard six,' otherwise known as two 3s. Wade put up his life savings, which was a sizable amount of money. With one roll of the dice, Gene Wade was in the restaurant business. The '33' brand on the wall of Cattlemen's Hereford Room became a well-known symbol of Wade's good fortune.


Here is a picture of Noah enjoying a tasty deep-fried sampling of lamb fries, not to be confused with Rocky Mountain Oysters. Sprinkle a little lemon on them, maybe some extra salt, and it's hard to beat as a treat! For even better lamb fries head on down to Giacomo's Restaurant in McAlester. Be prepared for high prices, though! There's a little note at the bottom that says, "Financing Available"!