Let's Ponder this over steak

 

Surrounded by a history of transportation, the Santa Fe Railroad (now Burlington Northern Santa Fe) and Farm Road 156, in Ponder, TX, lies a steakhouse that serves much more than just a powerful meal. On Saturday afternoon, a pack of motorcyclists parked their machines along a thin strip on a two lane road. The men and women congregate. Some were waiting on fellow bikers to leave or were commencing to come on in.

 

The destination: Ranchman Steakhouse.

Surrounded by bustling waiters and waitresses seeking to aid the conveyor belt of guests are pictures and newspaper clippings from various people such as John Wayne and Dallas Cowboy legend Roger Staubach. On the menu for the day: RC Cola and rib steak with black eyed peas.

 

Ranchman's has been a Ponder resident for over 65 years. One of its famous customers was author Larry McMurtry, who while coming for 55 years, learned that Ponder was the first place where his grandparents William Jefferson and Louise McMurtry settled in the 1880's. A place where horses were broken and the spirit of the Texas frontier ran rapid.

Two World Wars later, on Thanksgiving in 1948, Grace "Pete" Jackson decided to make her mark by opening a restaurant. According to the Ranchman's Menu Gazette, "she had so many customers at the lunch counter in her grocery store that she decided it would be a good idea to open a restaurant." Jackson passed away at 94 in 1998 leaving behind a pioneer spirit that would have made the McMurtry's proud.

Dave Ross, who became a cook under Jackson in 1973, took the baton and bought the establishment in 1992. "Pete and her hard-working staff gave me the best start anyone could hope of wish for," he says. Today, Ross' restaurant offers chicken fried steak, steak burgers, steaks, among many dishes, and other items including BBQ Rub's, which is a "mix of dry seasonings rubbed on meat before grilling" and "not to be used for massage or tanning." Ranchman

After lunch, look at the wall and notice a famous duo, Bonnie and Clyde. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, who filmed part of Bonnie and Clyde in Ponder, were said to have ate at the restaurant while shooting a scene from the movie. Stars of Bonnie and Clyde come to Ponder, TX

A screen door decorated by white painted wood borders follows a creaking sound. Take a left and walk a few feet from the restaurant towards a red brick building. It was formerly a bank that allegedly Bonnie and Clyde attempted to rob in 1934. Unfortunately, a week earlier, the bank went belly up. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway lived to tell their story.

Courtesy of The Portal to Texas History

Bank in Ponder