Ranchman’s Cafe

Absolutely terrible. Everyone told me we just HAD to try this place — it’s FAMOUS!
The good: the steak was literally as big as my plate.
The bad: it was $ 50 for the two of us to each eat a PAN SEARED steak.
It was disgusting. I could cook MUCH better food at home, and I’m a terrible cook. The service was average at best — and then check out took forever, though I’m sure that was partly because the 5 – 6 teenagers working the grill were REALLY busy checking Facebook and texting their friends.
What a joke.

Heard a lot about this place. Maybe it was good at one time but I would not recommend it to anyone anymore. Very poor food, both in quality and taste. Prices are reasonable but not worth the meal you get. Generous portions though. I won’t return.

We came up to Ponder for lunch with my husband’s family on a Sunday, and this little gem did not disappoint. You see, they serve Steak Fingers! Like real, hand cut/​breaded steak fingers that made my brain explode. Steak fingers are one of those food items that, if they are on a menu, I order them. You don’t see them too often aside from second string version at Dairy Queen (and yes, I even order them there). They come with cream gravy, and I ordered fries with them… because gravy! I finished it all off with a piece of Chess Pie that gave my Mamaw’s a run for her money.
I told my husband’s family we will come up to visit once a week if it means eating here. No joke.

I was wise to order the smaller chicken fried steak! We were just passing through town on a motorcycle and came across this «world famous» place we’d never heard of. Waitress was awesome — friendly, patient while we asked questions and even offered a piece of pie «too small to sell». Burger was huge, fresh and well prepared. The small chicken fried steak would have made me happy had it been the large one. Fries are the real deal, could be a tad crisper for my tastes.
We’ll be back — hungry enough next time to get desserts!

Pricey but decent if you order steak.
Anything else on the menu is likely to be overly greasy and under seasoned.
Not the best around but moderately good and the only full service sit down place in Ponder.

This place is funny. When you call in your reservation for dinner, they will ask you if you want to make a potato reservation as well. The staff is very polite. Our sever was or seemed to be the prom queen of Ponder. She was very pretty and made attempts to be entertaining. Very rustic décor. A party of five, we ordered 4 chicken fried steaks and chicken strip basket. Our sides were grilled mushrooms which were seasoned to perfection and a vegetable of the day, mashed potatoes. Overall, good experience and good food. Will come back.

Love it. Spend my high school and college graduations here as well as birthdays for many years. Have come to know the owner well because I’ve been coming here for 30 years. It’s the only place I order chicken fried steak and the only place I ever order dessert. Cobbler can’t be beat.

I love this place great people and great food. The chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and vegetables of the day is so good. Best country cooking I’ve had in a long time!

Ranchman’s (AKA the Ponder Steakhouse) has had a special place in my heart since childhood. It’s got that honest-​to-​goodness southern draw, hospitality, and dirty good greasy food. You’ll often see the owner, Dave Ross, sitting at the front table reading a newspaper and enjoying a slice of their killer pie.
While I love this establishment, I’m not saying that the food’s flawless. Over the years I’ve figured out what I like and I just stick with it. The chicken fried steak is HUGE and very filling, but delicious to the last bite. I’m also a big fan of their fried green tomatoes, which are a really affordable appetizer that you don’t find many places. Dip them babies in their homemade ranch, mmmm! If you get a side salad, try both the cucumber vinaigrette and the ranch… the vinaigrette is really unique and I find myself going ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ just to enjoy both. I’ve tried the sirloin burger, and it’s honestly just not my thing. My husband loved his, but the meat was just a little tougher and a different consistency than what I’m used to. We tried the porterhouse in the past, but weren’t overly blown away. They drown their steaks in butter, and while my naughty little tummy may love it, it kind of dumbs down the flavor of the meat.
Be prepared to take home a doggie bag– you won’t regret saving room for dessert! They have a rotating assortment of daily pies, cobblers, and other sweet treats. Their rhubarb pie was the best I’ve ever had. And, to continue the southern flair, they’ll offer everything a la mode, in case you just haven’t had enough goodness by the end of the meal.
Ranchman’s is a staple in north DFW. Just far enough off the beaten path to make it seem like an adventure, the wooden shack is the perfect place for a diet-​destroying good meal. Give it a try!
Side notes: As many reviewers said, this place is BYOB, so come packing. It’s the perfect place to do a casual get together and enjoy a meaty meal with a cold beer. They also have homemade soaps and fun carnivorous t-​shirts, for the tourist in you.
OH! And if you want a baked potato, call ahead 30 minutes so that can put that sucker in the oven.

Steak is walmart quality, and extremely thin. The fries are good, atmosphere is ok, but overall the steak is worse than applebees so I wont be going back.

Probably the best burger I’ve had in the last few years… The fries are hand cut and are the best… I’ve had the chicken fried steak as well but the burger kills it…

Hi, I don’t know what to say about this place, I’m not going to be negative but I sure cannot boast!!! Nothing special but its not bad, its basically a small town diner that specializes in steaks.
Steak is actually pretty good… they are cooked on a griddle like waffle house (I am never a big fan of that)
I will compare this to two places… Sweetie Pies in decatur (sweetie pies is far better) and Charco Broiler in oak cliff (can’t beat it for the price)
We drove here from Dallas to check it out… its been on 2 TV show and in magazines, I do not think it deserves that kind of attention… Sorry

Rancid grease used to fry everything. Killed taste with ketchup and pepper.
Since it was Fathers Day, I ordered Calf fries.
The Calf fries had no flavor of their own. Overpowered by the grease, They brought small order instead of large order requested. Needed lots of pepper.
Chicken fried steak also flavorless except for the grease. Came with heaping serving of shriveled soggy greasy French fries. Used lots of ketchup.
They need to get some fresh peanut oil in the kitchen. Their grease tastes fishy and rancid. The after taste of this goop lingers forever.
For calf fries I prefer Riski’s Stockyard, Fort Worth. Price bout the same, Taste really good.
Bill’s Café, McKinney, TX has a very good Chicken fried steak for half the price.
There is no reason to drive to Ponder to eat. If you get hungry driving through, keep going.
I tried the Ranchman’s. I shall not return.

Quaint place in the heart if small town America. Good steak, average other things. It’s what I expected… neither good or bad. Old décor, old place. The staff doesn’t seem to mind, they are happy and friendly. Check it out for the history and sweet tea, just don’t have too great if an expectation

Been coming here for almost 20 years still love coming here with friends and family. Love the fried green tomatoes love love love love the burgers here. Great wait staff. They treat me like family. They have my drink waiting on me when I walk in.

This is a great place to eat. It’s that simple. I had chicken fried steak, black eyed peas, rice, and a sweet potato. It was awesome. I hear the pies are great as well. I will try one next week when I go back. Try it. You will be glad you did.

The near worship this place receives mystifies me every time we go there. A number of friends seem to think it’s heaven on earth, the best steakhouse in the west, and a historical treasure. So, we go there from time to time.
Well, it is historic.
Their steaks are generally too thin to be cooked to your preference. You can’t cook a 3/​8″ thick steak medium rare and get any color on the outside. The steaks are OK, but nothing you couldn’t do at home.
The baked potatoes are so popular you have to reserve them, a situation which amazes me. They are cooked and held in aluminum foil, which guarantees the moisture in the potato won’t get out of the potato, so instead of baking, the potatoes are steamed with their own moisture and have a pudding like texture. A chef friend calls this «the ultimate culinary derailment». I agree, but this is common to all restaurants that wrap potatoes in foil. If they aren’t baked unwrapped, just say no. The other tater option are home fried French fries. They are fried only once, so they are limp and greasy. Great fries need more loving and at least two trips through the fryer.
Since I’m not enamored of their steaks, I usually go with their chicken fried steak. I’m not sure what happened last time, but the crust was soggy and lifeless. Similarly, the batter on the fried green tomatoes was also soggy and lifeless. Was the fryer temperature too low? Did they not fry things long enough? I don’t know, but it made for an uninspired and uninspiring meal.
The high point of the meal was the wedge of blue cheese. As the name suggests, this is a large lump of a very nice blue cheese. They serve it with saltine crackers, but that’s OK.
The café is cute, quaint and historical. It’s worth a visit. My advice is to go in, buy some of their home made goat milk soap, have a soft drink and then hit the road. There are better places not that far away.

An enjoyable and casual byob country joint serving hand cut steaks. I can’t say I love the steaks but I love going here and chillin. Reserve your baked potato is an old tradition here. Great place to ride Harleys to.

I honestly didn’t want to be rude since so many Dallas Unilocalers recommended this place. So I waited until I was home to post this review, but I wrote it weeks ago on the same day of my visit:
— — — — — — — — — — — — –
July 7^th, 2012 — Today I was a guest in the great state of Texas and the city of Ponder. As a guest I feel a small sense of responsibility to respect local traditions. Ranchman’s Café is (by many aspects) a tradition of this charming area, but one that’s not worth upholding in my opinion.
THE SCENE
I have been wanting to come here for years, long before I discovered Unilocal.It’s been at least three years since I saw them featured on a Food Network show and placed the name in my MUST TRY book. Well, time has passed, but my desire had not and today presented the perfect opportunity since A) I am visiting friends in McKinney and B) We were in nearby Lewisville doing some shopping. It only took about 20 minutes from there, but it felt like it was in the middle of nowhere. North Dallas has more cornfields than I have ever seen. Miles and miles of them. Friendly staff greets you at the door and guides you to a table. I’d heard a lot about the steak and potatoes, so that was the main intention of this visit.
THE FOOD
*Rib Eye — Awful!!! I’d like to embellish this review with something positive to say, but there was nothing redeeming about this steak. It was poorly seasoned, poorly cooked and not even remotely worth the $ 17.95 price tag that came with this 12 oz bone-​in cut. If that weren’t enough, the butter topping for the steak was just weird. I’ve enjoyed that before, but it worked against this steak. We were also charged $ 3 for sharing + $ 1.50 for substituting the baked potato totaling $ 22.45 for this dish.
*French Fries ($ 1.50) — Nasty. The oil they were cooked in was noticeably old and in need of changing. The inside was firm, the outside was mushy and flavorless. Not even a light coating of salt could save them.
*Chicken fried chicken strips ($ 7.25) — A complete thumbs down with the kids. I tried them and although they were seasoned, they didn’t taste very good.
*Fried green tomatoes ($ 2.50) — Decent flavor and nicely cooked. This was one of the better items we ordered on the menu. I’m not sure if the ranch dressing provided was house made, but it was strong and sort of bitter.
*Loaded baked potato — Very good! The only item I sampled today that I really enjoyed.
FINAL VERDICT
Maybe my expectations were too high, or maybe it was a bad day in the kitchen. Either way, this was a total disappointment. The one good thing about today’s visit is I can finally take it off my ‘bookmarked’ list. One star reviews are very rare for me, so pay attention! If you love steak, don’t come here.

Talk about «stepping back in time»…this place is straight out of the 50’s and 60’s. When you walk in, the screen door slams behind you… just like when you’d come for a visit at your Grandmother’s house. My steak was «Ginormous» & perfectly cooked… baked potato was huge ! Son & husband like the chicken fried steak… it’s deeelish! Oh, and be sure and save room for Pie with Mile High «CALF SLOBBER»! You just can’t eat here without leaving happy & stuffed ! If you wanna take a road trip to a little country Steak House, try this one. It won’t disappoint …“Aunt Bee” might even be your server ! …Great Breakfast as well!
***If ya live in Denton or are a UNT student, it’s not a bad drive over to PONDER Steakhouse!