Hours:
Sunday - Monday: 11 AM to 9 PM
Tuesday - Thursday: 11 AM to 10 PM
Friday - Saturday: 11 AM to 11 PM
This is one of three steakhouses in the Stockyards -- yes, they're all worth a visit -- and this one began life in the 1920s as Theo's Saddle and Sirloin Inn, a saloon with a small hotel upstairs. The Riscky's menu provides some background:
In 1927, Mary and Joe Riscky moved from Poland and opened a grocery store in the historic stockyards area of Fort Worth, Texas. Little did they realize that they were starting what was to become a Texas dining legend.
Just prior to that time, in the early 1920s, The Saddle and Sirloin Inn opened at 120 East Exchange Avenue. The Saddle and Sirloin Inn soon became a historic legend in its own right, known for its excellent steaks, calf fries, and Kapusta.
Originally frequented by visiting ranchers, cowboys and cattlemen involved with the stockyards and livestock business, the clientele soon grew to include bankers, businessmen, presidents, dignitaries and celebrities. A trip to Fort Worth was not complete without stopping by the Saddle and Sirloin Inn.
Great care has been taken in preserving the original style and decor. Many of the original items have been combined with outstanding favorites of the Riscky family to once again provide Fort Worth with a dining tradition at Riscky's Sirloin Inn on Exchange Avenue.
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The founder of The Saddle and Sirloin Inn, Theo Yardanoff, would prepare calf fries for the stockyard workers who brought them over from one of the packing plants. What remained was served at the restaurant, and Riscky's says that they were not the first to serve calf fries, but they were the first to put them on the menu. If you don't know what calf fries are, they are a delicacy in Texas, look them up. Later, Yardanoff married a Polish woman named Josephine, and she added more items to the menu, some of which were retained when the Risckys took over (notably, the Kapusta sauerkraut soup).
For best results, order one of their steaks -- their signature steak, an 18 oz ribeye, is worth the price -- but they also do surf and turf, salads, pork chops, buffalo steaks, chicken fried chicken and steak, chicken, ribs, seafood, and burgers. You'll typically get one side with your meal, with the option to add plenty of good things, but check their menus (see link) for the current details. They have a full bar, and their wine list has some terrific offerings made just for them. Try the Cabernet Franc. If you still have room after your meal, they'll finish you off with dessert.
The Stockyards is popular with the locals, but it is also a tourist destination: The restaurant is spacious, but visitors are advised to make reservations on the weekends, when a forty to sixty minute wait can be about average. They're kid-friendly, but that doesn't mean that they're a playground, and they don't have booster seats or high chairs. Their decor is kitschy, done by a former Disney employee in the 1960s, and it's reminiscent of the Old West of Tom Mix, with plenty of animal trophies on the wall.
Their website is here. (
visit link)