County of steakhouse: Denver County
Location of steakhouse: 10th St. & Osage St., Denver
Phone: (303) 534-9505
Hours: LUNCH: MON THRU FRI • 11AM-2PM
SUPPER: MON THRU THURS • 5-9PM ~ FRI AND SAT • 5-10PM ~ SUN • 5-9PM
"Denver, Colorado's most historic eating and drinking establishment, located at 1000 Osage Street in Denver, Colorado, is now in its second century of operation. The Buckhorn Exchange, which has liquor license Number One in the State of Colorado, was founded on November 17, 1893 by Henry H. "Shorty Scout" Zietz, easily recognized as one of the most colorful figures of the Old West.
"In 1875, at age 10, a wide-eyed Zietz met Col. William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody. Within two years young Henry was a full-fledged member of the hard-riding, straight-shooting band of scouts. It was during the years that Henry rode with Buffalo Bill that the great Indian leader, Chief Sitting Bull, dubbed him "Shorty Scout" due to his diminutive stature.
'"Shorty Scout" Zietz became a lifelong friend to the Indians, and when he died in July 1949, the last of Cody's famous scout band was gone.
"But it was Zietz's restaurant, the Buckhorn Exchange, which chronicled the robust and lusty days of early Colorado. From the time it opened its doors here on Osage Street in 1893, it catered to cattlemen, miners, railroad builders, silver barons, Indian chiefs, roustabouts, gamblers, businessmen, the great and the near-great all dropped in to imbibe and dine on the West's finest offerings - many still on the menu today. It seems that a square meal, a hearty drink, and a taste for history always lived side by side at the Buckhorn.
"The Buckhorn Exchange derives its name from the Rio Grande Railroad yards that were directly across Osage Street and the second-story Buckhorn Lodge that housed railroaders for the night. Each Friday, the railroaders scrambled across Osage Street to exchange their paychecks for gold. In return, Zietz handed each man a token good for a free lunch and a beer. After all, whoever heard of a railroad man stopping after only one beer?
"President Theodore Roosevelt ate here in 1905 when his Presidential Express train pulled into the Rio Grande rail yards. Roosevelt strutted in presidential style, asked old Shorty Scout to be his guide and hunting partner, and after dinner and drinks, the pair took off by train to hunt big game on Colorado's western slope.
"Today a photo of the train and a flag from its engine are among hundreds of pieces of museum-quality memorabilia on display in the Buckhorn Exchange which today is as much a museum as a restaurant and bar." ~ The Buckhorn Exchange, history