A Splash of Amarillo: A Little Bit of Texas

Amarillo, Texas

October 3, 2016 – October 4, 2016

Written 8/27/24

Arrival

As part of our Route 66 trip (not published yet), our stop in Texas was the city of Amarillo. Our arrival was later than I would have liked, but we did have an eventful day and didn’t have a long drive the next day so we could use some of Tuesday to poke around the area. The hotel that we were staying at for the night was the Courtyard Amarillo Downtown. As we made our way off the interstate and onto S. Polk Street where the is located, we encountered several blocks of road construction sites. This did not keep us from accessing the hotel parking lot or lobby, but it did make looking for a place to eat after we checked in a bit of a drag. Our room was set up nicely, with a cabinet for business clothing, a mini fridge with coffee maker, a love seat which was in front of the window, a desk and chair, and a good amount of space to walk back and forth in. There was quite enough room for two people.

Photo #1: Driving West on I-40 towards Amarillo

Photo #2: Inside the room of the Courtyard Amarillo Downtown

Dinner

Once we were checked in and settled with bringing the luggage to the room, we scoped out the room to see if there were any advertisements for dinner. Not seeing any, we decided to drive around the area to see what we could find. This proved to be challenging, many places were closed, or parking was inaccessible because of the construction. Frustrated, we opted to return to the hotel and order appetizers in their bistro. The bistro had a modern feel to it, and many of their tables had groups socializing, so maybe this was an after work hot spot or these were patrons who were at a workshop being held at the hotel. My speculating was in high gear. Aside from people watching, we talked about how to plan out our next day so that we can make the most of Amarillo before we drove off to our next stop.

Lunch with a History

The next morning, we were checked out of the hotel and on the move by 10:30AM. Our first stop was The Big Texan Steak Ranch and Brewery for lunch.  The Big Texan is a restaurant that was originally on Route 66 but moved their business to I-40 because Route 66 was less active due to the interstate. There were a couple of plaques to read and fun things to look at outside the restaurant. So since it was still kind of early for lunch, we walked around outside first, and took some photos before entering. The inside décor was interesting, it kind of reminded me of German biergarten seating with a western/cowboy theme. Lots of fun things to see on the walls. Although I can’t recall the side dishes, we both ordered barbecued ribs and smoked beef. If I had to guess we got cowboy beans and fried okra. What I do remember was being absolutely stuffed and creating a takeout bag with our leftovers. The portions are enormous! I’d say stopping here is a MUST. Even if you don’t stop to eat, there is a gift shop (I tried on cowboy hats!), an arcade shooting gallery, and just fun stuff to see and read. They also have flyers for different attractions in the area. There is also plenty of parking! I think we spent approximately 2 hours here.

Photo #1: Front of the Big Texan restaurant

Photo #2: Different types of cattle branding saved in a cement block outside the Big Texan

Photo #3: Dining room inside the big Texan

On Our Way Out

Our next stop was outside of Amarillo a smidge (approximately 20 minutes to the west). It was the Cadillac Ranch. I’d read about this place and was eager to see it. Parking was easy, pull off on the side of the road and walk to where the Cadillacs are staged. Admission is free, and you can go at any time of day (or night!). There is a little bit of a walk to get up close to the cars and you are walking on sand so you might want to consider sneakers. Especially since you don’t know what leftover garbage might be in the sand.  We did not bring spray paint with us, but there were some canisters left by others so that you could spray paint your name on one of the cars if you wanted. I didn’t. It was windy and with a four-hour drive ahead of me, in a rental car, I felt I needed to play it safe. I did take a few photos and walked around all eleven cars to read the graffiti that was there. I also watched a few people spray painting their names. It was a nice break. I think we spent about an hour before we opted to head back our excursion and leave Texas.

Photo #1: Closer view of the planted Cadillac's at Cadillac Ranch

Photo #2: A photo of all 10 planted Cadillac's at Cadillac Ranch

Things I learned from planning this trip: Sometimes not having a plan, turns out to be a pleasant surprise.

Things I keep in mind when organizing a trip for myself: Be flexible. Always leave something to go back for: I want a photo of the Amarillo skyline (preferably night, but day would be fine too).

Some information, such as baseball game information and directions were sought by using ChatGPT.

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