Frommer's National Parks of the American West - Don Laine [80]
Cowboy's Buffet and Steak Room
At Best Western Ruby's Inn, 1000 S. Utah 63, Bryce. ☎ 435/834-5341. www.rubysinn.com. Reservations not accepted. Breakfast and lunch main courses and buffets $5.95–$15, dinner main courses and buffets $8.95–$25. AE, DC, DISC, MC, V. Summer daily 6:30am–10pm; winter daily 6:30am–9pm. STEAK/SEAFOOD.
The busiest restaurant in the Bryce Canyon area, the main restaurant at the Best Western Ruby's Inn moves 'em through with buffets at every meal, plus a well-rounded menu and friendly service. The breakfast buffet offers more choices than you'd expect—scrambled eggs, fresh fruit, several breakfast meats, potatoes, pastries, and cereals. At the lunch buffet, you'll find country-style ribs, fresh fruit, salads, soups, vegetables, and breads. The dinner buffet features charbroiled thin-sliced rib-eye steak and other meats, pastas, potatoes, and salads. A la carte dinner entrees include prime rib, slow-roasted baby-back ribs, breaded and grilled southern Utah rainbow trout, broiled chicken breast, burgers, and salads. In addition to the large, Western-style dining room, an outdoor patio is open in good weather. Full liquor service is available.
Foster's Family Steak House
1150 Utah 12 (about 1½ miles west of the park entrance road). ☎ 435/834-5227. www.fostersmotel.com. Breakfast and lunch items $1.75–$6, dinner main courses $9–$20. AE, DISC, MC, V. Mar–Nov daily 7am–10pm; Dec–Feb daily 3–10pm. STEAK/SEAFOOD.
The simple Old West decor here is appropriate for a family steakhouse, popular for its slow-roasted prime rib and steamed Utah trout. Foster's also offers several steaks (including a 14-oz. T-bone), sandwiches, a soup of the day, and homemade Western-style chili with beans. All the pastries, pies, and breads are baked on the premises. Bottled beer is available.
Hungry Coyote Restaurant & Saloon
At Bryce Valley Inn, 199 N. Main St., Tropic. ☎ 435/679-8822. www.brycevalleyinn.com. Breakfast $3.95–$6.95; dinner main courses $7–$21. AE, MC, V. Daily 6:30–10:30am and 5–10pm; reduced hours in winter. AMERICAN/ WESTERN.
The Old West is still king here; look around at the rough wood walls, old ranch tools, kerosene lanterns, and warnings that patrons must "check your gun with the waitress." Beef eaters will savor the thick 20-ounce T-bone, the most expensive item on the menu. You can also get pork chops, grilled chicken breast, or the popular local trout. The restaurant has full liquor service.
Picnic & Camping Supplies
A small store inside the national park has groceries, camping supplies, and snacks, all at surprisingly low prices. Just outside the park, the huge general store in the Best Western Ruby's Inn (see "Where to Stay," above) offers camping supplies, groceries, Western clothing, and souvenirs.
NEARBY ATTRACTIONS
For excursions throughout the area, the Best Western Ruby's Inn, on Utah 63 just north of the Bryce Canyon National Park entrance (see "Where to Stay," above), is practically a one-stop entertainment center.
Directly across Utah 63 from the inn are the Old Bryce Town Shops, open daily 8am to 10pm from mid-May through September. They include a rock shop, souvenir shops, and a Christmas store. You'll also have the opportunity to buy that genuine cowboy hat you've been wanting. There's a trail here especially for kids, where they can search for arrowheads, fossils, and petrified wood. You can also try your hand at panning for gold.
Nearby, Bryce Canyon Country Rodeo (☎ 866/782-0002 or 435/834-5355, ext. 7198) showcases bucking broncos, bull riding, calf roping, and all sorts of rodeo fun in a 1-hour program from Memorial Day weekend to mid-September, Monday through Saturday at 7pm. Admission is $8 for adults, $5 for children 3 to 12, free for children under 3.
Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument
Covering about 1.9 million acres, this vast area of red-orange canyons, mesas, plateaus, and river