Sure, the restaurant is 6 miles up the I-25 from Cheyenne, but in many ways, getting out of town really sets the scene for a great dining experience. Little Bear is an iconic establishment that was recently rebuilt all shiny and new after a fire a few years back. It is a large restaurant with 3 separate dining rooms as well as a separate full bar, stage for live music and dance floor. To be clear, this is a steak house in the heart of steak country. There are seafood items offered on the menu, but as my father taught me long ago: "you don't order shrimp in frikkin' Wyoming". Better general advice has seldom been given.
Seating was prompt and welcoming, from the owner herself. She sat our party of 5 adults in one of the three dining rooms and the ambiance was quiet and intimate, but the restaurant was comfortably busy given the Sunday night during the Cheyenne Frontier Days hoopla. Normally, they do take reservations, but during CFD that is suspended and seating is first come, first served. In any case, we had no problem at 6pm and when we left, it still appeared to not be a problem getting a table.
Service was very prompt. The bread delivered to the table were warm roll-ups of what seemed to be flakey croissant-like consistency. They went fast and another basket quickly materialized. The menu is heavy on steak offerings, New York strip, filet, T-bone, rib eye, etc. they come in a variety of preparation, with garlic encrusted, peppercorn, mushroom/gravy, etc. Our table ran the gamut, each having something different and all were delicious. All meals are complete with soup or salad, baked potato, pilaf or other sides, etc. so the fact that the dinner is $25-$29 for the premium steaks isn't bad considering that you won't face all those incidental charges just to get more than a slab of beef on a plate for dinner. A side note, many of the salad dressings are homemade and the ranch dressing is spectacular.
For starters, there are multiple offerings that all sounded good and were appropriate for the erudite diner, but really do try the house specialty Rocky Mountain oysters. They were breaded, hot small bite size pieces (no puns intended) and were tasty. For some in our party, we just said it was calamari. Easy sell to the newby victim. Honestly, it was delicious and more than just a checkbox for bragging rights.
Dessert fare was also broad, but we also settled on the house specialty, "Bear Balls". These were not in any way related to appendages on a large, carnivorous mammal. They are served two-up and consist of vanilla ice cream rolled in ground Oreo cookie crumbles. Simple, tasty and fun for the shock factor, especially after the local oysters!
The folks serving tables were really great and fun. They really helped make the meal memorable. We weren't rushed, service was prompt and warm. Also, the clientele at Little Bear were REAL cowboys, not the drugstore dudes and posers from metropolitan USA. They all showed proper etiquette and doffed their beautiful hats when seated. If you're visiting from the city, catch a clue!
My only constructive criticism was the "Cadillac Margarita" offering in the drink/wine menu. It was anything but a Margarita. With such a lovely stocked bar (including Hendricks Gin), it was a shame one couldn't get a real and great marg to go with a great steak. The wine selection, especially for reds, was noteworthy especially given the location. Kudos to the management on the choices. read more