Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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Andrew T.
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Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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Does anyone remember the Western Steer steakhouse chain? It was low-priced, and it had considerable penetration through the reaches of Appalachia.

My family used to frequent Western Steer in the '80s and '90s, and I always found the restaurant to be a disconcerting experience. You stood in line and ordered off a menu board with numbered items, like in a fast-food restaurant. Half the time, the restaurant would be out of seafood or other ingredients, and half the menu was unavailable. The food was...not good, to put it mildly. I remember our local restaurant as being a haven of soggy greens, tough stringy chicken, and other culinary maladies, and I dined there with a grimace.

Yet, my father liked it...not because it was good, but because it was cheap. He liked to go to the buffet and pack his plate to the brim to "get his money's worth." (My father also referred to the chain as "Bum Steer," for reasons that elude me.)

There's not a lot about Western Steer to be found on the Internet. Near as I can tell, the chain was based in North Carolina, originated in 1975, and was linked to Mom 'n Pop's Ham House for most of its history. Then...it seems to have slowly ceased to exist. Our local restaurant in Princeton, WV sat for years with the words "closed for remolding (sic)" on its marquee...then the property was sold, converted to a car dealership, and remodeled beyond recognition. But what exactly happened, chainwide and behind the scenes? I wish that I knew.

There still appears to be a location in Newton, North Carolina (an hour or two west of the Triad) that carries the Western Steer name...but it might be the only one as far as I know, and it's no longer part of a chain. Other locations have rebranded: A Western Steer in Starke, Florida is now "The Steakhouse in Starke," while a location in Elkins, WV is now simply signed as "Steer".

As a final note, here's a Western Steer commercial...with low production values, completely inappropriate music, and food that looks every bit as bland as what I remember!
"The pale pastels which have been featured in most food stores during the past 20 years are no longer in tune with the mood of the 1970s."
Andrew Turnbull
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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I grew up in Lincolnton, just down old US 321 from the Newton location. My mother and I went there often in the 80s. I remember looking at the deserts on display but I only got one a few times due to cost. I would get two Andes mints for a dime at the cash register (did not pay at the table).

They were an affordable staple of many small towns. I seem to remember that they had one at the Northern end of Myrtle Beach South Carolina.

Several of the locations turned into Sagebrush steak houses. As an adult I ate and the Lincolnton Sagebrush a few times and it was a more traditional steakhouse. That location eventually closed and became an animal hospital LOL. They show 22 Sagebrush locations currently.
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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LOTS of details at this page. From the parent companies begining, to the mergers involved.

https://www.company-histories.com/Fresh ... story.html
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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75149 wrote: 10 Jun 2020 03:16 LOTS of details at this page. From the parent companies begining, to the mergers involved.

https://www.company-histories.com/Fresh ... story.html
Unfortunately the article's chronology cuts off after 1999, and does not address the subsequent history of the company nor the closure of the chains.
"The pale pastels which have been featured in most food stores during the past 20 years are no longer in tune with the mood of the 1970s."
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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Andrew, after years of lurking I was prompted to create an account just to reply to this thread. I ate at the Princeton Western Steer many times growing up, as well as their location over in Tazewell (my paternal and maternal grandparents, respectively). And no, nary a soul went there for "steak", just the All-You-Can-Stuff-Into-Your-Maw version of a Human Trough.

I also have some thoughts and memories of both the Deskins along with ACME/A-Mart chains once prevalent in southwestern Virginia and southern West Virginia. I was born across the street from Princeton's first ACME/A-Mart combo, in what was then Memorial Hospital downtown just off Courthouse Square. My mother's relatives were (and are) scattered around McDowell County, so both family chains were large parts of my growing up - to the point that "Mr. Sidney" Peery (never Mr. Peery, but always Mr. Sidney) was a member of my late grandmother's church in North Tazewell.
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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Mike Reaser wrote: 22 Jun 2020 20:04 Andrew, after years of lurking I was prompted to create an account just to reply to this thread. I ate at the Princeton Western Steer many times growing up, as well as their location over in Tazewell (my paternal and maternal grandparents, respectively). And no, nary a soul went there for "steak", just the All-You-Can-Stuff-Into-Your-Maw version of a Human Trough.

I also have some thoughts and memories of both the Deskins along with ACME/A-Mart chains once prevalent in southwestern Virginia and southern West Virginia. I was born across the street from Princeton's first ACME/A-Mart combo, in what was then Memorial Hospital downtown just off Courthouse Square. My mother's relatives were (and are) scattered around McDowell County, so both family chains were large parts of my growing up - to the point that "Mr. Sidney" Peery (never Mr. Peery, but always Mr. Sidney) was a member of my late grandmother's church in North Tazewell.
Hi Mike! Small world, small world!

On the Western Steer front, I found something interesting lately while browsing old magazines: A 1986 Consumer Reports restaurant survey in which the chain was the top-rated steakhouse. I wasn't expecting that! Maybe their quality went into a tailspin when the 1980s became the 1990s.
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"The pale pastels which have been featured in most food stores during the past 20 years are no longer in tune with the mood of the 1970s."
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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Andrew T. wrote: 26 Jun 2020 19:38
Hi Mike! Small world, small world!

On the Western Steer front, I found something interesting lately while browsing old magazines: A 1986 Consumer Reports restaurant survey in which the chain was the top-rated steakhouse. I wasn't expecting that! Maybe their quality went into a tailspin when the 1980s became the 1990s.
First off, I dunno how I missed this last year, my utter and deepest apologies!

I've perused your website, and I gotta admit that I've derived a not-small amount of humour and glee from the thought that there are two Gay Canuckistani Mercerians out here in the wild. LOL

As to the Consumer Reports survey, notice that Bob Evans was the top-rated "family restaurant" just as the Steer was the top-rated "steak house". I suspect that those sneer quotes were used for a pertinent reason...
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

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Mike Reaser wrote: 07 Jul 2021 00:17I've perused your website, and I gotta admit that I've derived a not-small amount of humour and glee from the thought that there are two Gay Canuckistani Mercerians out here in the wild. LOL
Mike! A chance in a million! Are you anywhere remotely close to northern Ontario, by any chance? I'd love to connect.
"The pale pastels which have been featured in most food stores during the past 20 years are no longer in tune with the mood of the 1970s."
Andrew Turnbull
75149
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

Post by 75149 »

Andrew T. wrote: 10 Jun 2020 17:33
75149 wrote: 10 Jun 2020 03:16 LOTS of details at this page. From the parent companies begining, to the mergers involved.

https://www.company-histories.com/Fresh ... story.html
Unfortunately the article's chronology cuts off after 1999, and does not address the subsequent history of the company nor the closure of the chains.

Sorry bro, I don't write them, just passing it along.
Mike Reaser
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Re: Whatever became of Western Steer Steakhouse?

Post by Mike Reaser »

Andrew T. wrote: 11 Jul 2021 13:21 Mike! A chance in a million! Are you anywhere remotely close to northern Ontario, by any chance? I'd love to connect.
Unfortunately, no. :(

My ex-husband and I lived just outside Stouffville ON (in the GTA just north of Markham) for five years starting in 2008 after fleeing Nashville TN, then moved west to Vancouver in 2013 and divorced in 2019.
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