Review: H3 Ranch Restaurant in Fort Worth is Wood Grilling at Its Best

I recently made my first visit to Hunter Brothers' H3 Ranch, Live Hickory Wood Grill restaurant (better know as H3 Ranch) located at 109 East Exchange Ave. at Main St. in the Stockyards area of Ft. Worth. It won't be my last visit to this rustic restaurant.

After strolling around the old west styled Stockyards area, and looking desperately to find a great place to take out of state guests for dinner, a Ft. Worth police officer on his patrol horse saved the day. He highly recommended we try H3 for their delicious Texas style BBQ and steaks and promised we would not be disappointed. How right he was.

H3 Ranch describes itself as a "Live Hickory Wood Grill", and that's just what it tasted like. My party and I were greeted as soon as we walked in the door and were seated immediately. The interior has the original wood floor that is over 100 years old. The brick building is an original as well and is well taken care of. Our server Mo was quite attentive and helpful in answering our many questions about the food and beverages. Everyone wanted something different, but all four of us wound up raving about our meals. The first thing Mo did was bring everyone water and a basket of fresh baked bread. The bread and butter were so good it was hard to stop nibbling on it!

I kept it simple because I was not as hungry as the others. I ordered the chips with layered dip called "Nine Miles of Dirt Road". It is a nine layer dip of beans, cheese, guacamole, sour cream and more. It comes in a small black cast iron pan with fresh chips, and it was very tasty. One of our guest ordered chicken fried steak with fries and he ate every last bit of it. He described it as tender, delicious and with nice gravy on top. Because he loves to try new beers, he ordered a bottle of "Buffalo Butt Beer" and declared it "the best beer I've ever had!" My "Nine Miles of Dirt Road" is listed under appetizers and it cost just under $9. The chicken fried steak dinner was just under $17 and the beer was $4 for one bottle.

Another guest in my party ordered the half rack of pork ribs with beans and corn on the cob. It cost just under $18 and looked and smelled wonderful on the cast iron skillet plate. She thoroughly enjoyed her meal and said it was some of the best ribs she has ever had. The fourth member of our party ordered the "Cowtown Sirloin" with a loaded baked potato for $24. She described her sirloin as very tender and tasty and loved that the baked potato was cooked with sea salt on the exterior.

Our overall experience at H3 Ranch with atmosphere, service and quality of food was definitely 5 out of 5 stars. I thought the quality of the food made the prices worthwhile and would certainly recommend that anyone visiting the historic Ft. Worth Stockyards stop in for a wonderful meal at H3 Ranch.

H3 Ranch offers valet parking right outside the restaurant for free if you get your parking voucher stamped at the restaurant. There are also parking lots in the Stockyards area that offer parking for $1 to $2 an hour. The restaurant hours are 11 am to 10 pm Monday-Thursday and 11 am to 1 am on Fridays. Saturdays hours are 9 am to 12 am (I hear the breakfast menu is terrific!) and Sundays are 9 am to 10 pm. You can make reservations or walk right in for your dining experience. H3 Ranch can be contacted at 1-817-624-1246 or you can visit their website here.

Source: Author's opinion and www.h3ranch.com