Buffalo Chips Saloon & Steakhouse

CE — Wed, 21 Nov 2018 16:45:36 +0000

BOOT SCOOTIN’ REVIEW Country Western Dance

Buffalo Chip Saloon and Steakhouse

6823 E. Cave Creek Rd.

Cave Creek, Az 85331

RATING: 4.5 out of 5 stars

INSIDE AND OUT:

This venue is surprisingly very large. As you enter, the dance floor is to your left and tables/sitting areas are around it and the bar is towards the back. The kitchen is to the right beyond another large area. Next, out back they have a very large outside seating area for their BBQ and LIVE BULL riding arena (across from the BBQ). This is one happening place when all areas are being used! Nice western décor. Wild West Days are being celebrated this weekend, Nov.9- 11, 2018. Lots going on! See Buffalo Chip website for specifics.

Cover Charge:

Age range: All Ages

Dress Code: For ideas on Country Western Dance Apparel and Accessories see Products tab.

Dance Floor: Medium Size dance floor inside, and outside, very large area that people dance in spontaneously

Dance Mix: 80% two-Stepping and couple dancing with 20% line-dancing

Live Music: LIVE Music every Tuesday-Friday and Sundays at 8pm and Saturdays at 9pm

Dance Music: 95% Danceable Country Western Music played all night.

Dancing: Dances are not called, and the dance floor gets very crowded after about 8pm, so it’s very difficult to dance around the edge of the dance floor two-steppin’. This means you end up dancing in one spot on a very crowded dance floor.

Dance Lessons: FREE on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays at 7pm. The instructor was very good and we had fun taking the lesson. We love Country Western dance!

Food: We had a salad and sweet potatoes fries that were good!

Beverages: Iced Tea (with free refills since we bought it with dinner. Also beer, soda, wine, spirits

Restrooms: Very clean

Security: Understated if so, not noticeable

ATMOSPHERE: Staff was very friendly and kept very busy with all the customers. Lots of locals and tourists as well. Met people from other states as well as people that come on a weekly basis.

NEWBIES: Go early to dance as it gets very crowded later. There are plenty of experienced dancers to follow. Definitely take the lessons if you really want to learn how to dance.

Specifics:

Lots of jeans, boots and hats worn. Definitely all western and FUN activities! It is a very positive and upbeat venue. Just loved the atmosphere and all the activities.

FINAL THOUGHTS: Try to go there during one of their event days. There are activities for all ages. Their Mutton Bustin’ on Friday Nights reminds me of the Fiesta Day Rodeo in San Antonio Texas (where I lived). The kids riding are amazing and they hang on for dear life like champs!

Overall, we thought this was a terrific and historical cowboy dancing saloon. We loved the feel of the inside and the corrals and the bull riding out back. The crowd was very enthusiastic and the dance floor packed for most every dance. People were very nice and there was a loud and animated crowd. We loved the whole night and all the fun we had dancing and socializing. We did feel that what was missing though, was an occasional dance being called by the DJ or the band. Many venues we have visited, that have big crowds, at least call an occasional dance. For example, calling a two step would limit the floor to only two- step dancing, moving around the dance floor instead of being stuck in one spot. At crowded venues, this made dancing a little more fun for all levels of dancers.

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Harold’s Cave Creek Corral

CE — Tue, 13 Nov 2018 22:59:03 +0000

This is a historic site with a history in Hollywood Films and a flamboyant owner.

BOOT SCOOTIN’ REVIEW

Harold’s Cave Creek Corral

RATING: 3 STARS *** (OUT OF 5)

6895 E. Cave Creek Rd.

Cave Creek, AZ 85331

INSIDE: This is a place of yesteryear. Movie stars, and people that built the dam took respite here. Formal table cloths greet the diners. Lots of old pictures on the walls and a forward on the menu which tells of the venue’s history. It’s a historic venue est. established in 1935. Dance floor was right off the dining area. The night we were there started with DJ music and dance lessons and then the LIVE band followed.

Cover Charge:

Age range: All Ages, it’s a family restaurant

Dress Code: Casual, lots of cowboy hats and boots worn by the diners.

Dance Floor: Small dance floor area but looks like they could expand it into the dining area. They said they did move the tables, several times a year for big events, but the night we were there they didn’t.

Dance Mix: Can’t really say as the opportunity to dance was not there. The live band came on and only played pop/rock.

Dance Music: A Live Band was there the night we attended but they played more rock than anything else and we did not find a danceable country western song to dance to.

Dancing: We danced minimally

Dance Lessons: Good but sparsely attended there was only one other couple besides ourselves

Food: Was good but they were out of their ice cream/sherbet that night. They have a very large and very nice seating area inside and out on the patio.

Beverages: Alcohol, Beer, Wine & Iced Tea

Restrooms: Very clean

Security: Understated in that we did not notice any staff other than the door person and the restaurant staff. We did not see security type people outwardly dressed as such.

ATMOSPHERE: Nice table dining areas and historic western motif. Most of the diners looked to be locals eating there because of the good food. Very few stayed and danced though.

NEWBIES: No advice based on this visit. Most of the dancing was free dance. We sat and listened for about an hour without dancing. Our advice is to call ahead or look on their website to see what type of music they will be playing before you decide to go there to Country Western dance.

Specifics: Seemed like country western dancing was just not on the agenda that night even though they are referred to as a country western dance venue. But, it was not the emphasized when we attended.

FINAL THOUGHTS: Would need to visit again to get the full flavor of this place. Our feeling about Harold’s is that, it is a very unique restaurant and dancing venue that has been around for 80 years and we really liked the old-time western feel of the place along with its illustrious history. It has the feel of the 30s-50s restaurant that probably loves to let it rip several times a year. If they’d move the tables, had a great country western band play, and had the dance floor full with of dancers two-steppin’ the night away it would have been perfect! Unfortunately, we weren’t there on one of those nights. No tables were moved, no country western playing band materialized and nobody tore up the dance floor. We were there on a night that had only a handful of dancers that danced to a very average pop/rock band. This review is based on that one moment in time. We hope to visit again in 2019 on a big night at Harold’s Corral.

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Cave Creek – BOOT SCOOTIN' REVIEW™

Buffalo Chips Saloon & Steakhouse

Harold’s Cave Creek Corral