Eating Wyoming: Although A "Blip On The Map," There's Great Food In Hawk Springs

In one of the most unlikely places in Wyoming on a highway with nothing much around, there’s a restaurant that has served the rich and famous and is listed in an international guidebook as one of Wyoming’s must-see locations.

It’s The Emporium, barely a blip on the map along U.S. Highway 85 near Hawk Springs in what most would probably describe as a “wide spot” in the road.

Hawk Springs has a population of just 45 — not the numbers one would expect to support a top-notch steakhouse with prime rib, steaks, burgers and more, as well as Papa’s special buttermilk pie.

But the restaurant has a secret edge in its unlikely location. It is the perfect distance from Denver International Airport for global tourists on their way to the Black Hills.

“From Denver to here, it’s about two hours,” Dillon Simmons, daughter of the restaurant’s owner, told Cowboy State Daily. “So, they’re ready to get out, if Cheyenne didn’t catch them ahead of time.”

If Cheyenne did catch them ahead of time, not to worry. Most of the tourists who stop at the restaurant the first time around just wanted to use the restroom. But when they come out, they start looking around.

What Dillon commonly hears is, “Oh wow, this is really cool.”

And that’s when she knows The Emporium has hooked another customer who will undoubtedly be back to try the restaurant the next time they pass through.

The other thing Dillion thinks impresses tourists and brings them back is her dad, Dennis Simmons.

After a lifetime of traveling Wyoming himself, he knows all the best places for tourists to go, and he’s not shy about sharing what he knows.

“My dad is notorious for getting out the map,” Dillon said. “We provide these Black Hills maps, and he will tell them routes to take and places to stop along the way. He is very well known for that. He’s like a tour guide for these folks.”

Ten Years Ago, A Series Of Fortunate Events

Simmons started The Emporium 10 years ago somewhat by accident after his daughter graduated from college.

What he was really trying to do was clean up the building next door that had become, in his opinion, an eyesore giving his town a black eye.

“At the time, we were trying to get a water-sewer system in here,” he said. “So, I felt like if I did something like that, other people would take note and see that commitment to the town.”

Getting the building cleaned up was one thing, but figuring out what to do with it was something else.

As he thought back to the little prom party he’d thrown for his daughter and her friends during their senior year in high school, the answer to his conundrum became a little clearer.

He had served them all this wonderful prime rib dinner, with twice-baked potatoes and all the fixings. It was so good his daughter still talks about it.

Why not a restaurant, then, with prime rib featured on the menu?

“We’ve worked on the menu a long time, and we’re constantly changing it,” Dennis told Cowboy State Daily. “And then ‘Restaurant Impossible’ has helped influence it a little bit. We took some ideas from them, but mainly what we try to do is just bring in good Western atmosphere and foods. We do a lot of barbecue, and our prime rib sandwich is a knockout. We advertise it as Wyoming’s best, and we believe it is.”

One of the other “best” items on the menu is a buttermilk pie that comes from a family recipe.

“That’s a combination of a little bit of coconut, buttermilk and pecans,” Dennis said. “It’s a play on a pecan pie, and it has rum in it, too. It’s just a really good, rich piece of pie, with the best ice cream on top of it.”

The pie is something Dennis’ mom used to make for Thanksgiving dinner or other special occasions.

“A lot of the things I make have been influenced by my mother, because I spent a lot of time cooking with her growing up,” Dennis said. “And I lived in Jackson Hole for a lot of years, so I got to experience a lot of great cuisine up there.”

All of that experience is reflected on The Emporium’s menu, which features heartier fare in winter, and lots of fresh salads in summer.

“I’ve never had any formal training at all,” Dennis said. “Other than visiting with chefs and things like that. And I always enjoyed cooking with the family.”

Where History Hangs On The Walls

One of the fun things about the restaurant is all the history hanging on its walls and sitting on shelves. Everywhere people look, they’re bound to see something that catches the eye.

There’s a horseshoe above the door to the kitchen that was a gift from “Born on the Fourth of July” actor Stephen Baldwin. He is among the famous that have been served at the restaurant, along with Wyoming Olympic hero Rulon Gardner, and others.

There are also photographs and paintings of cowboys and family members, some of them made by Dennis’ father, as well as sculptures of Native Americans and cowboy hats — things that fit the restaurant’s rustic Western flair.

One of the most special items is a rifle scabberd that was carved by the late professional bull rider and leather worker Eugene Bechtel, a family friend.

“You know, he lived here, and he just had a great sense of humor,” Dennis said. “And he has passed away, but he just had so much good in him. A great, great guy. He didn’t get to live to see the restaurant, but his memory is with me and with us.”

Always Evolving

Other treasures are being returned to the restaurant bit by bit, Dennis told Cowboy State Daily. They had been cleared away as clutter during “Restaurant Impossible’s” visit in 2020 for an episode that aired in January 2021.

But packing a restaurant and bar full of Western artifacts is a Wyoming tradition that Dennis and Dillon believe their customers, who include many tourists during the summer, appreciate seeing and experiencing, so they are coming back out of hiding.

“I’ve got picture of where I was born in Montana, and Charlie Russell paintings,” Dennis said. “And I’ve got, you know, I’ve got stuff from my barber shop in Jackson that was called the Clip Joint. And I just saved all those things because they’ve got good memories to me.”

That also includes the things his father carved and the paintings his father made, particularly a portrait of Steve Reed, who came and helped set up the restaurant 10 years ago. Reed’s portrait sits near the cash register, where it can oversee everything that’s happening.

“He has since passed away, but he opened restaurants all over the place,” Dennis said. “And he came in and helped me set up the original menu because he’d done it, this one was his 40th.”

Dennis and Dillon hope to have their Western artifacts and mementoes back in their rightful places ahead of a special 10-year anniversary party planned for May 4.

“It’s a May the Fourth be with you party,” Dillon said, laughing at their “Star Wars” pun.

Steven Castle, from Fort Collins, will perform on acoustic guitar, and there will be horseshoes out in the park.

“We’re going to do a bunch of good Mexican food — some enchiladas, some street tacos — and then we’ll have some other stuff too,” Dennis said. “It will be a nice buffet, and it’s going to be free to all the people who have helped make us successful.”

Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.