Introduction
Pinnacle Peak Patio, Front Entrance.
On June 28, 2015 Pinnacle Peak Patio will close its doors. As a tribute to a special place and time, we are publishing an article, in three parts, that describes the early history of Pinnacle Peak Patio. This is the last part. The article was originally published in the May 2000 issue of A Peek at the Peak magazine. Most of the photographs included with this article are from the editor’s book “Pinnacle Peak – Images of America.” Les Conklin, Editor
Thank You Pinnacle Peak Patio! – Part 1 of 3 – Published May 15, 2015
Thank You Pinnacle Peak Patio! – Part 2 of 3 – Published May 17, 2015
Pinnacle Peak Patio Dishes Up Steaks with a Side of Local History
Part 3 of 3
By Nancy Lucas and Don Schoenau
As published in A Peek at the Peak magazine, May 2000
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In 1962, Bill Thurston and Marv Dickson prepared steaks for hungry customers. Photo Courtesy of Marv Dickson.
All the steaks, chicken and ribs are grilled over specially ordered mesquite. To determine how the steaks are done, Marv “goes by looks. You can almost tell, I don’t cut or poke them. You can tell. After those many years.” Marv estimates that he has grilled over 11 million steaks in his 39 years at the Patio. Customers who request a steak well done always get “the boot,” an old, dirty scuffed cowboy boot that goes on a plate and is presented to the patron.
The Peak is very popular with tour groups from all over the world and with corporate and private events, such as weddings, anniversaries, birthday parties and bar and bat mitzvahs. The first big, corporate event was Pepsi Cola. Richard Boone and Joan Crawford were part of the group. Marv recalls, “I was working the grill where I usually work and Richard Boone (of Have Gun Will Travel) came in and looked at my gun and said ‘Oh, that’s what I wear, a .45.”
This 1960s photograph of the dining area shows neckties hanging from the rafters. Courtesy of Marv Dickson.
Originally, the menu was recited by the wait staff. That was easy because the only item on it was a two-pound porterhouse, with salad, beans and bread at $3.50. The same dish now costs $24.99. Now the menu is printed and offers four types of steaks, chicken, ribs, burgers and baked potato and corn on the cob in addition as side dishes. For desert there is cheesecake, apple pie and ice cream. I can personally vouch for the apple pie and ice cream as a superb way to finish the meal.
The restaurant was originally owned by Bill and Dorothy DePew. After they divorced, Dorothy kept the Pinnacle Peak Patio. Later she sold the restaurant to three businessmen for $750,000. When one of the businessmen was forced to leave by the other two, a court battle began over ownership rights. After a lengthy court battle, Harvey McElhanon gained ownership and is still the owner today.
Sign Posted in Pinnacle Peak Area, 1958. Photo Courtesy of Marv Dickson.
Pinnacle Peak Patio is an “organic” theme restaurant, meaning: it wasn’t planned, it naturally developed that way. Red and white plastic table cloths over wooden tables with benches, sawdust on the floor, country music playing, the smell of mesquite, wait staff with holstered guns (not loaded), and the sound of laughter. This is a place that when you step inside you are in a different time and place, with rules of its own. A place, inside those doors, of cowboys, ranchers, guns, and a time when we didn’t worry about cholesterol. The Patio’s customers come from all walks of life, from Hell’s Angels to members of government, and everything in between. Celebrities or “regular folk,” they all come for a little taste of the West.
The Patio is a reminder that we are only the latest in line of inhabitants to be lucky enough to live in this beautiful area. As recently as 1980, before most of us were here, there was on Pinnacle Peak Road saying, “You are now entering Pinnacle Peak Village Limits, Unincorporated, Population: 47+ humans 12, horses 3, cattle 11, dogs 5, cats 10 burro 1, rattlesnakes 4 +?, Elevation 2800 feet.”
Marv has seen this neighborhood through nearly four decades of change, on April 4, 2000 it will be 39 years-old exactly. In the old days, the Patio’s only neighbors were distant ranches. Now the Patio is within snuggling distance of resorts, golf courses, and housing developments. Occasionally a nearby resident complain about the noise of the nightly country western band. But like the coyote, rattlesnake and javelina, the Patio was here way before they were. “All the time I’ve been up here I never thought it would be like this in my whole life. I figured there would be some changes, but never like this.”
1970s Pinnacle Peak Patio postcard with Pinnacle Peak in the background. Courtesy of Marv Dickson.
Related Articles
Thank You Pinnacle Peak Patio! – Part 1 of 3 – Published May 15, 2015
Thank You Pinnacle Peak Patio! – Part 2 of 3 – Published May 17, 2015
Thank You Pinnacle Peak Patio! – Part 3 or 3 – Published May 19, 2015
Editor Note. “Pinnacle Peak, Images of America, written by Les Conklin and the Greater Pinnacle Peak Association and published by Arcadia Publishing is available on Amazon.com and other major book sellers. For a signed copy and to save postage, contact The Peak.
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