Texas Roadhouse: The way Bangor may be won City’s new eatery promises steaks fit for a cowboy – or a Yank

Those with a hankering for a good cut of meat now have a new option. They can visit the best little roadhouse in Texas.

Actually, Texas Roadhouse, a national chain of more than 200 restaurants, opened Monday in the new Bangor Parkade, located diagonally across from the Bangor Mall 10 Cinemas on Stillwater Avenue in Bangor. Founded in 1993 in Clarksville, Ind., Texas Roadhouse is now in 39 states, with the Bangor location the first in Maine.

What’s the key thing to understand about Texas Roadhouse, whose mascot is Andy Armadillo?

“Everything we do is fresh,” explained Jim Fostun, managing partner at the restaurant. “The salad dressing, the sides, the breads … a meat cutter in house cuts the meat fresh daily.”

What’s on the menu? Those looking for bean sprouts and tofu should go elsewhere. But those looking for down-home cooking won’t be disappointed. The entrees include steaks, fall-off-the-bone ribs, various styles of chicken and catfish, and burgers and chicken sandwiches for lunch. For appetizers, there’s the cactus blossom (a fried, sliced onion with Cajun horseradish dipping sauce), chicken critters (battered strips of chicken) and rattlesnake bites (rounds of hand-battered diced jalapenos and jack cheese). There are also two levels of children’s meals, depending on the child’s appetite.

While reservations aren’t taken, there is call-ahead seating, in which diners can call to put their names on a waiting list and get an estimate of when a table will be available.

On one recent day, the eatery’s 160 full- and part-time employees, garbed in camouflage gear or black logo T-shirts, were in the midst of a week of intensive training, to be capped by two nights of half the staff taking turns serving the other half.

A couple of women near the host station were fervently practicing some dance steps. “We line dance every hour,” Fostun explained matter-of-factly.

The interior had a cozy, kitschy feel. In the waiting-area windows were murals of Andy and Willie Nelson, whose tour the chain sponsors. Contrary to rumors, Fostun didn’t expect Nelson at the Monday opening. On the warm wooden walls were autographed photos and caricatures of country-music performers, animal trophies, neon bar signs, cacti and colorful serapes. There was a good-natured, anticipatory buzz in the air.

Fostun has vacationed in Bar Harbor for seven years, ever since opening another restaurant in central Maine eight years ago.

So why does he believe that Bangor is ready for this northern-most Texas Roadhouse?

“I truly believe that great food and good service can succeed anywhere,” Fostun said.

Texas Roadhouse, at 504 Stillwater Ave., can be reached at 262-6122. For information, visit www.texasroadhouse.com. Dale McGarrigle can be reached at 990-8028 and dmcgarrigle@bangordailynews.net.