To be clear, my experiences are probably different than most people. I have eaten at thousands of restaurants around the world. And I can cook. So when I review a place it is with this context.

My experience at Cattleman's was just OK. The place brought to mind a feeling that this is where your grandparents would take the family for a special dinner because they think you'd like it. And you would go because you'd think it would make them happy. And everyone would have a good time because they'd all be together. Not because of the food.

The grounds are interesting. It's like a mini zoo, with ostriches, goats, rabbits, snakes, peacocks... Even a horse just outside the front door that you can touch.

Inside is a menagerie of bronze western sculptures, some WW2 artillery (?), ceramic animal figures, a gazillion potted plants, some TexMex artwork, and more. Cattleman's does not take reservations so you walk down a really long hallway, put your name in, and wait. They call you over the PA system which also works outside so you can sit outdoors while you wait. Just don't go to the zoo area unless your wait is more than 30 minutes. It's a bit of a walk.

Now, to the food. Based on all of the great reviews maybe I hit them on an off night because I was underwhelmed. The portions were huge (way too much food for an average person) but... the corn on the cob was frozen and then steamed to warm it up. It was overcooked (this will be a theme). The coleslaw was alright (your standard shredded cabbage (bagged?)) but they added some canned pineapple chunks. The beans were overcooked and neither sweet nor spicy. I had a couple of bites and moved on. All of this may come from their local supplier like Sysco Foods.

Maybe I made a mistake going with the barbeque but it was on the menu as 'real Texas barbeque' supposedly slow smoked overnight. I've had lots of barbeque, in Austin, and Dallas, and KC, Memphis, North and South Carolina... This? Was not good. Near as I could tell it was probably yesterday's brisket that they had left over and reheated. It was a solid hunk of dry meat. I needed a steak knife to cut through it. No juice whatsoever. A bit of bark. Not really overcooked. Just old I think. I got the Beef and Ribs which included 2 beef ribs. These were 100% overcooked. Weirdly though, they tasted better than the brisket (different rub?) but they were also dried out. Not even fall-off-the-bone so I'm guessing they cooked them too quickly and then just held them off to the side of the grill or in an oven for far too long. There were also dinner rolls which I did not try. An iced tea rounded out my meal as after the mains I did not have any hopes for the 'made fresh daily' (ah, yes, but where?) apple pie.

With tip, I was in for $41, which when you consider it was enough food for 2 people, and there were peacocks, seems reasonable.

This place is 30+ miles outside El Paso. It was fairly busy at 7:00 PM on a Friday evening in May. If I was with a family group and it was a special occasion I might come back. Otherwise there are better places to eat much closer to town.